Welcome back everyone, summer time is here and I am giving you all info you need to stay clued up in the sun about what's happening in the desi scene…
It's a summer of football this year, with Euro 2004 kicking off in Portugal, and one of the artists catching the fever is Jay Sean. Jay is set to perform at a charity event aimed at tackling racism in football, the event also coincides with the release of his new single 'Eyes on you', which is out on the 21st June. He's in HMV stores up and down the country signing copies of the new single. So if you want to see the Asian RnB sensation in person then get down to HMV on the given dates. The single will be in two formats: CD 1 will feature Eyes On You & Jay Sean v's Jay Sean and CD 2 will feature 'Eyes On You' along with a Radio Edit, Video Edit, Rishi Rich Club Mix, Drew Soul Mix and an 'exclusive' Laxman remix of 'Dance With You.' The Rishi Rich Projects' Kiss 100 show is now available to listen back to via the Kiss 100 website for all of you non-london peeps, and even you non-UK folk.
Canadian star Raghav is set to release his new single 'Lets Work It Out' on August 23rd. The song has already received airplay on several networks and has a similar style to his previous hit 'Can't Get Enough'. The track again uses the Hindi sample and is put together by the producer extraordinaire known as Mushtaq. The single will have a remix by Birmingham producer J Skillz, who promises to add "Pure punjabi bhangra" to the track, which has a Hindi vocal sample. "It's going to be the official B-side remix to the tune," he told Richard, apna desi gorrah "No-one else is involved, it's pure J Skillz production."
One of the biggest Bhangra radio shows has achieved a new step for the industry, as the Bobby Friction and Nihal show moves from its Saturday 3am graveyard slot to a new Wednesday night prime time slot at 9PM, starting from July. This is a massive achievement as once again Asian music continues to brake down barriers and move to the mainstream. Bobby Friction said "This is unbelievable news, a couple of years ago, Asian music on mainstream radio was a dream, then it became reality, and only in my wildest dreams, did I think, that Asian music, would make it to a mainstream time slot." Make sure you tune in and continue to support our music and shows in the mainstream.
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Deeyah, the Norwegian born Asian singer is releasing her first single "I Saw You" on the 5th of July. The track is set to be released under Brainwash Records and will be available in all the usual mainstream outlets. There will be a remix for the desi heads by Baadshah Khan, as well as a dirty south mix, which should prove popular with the RnB lovers. Her debut album 'Plan Of My Own' is set for release later in the year. The video for the track was shot in LA and captures Deeyah love of pop, hip-hop and rock music in one track. The track is also co-written by herself that is a rare achievement by a new artist. You can check her site at www.deeyah.com for more details. |
The UK Asian Music Awards are back this year, even bigger and better than last year. The official launch party for the event is on the 17th June. The party will features live performances from a star studded line up which includes Raghav, Panjabi Hit Squad, Dr Zeus, RDB, B21, Metz & Trix, Surinder Ratten, OZ & J Keys and UK Apache. The Awards will remain a publicly voted event with votes cast online and via SMS. However this time round they will introduce a prestigious industry panel responsible for deciding 2004's nominees. Last year the show got a late night highlights slot on ITV but this time it's all set to be broadcasted 'LIVE' on ITV, which is massive boost for the rapidly growing desi music scene.
Sneha Mistri has been busy working hard in an effort to increase her profile and generally get a bit more recognition. Talks are underway, which may see us seeing Mistri on our TV screens in the near future in a presenting role. At present, she is also playing with the idea of offering a download of her brand new track "Intoxicating". After a small internet/press campaign the download will go active in a few months. The full track will be available to listen to at www.snehamistri.com soon. The track has Mistri talking in Hindi at the start, followed by a very commercial / RnB tune with a catchy hook. It will be interesting to see whether this innovative idea of making the track downloadable will prove successful, and whether it will catch on.
