As the present generation waits for the next Eminem single to release or have Lil Wayne on the loop or are stuck to ‘Holy Grail’, it is but important that we look back home and reaffirm our appreciation for our Desi Rap Artists, for the hip hop community in the country is larger than ever, producing quality music by the second. Here are the Top 5 Rap Artists in India –
1) Honey Singh
With more than 5 million followers on Facebook and Twitter and the country going berserk dancing to ‘Lungi Dance’, Honey Singh tops the list with his popularity, his music and of course all the rap. Hirdesh Singh, an alumni of the Trinity College of Music in London, has won a million hearts since he entered the music scene in 2004.
His album ‘International Villager’ got him the UK Asian Music Award for the Best International Album, 2012. He has also become the Highest Paid artist in Bollywood with a whopping 70 lakhs being paid to him for a song in the upcoming movie ‘Mastaan’.
Here is the link to the No.1 Youtube video for the year 2012, ‘Brown Rang’Â —Â http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PqFMFVcCZgI
2) BlaaZe
Remember ‘Be A Rebel’ from Rang De Basanti? Or Amitabh Bachchan rapping away to glory when the end credits were rolling for the movie Bunty aur Babli? Or ‘Gangsta Blues’ from Slumdog Millionaire?
Yes that’s him!
That is Lakshmi Narasimha Vijaya Rajagopala Sheshadri Sharma Rajesh Raman or BlaaZe, cementing himself at the 2nd spot. The most versatile artist on the list, BlaaZe is a producer, singer, songwriter, musician, lyricist and most important of all, a rapper.
Zambia saw little BlaaZe rap his first act ‘We Wish You Well’ for President Chiluba during his election campaign in 1991. He has being active in the music circuit for a good 11 years now collaborating with artists like A.R.Rahman, Shankar Ehsaan Loy, Anu Malik, Pritam, Coco Lee and the list is endless. He also won the MTV Youth Icon of the Year 2008.
BlaaZe’s raps are laced with issues concerning the nation. Listen to ‘Ban the Crooked Police’ or ‘In My Father’s Words’ or enjoy one of his very popular tracks, given in the link below
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JsAEc2ODko
3) Hard Kaur
This lady got everybody moving their bodies ‘Like this and Like that’ in the title track of Johnny Gaddar in 2008. In the years after that, India saw Hard Kaur or Taran Kaur Dhillon getting everybody to dance to her raps through tracks like ‘Bass Ek King’ in Singh is King, ‘Main Tera Dhadkan Teri’ in Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani and more recently with ‘Laung Da Lashkara’ and ‘Rola Pe Gaya’ in Patiala House. ‘Glassy’, ‘Look 4 me’ and ‘Supawoman’ were her top selling singles in the country.
A celebrated woman rapper, Hard Kaur is number 3 on this list of the Top 5 Rap artists in India. Listen to ‘Kattey’ a crazy Coke Studio mix that has Hard Kaur tearing the single apart with her rap skills.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=npKCgowu-Bk
4) Brodha V
Securing the 4th spot on the list, this young independent rap artist is climbing the charts, getting those Youtube hits and winning everybody’s hearts all in the same time since the release of his single ‘Aathma Raama’Â that beautifully mixes rap with Hindustani Classical and Carnatic music.
Vighnesh Shivanand has been called the fastest Indian rapper on many a social platform. He took the Bangalore music circuit by storm when his Associated Act with MWA (Machas With Attitude) in 2008 got over 1000 copies of their tapes being sold physically during live performances and other independent methods. His mixtape ‘Death Punch’ got music directors and producers to take notice of him. He was seen lending his voice to songs like ‘Ready Steady Po’ in Chennai Express and ‘Dheon Dheon’ in Mujhse Fraandship Karoge.
He is also a singer, producer and songwriter who draws his inspiration from none other than the Rap God — Eminem. An artist with a promising career ahead. Listen to his latest single ‘After Party’ :
http://www.youtube.com/user/BrodhaVmusack
5) Baba Sehgal
On number 5 is the ‘King of Rap’. Baba Sehgal took India by surprise and consequently much adulation with his style and charm in ‘Thanda Thanda Pani’, ‘Manjula’ and ‘Dil Dhadke’. The generation that grew up in the 1990s had Baba on repeat on their walkmans.
An extremely gifted rap artist. Baba is also a playback singer and actor. His was the first Indian music video to have been shown on MTV Asia.
Envelope yourself in some old school hip hop with ‘Aage Aage Ladki’