Rappers are on a roll in Malayalam film industry

Malayalam composers are recording rap musicians for their tracks thus creating a new soundscape

Rappers stole the show in the soundtrack of Fahadh Faasil’s Aavesham composed by Sushin Shyam —  Dabzee, MC Couper, Malayali Monkeys, Hanumankind and Paal Dabba. Although Tovino Thomas’ latest release Nadikar opened to mixed review, the rap tracks went viral — MC Couper’s ‘Kireedam’ and Baby Jean’s ‘Komban’. ‘Kuthanthram’, yet another Sushin composition from Manjummel Boys, continues to garner views, having already crossed 10 million.

Rappers are scoring big time in Malayalam cinema with several composers working with them. Jakes Bejoy, Gopi Sundar, Vishnu Vijay, Ajmal Hisbullah, Govind Vasantha, Rahul Raj and Hesham Abdul Wahab have also featured rap artistes in their works over the years.

Arjun Sasi and Joslee, also known as Lonely Doggy, are among the first few rappers who have sung in movies, says Fejo, whose voice has been heard in over 20 films so far.

“There was a time when rap was used as fillers, theme songs and promo tracks. That is changing. One reason might be the popularity of the genre among the teens and those in their 20s. Also, some composers feel rap tracks can convey certain emotions better. This is an advantage for us. While the composer can introduce a fresh soundscape, we are able to reach out to more listeners,” says Fejo, who first sang in Maradona for Sushin.

He went on to sing in movies such as Naradan, Ranam, Arattu, Athiran, Operation Java (with ThirumaLi), King of Kotha and RDX.

MC Couper points out that the huge gap between film music and rap is getting reduced because of the arrival of proficient rap musicians and the quality of the music they produce, which opened up new avenues for them. “Earlier, rap or hip-hop music was associated with stylised shots or sequences in movies. Hip-hop has been a popular genre across the world and it is the same trend that is getting reflected in our music now,” says Couper, whose hits include ‘Neeyetha’ (Naradan), which he sang with fellow rapper, Marthyan, ‘Thalatherichavar’ (Romancham), and solo tracks ‘Super Sebastian’ and ‘Anjaalum Pathaalum’ which he wrote and sang in Purusha Pretham for composer Ajmal.

“‘Neeyetha’ [composed by DJ Sekhar] was a revised version of the track we already had recorded and it was used in the movie because the situation demanded such a song. In Purusha Pretham, hip-hop was used in the main soundtrack,” adds Couper, who has sung for Bijibal in Vadakkan, which was screened at this year’s Cannes Film Festival’s Marché du Film Fantastic Pavilion.