As far as Desi hip-hop goes, Punjab’s rappers were cruising ahead much before any of their other counterparts and rightly so, because they more or less sang about the same things American rappers sang about – guns, money, women and sometimes cars as well. In no particular order, Punjabi rappers still draw from these subjects, but what has changed is their ability to adapt to the changes in style and delivery.
On his latest album Indian Style, one of the most startling things about Deep Dollas arrives in the form of a gunshot sample on the otherwise laid-back opening track ‘New Mirza’.
But it is probably just the kind of introduction Amandeep Khalsa, a Californian rapper and producer, wants to make to new listeners.
Across 12 tracks that run between the lines of trap, hip-hop and pop, Deep throws down lines like “I need a trap queen who put tadka in the sabji” – serenading a woman on ‘Jasmine’.
There’s use of traditional Punjabi music, a slight strum of the guitar and a more comical pistol shot (that sounds more like a bottle rocket) on the auto-tune fed ‘Gangster Pendu’ and gets even more inviting on ‘Gulabo’, led by EDM build-ups and dhol rhythm.
Deep is joined by rapper Slim Swagga, who immediately opens up that whole debate about the use of the N-word by anyone who’s not black on ‘Velly’ (which means “idle”), although Slim comes back stronger on ‘Saare Sanu Jande’ (Punjabi for “everybody knows us”) with his piercing flow and nothing too questionable in his language.
He packs in the collaborations with Sunny Jatt and Tej Gill on the icy, dreamy ‘Mary Jane’, clambers up more trap on ‘Thokey’, adding subtle club-banger elements. He still talks about Rolls Royce and working hard for his money and his honey (‘Tere Lai’) but it’s a somewhat unremarkable beat. Things step up with the twisted ‘Shikari’, although it’s just a short burst, much like the downright infernal ‘Diablo’ that sounds gangster.
On something that sounds like more of a mixtape than an album (considering it’s even less than half an hour in length), Indian Style still goes a long way to make a lasting impression of Deep Dollas as someone who balances his party-down charisma alongside his meaner streak.
Indian Style is out via Saavn Artist Originals on saavn.com
