Recently, Sidhu had the pleasure of interviewing one of the best groups on the desi music scene in Canada, namely 'Sound Ministry.' Their debut release was 'Pure Hip Hop Volume 2' and they also featured heavily on the 'Americas Most Wanted' album. They are signed up to UK based record label 'Envy/Roma.'
1) Tell us more about your backgrounds. I mean, how did the duo Sound Ministry get together? What made you guys think that you both could do it together?
We have been best friends for a very long time. We both had an interest in music at a young age. We started off playing in a local bhangra band.. When the band broke up we started deejaying together. We started making our own music and beats. Experimenting here and there. Kal and I work well together. We know what the other is thinking and our musical styles are very similar. We were listening to the music that was out there at the time and we felt confident that we could compete. We just needed an opportunity to break into the scene.
2) What was your first music project which you released anywhere, like did you released any bootlegged album, as many DJs in North America do?
Our first project was on the album Master of Destiny. We did a track called Sabh Toh Sohnia by Saira Khan. We also did the music for a couple of the other tracks on that album. The song got a good response and from that we got placed on other albums (Death Jamm 5, Escape, Dippa's Reload). All the tracks we did for these albums were originals. We felt that if we were going to make it in the industry we wanted to be true to the music. The Sound Ministry didn't want to be labelled as "Remix DJ's".
3) What influenced each of you, to enter the music industry? Did your families supported you all too? Or did you have to get the success yourself, to prove them wrong?
Music has always been a big part of our life. We would watch the Asian programs and listen to Punjabi CD's and we would always say to each other. "We have to get into the music scene". Both of our dads were in the music business. They both played at shows and that striked an interest in us. Our families are happy for us and they have always been very supportive. Its funny because they didn't realize how serious it was for us until they saw our faces on the cover of an album. A lot of people didn't take us very seriously, which didn't bother us. It actually made us work harder.
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4) In the album, Pure Hip Hop 2 (which was a great accomplishment), you had the track called America's Most Wanted, rumours say it was directed at Bally Sagoo, is it just a rumour or is it a fact? If this is fact, then why did you do it?
That track was actually a trailer for the upcoming album Americas Most Wanted. We produced the music for that trailer but we did not come up with the dialogue. People can take it however they want. There was never any mention of him in the track. We have alot of respect for Bally Sagoo and what he has done for the industry. A lot of people have taken shots |
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| at us but we just laugh. It's all good, and we know nobody means any harm by it (at least we hope not!) |
5) How did you end up signing up for UK based label Envy/Roma?
They liked the work we did on Master of Destiny so they decided to give us a shot. It was a great accomplishment for us because not many artists from North America get signed in the UK, especially with a top company like Envy/Roma.
6) The track 'Tenu Bolundee' which was an amazing dance tune that was accredited to you (Sound Ministry), DJ Sanj & Binder. Without actually being their when this superb production was taking place it's difficult to see who actually did what? I mean, what was the 'Sound Ministry's' contribution to this phat tune?
Tenu Bolundee is a great track. We did the bass line for that track and helped out with the composition. On the cover of Americas Most Wanted it Says Sanj, Sound Ministry & Binder. Sanj and Sound Ministry produced the album together. Binder was the vocalist on some of the tracks. Because we are new to the game a lot of people credited that album just to Sanj (which kinda sucked) but no worries. Like the saying goes, " Good things come to those who wait."
7) How did you hook up with DJ Sanj? What it is like to work with him? What do you think of his production skills?
We met him at a gig that we were performing at in Dallas like 5 years ago. Since then we have become really good friends. Sanj is a great artist and his production skills are tight. Working with him is fun. When the three of us get together in the studio we have a blast and as a team we come up with some really good work i.e. Americas Most Wanted
8) How did you come up with the name 'Sound Ministry'?
Honest truth. We saw a name of some group called Ministry of Sound and switched it around. Hey nobody said we were creative with names. It was better than our other ideas; The Kookard Clan or Kals idea was the Alloo Gobi Crew!!
9) Will both of you go to solo careers too? Like Bally Jagpal did solo projects while remaining with his band B21. Do you think you guys will do this or is it always going to be Sound Ministry, the team that rules for you?
Who knows what the future holds. It may be possible. Right now we are concentrating on the present and that means Sound Ministry bangin out phat tunez for the people. We have a good chemistry together but if we did persue solo careers that's just twice the trouble for all you other artists out there!(JUST KIDDING...MAYBE) Ha!!
10) How would you compare the music scenes in North America (Canada & USA) with that in the UK? I mean, which would you say is the best? What do you think could be done to improve the scene in North America?
It's different here, different styles, and different type of attitude. Typically North American artists are labelled, as Bootleggers and I understand why. Out here you have so many DJ's that remix original tracks so it makes us look bad. They need to get out of bootlegging and start doing more original work. On that note we have to also say that there is definitely a lot of talent here in Canada and the U.S. and we believe that North America will become a dominant force in the Asian Music Scene.
11) What is your opinion on the use of hip-hop samples in bhangra? I mean do you think it's ok or should we be producing our own music?
It doesn't really bother us. Most of our music is original work but we have sampled in some of our bhangra tracks. In almost every hit track you hear there is some form of sampling. Even mainstream artists sample from Desi's now. I guess if the fans love it then that's all that matters. If we want to break the barriers then it need's to change. Its funny because the UK seems to always put down North Americans and say that we are nothing but pirate remixers yet most of these "original" albums coming from the UK have illegal samples, which is not good for the scene.
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12) What should we expect from the 'Sound Ministry' in the near future?
You can expect the Sound Ministry to hit the industry hard in 2003. In February we are releasing our new album called Break It Down. Its gonna be jam packed with Punjabi tunez geared for the clubs and weddings. We are also looking at breaking into the mainstream market. We currently produced a couple of tracks for the girl band Sugar Jones that should be releasing in the UK soon. Watch out for Hollywood Harv's debut album that has a couple of our tracks on it as well as Sanj's EP, Hype which features tracks produced by us. Things are looking good and we are determined to prove to the world that UK artists are not the only ones that can make hits. |
13) Do you have a final message for the thousands of desitunes4u.com visitors all over the world?
First off all, thanx to Irfan and the rest of the desitunes4u crew for hooking up the interview. This site is hype. To all that are reading this interview, The Sound Ministry just want to say thanks for those who do support us and enjoy our music. We aim to please and we hope you continue to enjoy our work. Stay tuned because the Sound Ministry Crew are gonna take the industry by storm. Peace!
That concludes the interview, firstly a big thanks to Neil & Kal (better known as Sound Ministry) for taking some time out to do the interview. They have alot of tunes releasing soon so watchout for them, plus of course their brand new album, namely 'Break It Down' which promises to be top as these guys are just getting better and better. You can contact them yourself via e-mail at soundministry@hotmail.com.
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