Music
The seasoned Malayalam rapper helms the second song from Red Bull 64 Bars season 2.
The song is called ‘Top Tier Talk’ because I’ve been part of the rap scene from very early. I consider myself top tier in this rap scene and I wanted to talk about the growth of Malayalam rap.
I was actually very excited to be part of Red Bull 64 Bars, because I literally saw all the videos of season one in India.
I also used to watch African rappers on the global version of Red Bull 64 Bars. So I always wished that if Malayalam rappers got the opportunity, we would show all of India how the scene is growing in Kerala.
I start the track with the bar “Aaramba shoorathwam illa.” From what I’ve seen, most rappers flex about how luxuriously they live and how much money they get when they rap. My beginnings were humble. So I want to tell everyone that I started in a humble way, and I'm not bragging or flexing what I have now. In the next lyrics, I say that I have measured the whole sky and earth, and that's my flex.
When I say “Vairi mundattam illa/Kochi shaili enne vittu,” there’s a reference to the Kochi way of speaking. Actually in Malayalam, when speaking correctly, we would say minduka while the Kochi slang way of pronouncing the word is to say munduka. The meaning is the same. I’m basically saying when I spit fire in my rap, no enemies will step up and talk to me. There is one more use of Kochi slang, where I say engattum instead of pronouncing the word as engottum. I’m basically saying I will never let go of Kochi slang.
When I started rapping, I wasn’t sure what Kochi slang rap was. When I did shows in Trivandrum and Calicut, that’s when I realized my style of speaking is specific to Kochi. I thought, ‘How can I register this as my identity?’ instead of rapping in perfect Malayalam. That’s the reference there.
I talk about Karakattam later. It’s a native dance. When I heard the beat from Parimal [Shais], I immediately recognized some elements. He’s from Kannur, so his songs sometimes have samples from Kerala folk dance music. Hip-hop might have originated in Western culture, but we’re implementing our folk music influences into it to make it part of our culture.
So in this song I’ve rapped that my verses are like Karakattam dance, because the dance and my rap are both energetic. Like Karakattam dance, I want to write many bars, and it should sound poetic like the dance is graceful. The dancers get that pumped up energy and when I get on stage, I also have that divine energy. I wanted to reflect that kind of madness in my writing.
I say, “Thunnal aashaan thayippicha coat'ukal” later and I mean all my words are like a coat stitched by a master tailor.
Then there’s a bar that says, “Chila paathirikale pole.” It’s like saying when a modern change comes about – like Malayalam rap – there can be good and bad.
When I started rapping, most mainstream musicians around me would say, ‘No, rapping is not a thing. Stop it. Don't just blindly follow Western culture.’ With my lyrics, I’m telling those people that everything needs to change, and we are all part of Malayalam culture.
There’s a bar when I say, “Drug illa, madirashi venda.” This is actually playing with what I say next, “South'nna, Madrasi alla.” Madirashi means booze, girls, etc and Madrasi is the derogatory term used for all South Indian people.
I’m basically saying you cannot generalize all people from South India by calling them Madrasi. We have Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, and also Malayalam communities.
Similarly, people think rappers are all about drugs and alcohol. But music is my only intoxication. I don’t consume any drugs or alcohol, so I think I’m different from the rapper stereotype, and again people should not generalize that I must be a drug user because I’m a rapper.
There are two places where I say, “Chekkanmaaru head nodding” and later say, “Rap irakki chekkanmaaru koode aadanu”. In the first bar, I am saying the whole young generation starts nodding their head when I start rapping. And I also say a lot of young people got inspired by me and they also started rapping.
I then say, “Koode Thullu rap/Kunju piller paadanu”. Here, I’m referencing a song I released two years ago called ‘Koode Thullu’. I had seen reels of second/third grade kids rapping all the lyrics of ‘Koode Thullu’. That song has some of the most complex bars I have written. It’s a complex Malayalam rap, and kids did it with such great pronunciation. I was wonderstruck.
So I’m saying even small kids started rapping my bars. ‘Koode Thullu’ is also usually the final track that I perform at my shows and the whole crowd sings along. I’ve only seen that kind of singalong at Drake, Lil Wayne or Eminem concerts internationally, and Raftaar or DIVINE’s concerts in India.
I was doing a rap show for a crowd of 20,000 people in Attingal a while ago. When I performed, ‘Koode Thullu’, more than 3,000 people perfectly sang with me. I’m very happy to see it, so in this lyric I’m saying people love to sing my songs.
With “Iru 4, 8 vechu/16 irattichu”, I’m referencing a game of lucky draw with cards and dice that we play in Kerala. When you throw the dice, the stakes get doubled. So I’m saying I’ve doubled everything and now I’ve reached 64 Bars.
I say, “Ente rap ippo Hindikkarkkum”, in reference to the work I did with Raftaar bhai on Breezer Vivid Shuffle. In 2018, he came to Kerala, he heard me freestyling on the radio. He gave me a shoutout on his Instagram Stories and called me to work with him. So it was a great moment of my career to perform for his audiences.
I reference the actor Asif Ali in “Asif'ne pole”. A few months ago, there was an incident connected to Asif Ali. He was presenting an award to a music director, who actually refused to accept the award from the actor. He asked Asif Ali to sit down, with a facial expression that seemed to say, ‘Who is he to present me an award?’
It was a very hurtful moment for all Malayalam movie lovers. But instead of getting offended or reacting, Asif Ali smiled gracefully and took his seat while someone else presented the award. So with my lyrics I’m saying even if people try to humiliate me or use bad words, just like Asif, I can smile through it all.
One of my lyrics is, “Ente perfume'nu illa/Vere chettante manam/Auto eri vanna Lakshmi-Nakshathram ennikkum kalam.” I say, like Lakshmi just comes to your home and blesses you, my good fortune has just come to me. Even this opportunity with Red Bull 64 Bars has just come to me. So I’m saying good luck will always happen.
In the end, I say, “Atharu manakkum scene'il,” which is a reference to attar that is made in Malabar region of Kerala. I’m talking about how the boys from Malabar are repping Malayalam rap right now; like Dabzee. They’re repping their culture.
And I’m ending with saying, “Beat parathum Parimalam,” which is me referencing Parimal Shais’ work on this track – I’m saying he is bringing a fresh smell to the scene.
I think this is my favourite bar, along with the ‘Koode Thullu’ reference. And also the last line where I say we can go to space and cross boundaries.
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