GAJENDRA PURI GOSWAMI
Bombay (Hip
Hop) Beyond
Gully Rap
The tectonics in the hip-hop world have changed ever
since the release of Ranveer Singh’s starrer, Gully Boy. It
is incredible how a single movie can redefine narratives
and affect the understanding of a discourse that has been
bubbling for years, in a matter of just a few weeks. A genre
that had up until now, been seen just as a scaffolding to the
music industry, has now become a large entity in itself by
penetrating new audiences and reorganising the ones that
existed beforehand. The listener base of hip-hop artists
in India has exorbitantly soared in the last few months.
Their music videos are now garnering over a 100 million
views on Youtube and mainstay radio stations have shed
their reluctance in playing music by artists beyond Naezy
and Divine. Only last month, the scene saw the advent of
two new independent record labels - Ranveer Singh owned
IncInk and Divine's Gully Gang Entertainment. These
small yet formidable augurs indicate that Hip-hop in India
(and Mumbai specifically) have moved beyond Gully rap;
only how much, we do not know yet. So we decided to
delve into the scene a little more and link up with Vineet
Nair a.ka. Trappoju - the founder of B3 India and one
of the few linchpins of Bombay Hip Hop - to get a closer
understanding of the scene and it’s twists and turns.
"Right now there are different sounds that are emanating
from different pockets of the city and it's just a matter of
time until they get picked up and start gaining momentum.
Meanwhile, everybody is working on their craft and
even though it may seem a little haphazard everyone is
pulling up a unifying effort in pushing the boundaries of
hip-hop" - says Vineet, although he admits that there is
visible disparity in the outreach of all these voices. This
difference manifests itself not only in the online views
of their music videos, but also in their revenue share.
The more vocal artists consequently receive more gig
requests and brand collaborations. Yet it is believed that
artists from Mumbai have an edge over artists from other
cities due to the presence of the film industry therein.
Vineet refutes this argument claiming that brands and
events also pick up artists from other cities. His claim
stands true, but only for the big fish in the tank. Small
and independent artists are still struggling to book shows
and host regular performances which are indispensable
for earning revenue and establishing a solid fanbase.
But the narrative that the Bollywood industry gives artists
from Mumbai an edge over their counterparts in other cities
also does not stand true on merit. As Vineet himself points
out, " Bollywood is promoting hip hop in a sensible way
but that does not mean it is uplifting the larger scene. Hip
Hop music in Bombay stills lacks proper infrastructure."
That is true on all accounts. Hip Hop in India still needs
a legion of other forces like promoters, marketeers,
venues, technicians, and record labels to pass through the
bottlenecks that are inhibiting its growth. In the absence
of these forces, the larger part of the revenue share in the
market is pounced upon by bigger players with resourceful
backing. Vineet explains this further and adds," A label
gives an artist access to networking which subsequently
gets them to more shows, events, media and brands that they
otherwise would find difficult to permeate. Basically it is a
machinery that keeps pumping itself to get more cash flow."
In the absence of this machinery independent artists in
Bombay are veering towards alternative sources of earning
that could assist their artistic endeavours until things get
better; day jobs to pay the bills until the night job bears
fruits. Vineet himself works as a writer for Desihiphop.
com - an independent media company that promotes hip
hop music by south Asian artists - while working on his
forthcoming EP Kala Paani. But, for independent and
assiduous artists like him to earn the fruits of their labour
it is imperative that their audience evolve their listening
ear. Until that happens big label artists will continue to
stuff their pockets in absence of formidable competition
which is neither good for the art nor the artists.
The
Score Magazine
highonscore.com
33