- Saturday, April 20, 2024
By: Manju Chandran
“I HAVE had a close connection to music from a young age, and it has gifted me many great moments. Here in no particular order are my top 10 musical moments and in the future, I hope to have many more…”
Charlie’s choice: British DJ and radio/TV host Charlie Sloth ranked five Asian MCs on BBC Asian Network’s Preeya Kalidas show and included me. The list had Raja Kumari, Badshah,
Raxstar, Neezy and myself. When she played a clip of my track, he responded by saying “I already know about Deelite”. I was chuffed to say the least. Also, to be a wildcard and finish second behind the joint winners was a musical moment I won’t forget for a long time. It’s an accolade that came from nowhere and I never felt this would happen to me. It still feels surreal to this date, but proves if you are persistent and work hard good things can happen.
Digbeth Mela: I will never forget performing at the Digbeth Mela in Birmingham and have my son grace the stage with me. It was a very special moment and one I still think of to this day. Maybe my son will follow in my footsteps? But getting to showcase my material in front of my family made me feel proud. It’s definitely an everlasting memory in my music journey.
Rendeh music video: Having my son in the music video for Rendeh, where he plays a young version of me is another musical moment I will cherish for years to come. I always wanted my son to be a part of my journey, so to have him in my music video was wonderful. Even to this day, I still want him involved in my music.
Swami Baracus collaboration: To have the opportunity to jump on a track with the legend Swami Baracus was one of my tick boxes completed. I always respected his game as a rapper, but also wanted to test myself to kick it with the likes of him on a track and got the opportunity with Leave It Alone. Having met him at a gig we were both performing at, I was like “Swami’s in the house” and plucked up the courage to speak to him. Now many years on, we still have a great friendship.
Premz track: The opportunity to collaborate with Premz was another defining moment in my musical career. It’s a testament that if we work hard enough as artists then we won’t get ignored. When the opportunity came, I didn’t really believe it was happening. Premz was great throughout the whole collaboration and I’m glad we did the track. It is just another opportunity and moment I’m grateful for.
Motivation: In early 2019, I wanted to quit music, but had so many artists from the scene message and inspire me to not give up. It showed there is unity within the music scene. I felt honoured by the constant messages telling me to not quit music and keep at it. I think we can sometimes let emotions get the better of us, but lessons learned through this and other experiences made me stronger, which I am grateful for.
BBC Interview: After six years of hard graft, I finally got my first ever BBC interview with Sunny and Shay. This was something I worked so hard to achieve and when it finally happened I was real happy. I was real nervous turning up to the BBC studios in London, thinking no this isn’t happening, but when I met with Sunny and Shay they were really nice, and made me feel at home.
Friends: Apart from enabling me to express my creativity, the music scene has also gifted me good friends, including fellow artists. I always make time for friends I have made and vice versa. This has allowed to me look at where I was when I started and where I am today. It’s not always about money and fame for me. I managed to make a good network of friends through music and still am blessed to have them all.
Performing live: Most artists will tell you that performing live in front of a crowd is the greatest high and I am no different. With live performances, no two shows are the same. Having the opportunity to perform at live events over the years, including melas and in my hometown of Leicester, has been a great feeling.
Being in Eastern Eye: Making it into the Eastern Eye newspaper with this article is a big highlight for me. I wasn’t going to forget you guys, now was I? When I was telling my family and friends about this, there was a glint in my eye and showed me that the Asian kid who started doing grime has come a long way.
Deelite has been making music for six years and has released two albums and one EP. The Leicester based artist fuses Asian sounds with high tempo BPM beats and continues to master his craft by making Punjabi grime music.
Visit Instagram, Spotify, Twitter and Facebook: @Deelitemc
