Truth Hurts

Addictive is a good remix song. I could not believe listening when I heard it for the first time on car radio. You are right about eastern culture entering mainstream western culture. Previously the best example was chinese food and pockets of believers and practitioners of eastern philosophies. It will certainly enrich western music if not one shot or short lived like many other experiments before this. Indians are also experimenting and reggae-Indian music remixes have been quite popular for a while. Wait until you see Indian folk (not the movies song) enters western music. I can`t wait to listen fusion of carnatic, rajisthani and panjabi folk in english songs.

I had mixed feelings about listening to `Addictive`, and watching the video...but I don`t begrudge Truth Hurts for using a song that wasn`t necessarily a gem in the annals of Hindi film songs.
Some hip-hop/rap/black artists, from early on have been experimenting with eastern music...middle eastern/african/indian music, because for them it`s like going back to `the roots`....the lament here is valid, i`m sure, but in terms of musique, Kipling has been proven wrong, both in the east as well as the west.

but isnt that a good thing?? Fusion - an accquired taste perhaps but always good in the long run. And it injects much needed color in this bland culture. There are a lot of artists out there attempting the same thing - from Karsh Kale to Cheb Mami(??) who I was told was - apparently Israeli!! And I havent seen Truth yet!! And talking of gota - that was the rage 2-3 years ago - gaudy tissue with heaby gota in each and every dept store display. I wonder what will happen when they discover mithai pink benaras sarees.
And I also think people get carried away when it comes to fusion food - after all technically speaking shortbread cookies are nankhataee (my personal fav) and dosas are essentially crepes and empnadas are samosas - so it is more of an overlap rahter than fusion. Ignorance !!

when i first heard the song, i was like `holy $hit` what the hell is this.....but it grew on me.

missy elliott fuses eastern music into her music as well....way before `truth hurts.`

Personally I don`t think it`s such a big deal. How many Bollywood movies copy Western plots (and I mean really copy scene for scene) and how many Indian songs have taken Western tunes and reset them to Hindi lyrics? Turnabout is fair play, if you ask me, and Addicted is at least somewhat of an original idea.

The best Indian song sung by an american artist was a Sanskrit song sung few years back by Madonna in her album ``Butterfly``. Does anybody remember?

I cant stand it when desis living in the west start getting precious about Indian culture and fashion being used and explored in music and popular culture. Seriously. What is this mentality that puts boundaries around “our” heritage. People griping because white women start wearing bindi’s and mehndhi. There is one reason why this happens, in England anyway, because there are one million Indians that live here and white people get curious and grow up side by side with Indians…when I was growing up in Birmingham half my school were goray and kale and lots of them could speak Punjabi because we would teach them the swearwords and then they would come to Diwali parties with us because it was fun and they could have samosas and kebabs, and the girls sometimes wear shalwaar kameez because they think it looks elegant, so whats the big deal? No! They have violated ``our`` ``precious`` ``pure`` ``holy`` ``Eastern`` culture! Oh no!

The Dr Dre track is wicked, but you go to an Indian nightclub over here and you will hear reggae and bhangra and hip-hop being played side by side. Its not cultural appropriation or any other kind of thing, its just people using different things because they work together and sound good. This silly begrudging because “our” culture is being used and appreciated by others, oh wow, how terrible. How many times have I read a convoluted thesis about western cultural imperialism and all that garbage written by some smart-arse sociology student. So lame. It’s a sign of the vitality of British and American popular culture that it is alert to the new. And in England anyway the MASSIVE talents of the super cool Indian youth who are innovative, creative and great in their proud re-shaping of Indian music and culture. And there’s nothing as culturally void and tokenistic as the desi decrying their “pure” culture being appreciated by the “goray”.

And what is “East” anyway. I have never been able to work it out. The “East” is used variously whenever some people wish to describe, the Arab middle East, South Asia, or East Asia (China Japan etc). The implication being that everything east of Suez is one amorphous melange of exotica that can be surmised as being the “other”. Forget that. I think the Indo-Pak culture stands on its own and shouldn’t be lumped in with other orientalist constructs, or Arabic or Chinese culture for example. There is no differentiation, no subtlety in this at all.

So there.

(Sameer you should listen to Punjabi MC. He has been doing hip-hop like Truth Hurts for years now except with Punjabi music. Did you know also there is this gora who grew up in Punjabi area of London called Hounslow who is one of the top bhangra DJ’s in England?? Long live cultural miscegenation!)

oh yeah hira if you are being ironic I apologise then I dont include you in the above, but I cant tell you see...

TRUTH LIBERATES

Recently I had been to an ``aunum``, kerala festival in Australia. All of the local malayalees were dressed in traditional clothes, the dishes were so traditional that they are no more popular in kerala. Even they managed to get banana leves to eat on.

Tradition is like an endangered animal, in its natural habitat it is being anhilated by the introduced species. It has to survive in the sncuary of the zoos, in foreign countries. The day is not far off when malayalees will be traveling to australia to experience authentic aunum celebrations.
If that is what the evolution dictates, then truth should be a liberating experience.

from the Indian Express - the infamouse modi speech;

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WHAT MODI SAID AT BECHARAJI

‘Should we run relief camps? Open child producing centres?’