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O.Z & JKeyz and are back with a brand new album called "2 Can Play This Game" it follows on from their last album 'Revolution' and their bollywood work in the form of a film track 'Khayalan Wich' a Bollywood version of the massive 'Without You' hit which featured on the Revolution. Following the huge success of this track they are in talks to do more work within the Bollywood industry. The duo's new album is set to be released around September this year and a taster track, has been sent to radio one so make sure you tune in to catch it. We promise you that the album is set to be massive, it is 100% original beats created by the very talented duo. Click here to view an interview they did with Seema not too long ago. |
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There are also rumours circulating about Sanj's tune 'The Next Episode' getting some type of re-release. After the huge impact 'Mundian To Bach Ke' had last year, many non-Asian Dj's found Sanj's sampled track to be the only other bhangra tune they were able to drop in clubs. The release could also include some samples of the Crooklyn Clan, who also sampled Dre's 'Next Episode' beat for their party track 'Let's Get Ill.' It remains to be seen whether Sanj will receive as much support as PMC did, and whether the tune will be as big - but good luck to him.
Dr Zeus has produced a track for an all girl band called Rouge. The tune will be available on the future Envy compilation album D-Unit - not the most original title. The album won't be out until next month some time. With a lot of English vocals, the track may just be testing the waters for some kind of mainstream release. The tune isn't bad, but not expecting it to do any major groundbreaking. Sounds like Master Rakesh is also featured on the track, with his unmistakable background vocals. The girls are not signed yet, but by the sounds of it, it will only be a matter of time.
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Mr "Ranjah Jogi" Mehsopuria has announced details of his forthcoming new album, out in early 2005; the album is called 'Immortal Dreams' and is expected to feature production from close friend Khiza. But before that we can expect to hear from 2 Dark, Mehsopuria's younger brother who is set to release his debut album in September this year, the album is called 'Hidden Depth.'
Latest Jassi Sidhu news is that he is currently working on a 'Greatest Hits' album for the Indian audience. Although the album will have old B21 tunes - it will also feature some brand new mixes. Jassi's engineer Simon Nandhra is also working on the follow up to his own controversial debut album. This album is going to be released soon on the Moviebox label. It will be called 'Underestimated' and will feature Master Rakesh amongst others. |
Another new Asian rapper is set to explode onto the scene in the form of G3 Nee, a young MC from Hackney, East London, whose lyrical talents in hip hop and ragga fused with bhangra beats are set to change the industry. G3 Nee promises to make Asian music more "real" by tackling real issues and experiences from his growing up in inner city urban area. Watch out for his track "2 Shotz" a freestyle track, which should be appearing on radio stations nationally.
Petey Pablo has a tune with Bubba Sparxx on his new album, using another Indian influenced beat. The track is called 'Get on this Motorcycle' and is a very energetic tune. The Indian influence is in the form of classical Indian type of vocals. Cassidy's smash hit 'Hotel' also got the desi remix influence by DJ Jive, in a pretty decent mix. The track is a bootleg, but listen out for it.
We'll finish of with some news in brief. A new name - DJ Vicious - has also stepped to the mainstream scene mixing up B2K's Freeeky tune. The tune samples PMC's dance floor smash 'Dhol Jageero Da' and at the moment is just a bootleg. It's a really interesting mix, so keep your ears open for that one. Shola Ama has sung on the latest retaliation to Mario Winans huge hit 'I Don't Wanna Know'. The track has been produced by The Pirates and although it also samples the same Enya sample, it also adds some eastern tabla beats. Naila Boss, fresh from her top 10 successes with Raghav also features on the tune. Heavy radio airplay is pushing the track for a release but I guess we'll have to wait and see what happens. UK hip hop act Mark B and Tommy Evans have also used an Asian hook for their tune 'Move Now', which looks like it will be getting a release - so keep an ear out for that one.
That's all for this month, keep checking out Desitunes4u.com for more exclusive interviews and reviews and of course more news from me! A big thanks to Richard and DJ Dev who contributed to this months update. |
