Hi all,
This is from the TOI supplement (dt: 7th Aug)
(This can be accessed on Times of India Epaper - Chennai edition - 7th Aug -
pg 69 - has a nice pic of ARR & Blaaze)
R to the A to the P HE IS THE FAMOUS AND FAVOURITE RAP STAR OF KOLLYWOOD; BUT
WHAT BLAAZE HAS DONE TO ITS MUSIC IS A REVOLUTION OF SORTS REGA JHA
Dancing
around trees, innumerable synchronised extras, and a mild phobia for
change… Kollywood and its music have long been stand-alone
institutions, unaffected by trends from elsewhere. But as even the
briefest examination of history will prove, whenever stagnancy gets
oppressive, a musical revolution takes place. Blaaze's invasion of
Kollywood is very comparable to that revolution.
He entered
the world as Lakshminarasimha Vijaya Rajagopala Seshadri Sharma Rajesh
Raman, right here in Chennai, grew up in Zambia, went to school in
England, and finally
completed his education in LA - all cultures miles away from from his
name. Ultimately, the exposure came indy, as handy, as he developed ar
passion for RAP ("Rhythm And Poetry"), and brought it home. Here, with
AR Rahman's encouragement, he incorporated his birthright - Tamil -
into his music, and subsequently, changed the industry; quite possibly
forever. "A R Rahman really took the whole rap thing to another level
for me and it's a true blessing," he smiles. One is forced to wonder,
however, why bother? The market for rap and hip-hop is, by massive
proportions, larger in the West than here, so why leave LA, the hub of
western entertainment, for Chennai? "I came to India to discover my
roots, and to discover what is 'real'. It was, initially, difficult to
maintain public interest, because at that point India wasn't taking
hip-hop very seriously." But Blaaze overcame those initial struggles,
and it paid off. Thanks to his pioneering initiative, hip-hop is now a
widely spread and highly demanded artform in India. As he says,
"Persevering has proved fruitful for me. Now, hip hop is getting bigger
here than in the west. Snoop Dogg is rapping in Singh is King with
Akshay Kumar, and Wyclef just recorded with brother Abhishek Bhachan!!
It's getting kinda kinda crazy, but in a great way!" All in all, we
have to conclude that though nobody ever said revolution was easy,
Blaaze certainly makes it appear so.
Cheers,
Aravind
http://arrahmaniac.blogspot.com
Download Rahmania show interviews at http://rahmania.4shared.com