On September 9, the Gujarat Gaurav Yatra rolled into Becharaji, where Chief Minister Narendra Modi delivered his by now infamous Hum paanch, hamare pachees speech. This is the speech that the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) now wants a text of for its apparently inflammatory content. And this is the speech that the Gujarat Government claimed that it had been unable to trace a copy of—Modi’s Principal Secretary P K Mishra had earlier told The Indian Express: ‘‘Since the government has neither any tapes nor a transcript of the CM’s speech, it is not in a position to send the same to the NCM.’’ Excerpts from a translation of an audio recording of the speech, courtesy NDTV:

Power hungry people are out to defame Gujarat. At such a time, the five crore people of Gujarat will gain strength from the blessings of Becharaji to build tomorrow’s glorious Gujarat.

We are dubbed Hinduwadi because we have allocated Rs eight crore towards the development of Becharaji. Is it our fault? Are we communal?

The Congress also accuses me of bringing the Narmada waters to the Sabarmati river in the month of Shravan. But the dam has already been built... I want to ask the Congress, why do you object if people on the banks of the Sabarmati derive spiritual peace through the Narmada waters brought in the month of Shravan? When you come to power, you are free to bring water during Ramzan.

When we allocate funds for Becharaji, they do not like it. And if we bring Narmada waters in the month of Shravan, then too they say they dislike it. So what should we do? Do we go and run relief camps? Should we open child producing centres?

We want to firmly implement family planning. Hum paanch, humare pachees (We five, our 25) (laughs). Who will benefit from this development? Is family planning not necessary in Gujarat? Where does religion come in its way? Where does community come in its way?

The population is rising in Gujarat, money isn’t reaching the poor? What’s the reason? They make a beeline, fix cycle punctures (Audience laughs).

If Gujarat is to be developed, then an economic system has to be developed where every child born in Gujarat gets education, manners and employment. And for this, those who are multiplying population at a rapid rate will need to learn a lesson. If we object to population growth, then too they dislike it. Will someone please tell me is there any (such) country in the world? Is there BJP rule in China? Yet, China has enacted laws to control population growth. Arrey, what does religion have to do with this?

We talk of madrasas. Madrasas have flourished in Gujarat. A child has a right to primary education. But a child going to a madrasa is deprived of primary education. What will such a child do once he grows up?

Those who have got no education, and got only religious education, would they not become a burden on Gujarat?

We started thinking about madrasas in Gujarat. When we express concern over madrasas, they call us communal. Why? The Communist government in West Bengal applies laws in madrasas, curbs their activities, and it is still secular? And if we try to regulate madrasas in Gujarat, we are dubbed as communal? After all, any institution has to be regulated.

If Gujarat needs peace, a long-term plan has to be drawn. The merchants of death will not be allowed to run their activities in Gujarat as they like.

And as I sit here at this seat of strength, standing at the feet of mother Becharaji, I want to assure you that the high seat (of power) may go today or tomorrow, but I will not allow the merchants of death who want to destroy Gujarat and harass the innocents to settle here.

Gujarat needs prosperity, it needs peace. Gujarat is forging ahead on the unity and strength of its five crore people. The days are gone when Dawood Ibrahim sitting in Karachi could instruct the merchants of death here and Gujarat could be set on fire. We will not allow this.

What for? For power? Power may go today or tomorrow. We have not applied Fevicol on the chair. We are sitting at the feet of the people of Gujarat. If people feel we are performing, they will welcome us, otherwise they will throw us out.

If the Congress is afraid of going to the people, then they should come out openly and say that since they are sure of their defeat, the election should be delayed. Indira Gandhi had done it too. You do it, who’s stopping you?

But no, they abuse Gujarat and Gujaratis instead. If you abuse Gujarat, that is not acceptable to us. Come out openly and give us a fight if you are strong enough. Why do you escape instead?

It is I who has been defamed. Yet, I am ready to go to the people. You go straight to Italy, plead with the Election Commission to stop polls. But we are not like you, we are proud of approaching the people. We take pride in applying the dust from people’s feet onto our foreheads.

Italy’s daughter has insulted Gujarat and its five crore people. The land of Sardar Patel is insulted. This has got to be explained. Sanjay (Gandhi) was only Maneka’s husband. Yet, it is his samadhi that lies in Delhi, not that of Sardar Patel. The Congress is out to erase Sardar Patel’s name, but beware.

No one has mentioned that the morality police (some NDN company) is suing DRe for taking the Lata Mangeshgar`s sample and using it on his Label (the song was produced by DJ Quick). The 500 million dollar suit states that Truth`s lyrics offend Hindu culture (what the fukk does that mean?).

Personally, Im not feeling this trend. I respect those that started it (missy/cube/jay-z-Big Pimpin) but now theres just a bunch of fools jumpin on the bandwagon. The dumbest rapper ever (Nore) crucified his beat, and Redman/Erick Sermons chorus is ``Whatever she say`s then im that`` over an Indian woman singin about suicide.

