ALIEN's New Single Points An Artistic Middle Finger To Anti-Immigrant Ideology

Roopam Singh aka ALIEN started his career in rap as part of a trio called Triple Aces when he was studying at IP University. Originally from Gurgaon, Haryana, he started performing with Rishabh Nair and Rajat Kukreja in colleges under IP University in the hopes that word-of-mouth publicity will get them more shows, which it did. Triple Aces released a few tracks together and built a significant following in colleges and universities around 2009 in underground hip-hop, back when the genre in India was still in its infancy. Eventually, the artists went their separate ways and Roopam moved to Canada.

Years later, his music career jumpstarted when he decided it was time to resume rapping and producing again, which brings us to his latest release 'Supervillain Music'. For the track, Roopam sampled a Bollywood song from the 90s called Tu Kaun Hai, Tera Naam Kya from Akshay Kumar's Khiladiyon Ka Khiladi. Using a looping, menacing brass tune in its intro, Supervillain Music brings back the nostalgia of the sinister charm of some of our favourite Bollywood villains and combines it Roopam's dynamic flow in a creative blend of both old and the new.

"The track is a nod to the struggle of the Indian immigrant in foreign lands. It's no secret that it's hard for immigrants to make it in a system run by bigoted gatekeepers. Despite that, as I say in the song 'this Injun (Indian) don't 'could or would, he just goes'. It's to say that not everyone has the luxury of sitting around wallowing in their problems. When duty calls, you just go. There aren't always options," shares Roopam.

Supervillain Music is the artist's expression of the immigrant experience and coping with Brown stereotypes that see the Indian diaspora as 'meek and emasculated' also references the fascist, anti-immigrant views of the right in the West. Roopam wants to challenge that notion with a dose of a particularly desi and iconic sample mixed with his maverick personality that's translated through sublime lyrical aggression.

Follow Roopam here and watch the music video below.

If you enjoyed reading this, here's more from Homegrown:

Nazia Hassan: The Immortal Legacy Of South Asia’s Queen Of Pop

Eva B: How Pakistan's First Female Rapper Is Empowering Women Across The Country

Hip Hop Artist Yashraj’s New Music Video Is a High-Contrast Montage Of Metaphors