Rapping away your blues

Here's a hiphop collective to combat pandemic blues.

DIVINE, arguably India’s greatest hip-hop star (and the inspiration behind the Bollywood blockbuster Gully Boy) is evidently the last person to enjoy a lockdown. The street rapper known for his hard-hitting, often autobiographical lyrics, is combating his blues with a hip-hop and rap compilation album, titled, what else, ‘Shutdown’. The eight-track album features many well-known guest artistes, including US-based rapper Elvis Brown, KR$NA and Sikander Kahlon, among others.

For those who miss their all-nighters and are itching to party, ‘Bag’ by DIVINE, featuring KR$NA, is a treat. The lyrics will certainly remind you of the Ranveer Singh starrer while the base groove ‘bag leke gul’ is a sly commentary on our society’s greed and hypocricy. The commentary sharply turns personal when the lyrics go thus: ‘Rap me ye bolte they scope nahi hain: Ab aage peeche ghume KR$NA ke jaise gopi hain’.

Well, indeed. Let’s just say the lyrics are hardly hyperbole. It has been barely a month since the album released and the video on YouTube has already garnered over 1.4 million views. Lockdown or not, clearly rap and hip-hop is at the centre of the universe now.

Play By Ear showcases a potential earworm every week for you, the discerning listener, who is on the hunt for some musical serendipity.