I do like people going back to simple beats like flutes (Ashanti) drums etc cuz I HATE these overly produced synthetic tracks they have these days.

Theres still a LOT of good untapped raga material out there. Certain flute tunes could murder a track.

PS: The Canadian rock band ``The Tea Party`` have been using sittars and NDN music for decades, long before this hip hop trend.

...chill out...Addicitive is just entertainment...stop taking everything so damn seriously...if you don`t like it, don`t listen to it...if some goras and kalas enjoy indian beats, let them...bollywood has been stealing from hollywood (rather poorly i might add) for ages...no one complains about that...how is this any different...

re: DRUMZ #11

``Truth`s lyrics offend Hindu culture (what the fukk does that mean?)``

Can`t stop laughing......DRUMZ`s inimitable, unerring words :)

...and look how `original` these so called representatives of `desi` culture in the UK are:

LL Cool SINGH!
Jazzy B (I think he`s Canadian right?)
Punjabi MC?!!
(there`s even a LL Cool Khan now!)

And even the way they dress shows they are just cheap clones of American gangster rappers. Why on Earth Pakistanis and Indians in the UK want to dress like and behave like NY gangters is something which completely puzzles me!

Personally I think it sucks! (I`m not talking about this particular song--I rarely, if ever, listen to western music by which i mean music from the Graeco-Roman/Judaeo-Christian culture). How annoying is it to begin listening to a Punjabi (or even Urdu!) song and suddenly you have some twat start rapping or doing reggae in the middle of it! It is a case of neither here nor there! Na idhar kay rehe hum na udhar kay! I don`t think it is inherently bad in itself--but what is bad is when this is then supposed to represent this mythical thing called `desi` culture in England.
The only thing desi about much of this `desi` (`British-Asian`) culture is the colour of the performers` skin: it is nothing but Western culture which has been adopted wholesale but with an Indian skin on top to try to pass off as `desi`.

Wasn`t it Kipling who said, East is East and West is West and never the twain shall meet? I think he had a point when it comes to musical mixing and to an extent cultural too!

What is most annoying is how it takes perfectly good Indo-Pakistani music and then ruins it by re-mixing it! For example the late great NFAK
was a qawwal and his music and lyrics are all about spirituality and love of Allah--then you get some idiots who decide to remix it and add some reggae/r n b/ gangsta rap in the middle of it to produce a hybrid which is criminal! Yet this is supposed to be desi and `cool`! Ask the vast majority of those who listen to this crap and they wont even be able to understand half of the lyrics of NFAK or their meaning!!

Call me a purist but I think that Muslims in general and Pakistanis in particular should be wary of this so called British Asian culture!

I do agree with harpreet (?) that to lump together everything as `eastern` is wrong.By the same yardstick I also think that using the word `desi` --as if India and Pakistan had one identical culture!--is also wrong. Most Pakistanis are Muslims--our identity comes from Islam first and then indeed there are cultural aspects but it is a fact that Islam modifies each culture it comes into contact with-retaining the pure and getting rid of that which is against its basic premises. Thus compare poetry and music from the Punjab: though both Punjabi the music and poetry of Muslim Punjab `West Punjab` is of a spiritual nature whereas that of the non-Muslim punjab is mostly of a carnal and sensual nature. I don`t know about Indian Punjab but I don`t think men and women dancing together in a nightclub on the dancefloor to the tunes of `aaja nach lay` (or whatever) is Punjabi culture in Pakistani Punjab? Is it?!

The songs at the MayooN and Mehndi rasams on the other hand is Punjabi culture....

The converse is true for Pakistani rock bands like Junoon--why have they ruined some wonderful lyrics of Baba Bulleh Shah by putting them to a rock tune?! Then this suddenly becomes `Sufi rock` music! Please! Baba Bulleh Shah must be turning in his grave!

harpreet...:)

asif Naqshbadi: It is impossible to have definite barriers to cultural overlap, partcularly for youngsters frowing up in diaspora. More important thing is that if it coming at the expense of pure Punjabi or pure western music. The fact is that it is not. The traditional Punjabi music as you pointed out is alive and well and actually progressing. However, in our traditions, music was never focussed on unrbanite youngsters. Both Sufi and folk music is more for adults to enjoy. For each Jazzy-B there are many traditional popular singers even from diaspora. Malkit Singh lives in UK, Manmohan Waris and Harbhajan Mann are Canadians. Possibly Harbhajan Talwar is also from UK. Similarly Sufi music is also alive and well in Indian Punjab, if you follow the best of Punjabi artists such as Hans Raj Hans, Gurdas Mann and Manpreet Akhtar; others are more into folk music. Actually folk music is in bad shape in Pakistani Punjab with everybody targeting the yurban oungster market.
Just listen to Kuldip Manak`s koka and you will forget about Jazzy-B. Even 100 Jazzy-Bs can not be compared with this song. Basically it is a mater of choice and fortunately plenty of choice is available right now in Punjabi music.