Prabh Deep
Prabh Deep | |
|---|---|
| Born | Prabhdeep Singh 26 December 1993 |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Occupations | |
| Years active | 2017–present |
| Musical career | |
| Genres | |
| Labels |
|
| Website | Prabh Deep Music |
Prabhdeep Singh, better known by his stage name, Prabh Deep, is an Indian rapper, songwriter and music producer from New Delhi, India. He gained recognition in the Indian music industry after the release of his debut album Class-Sikh which debuted at number 2 on the iTunes India albums chart and quickly ranked up to number 1 by the end of the year.[1]
Early life
Prabh Deep was born in the West Delhi suburb of Tilak Nagar to Jaswinder Kaur, a small-scale businesswoman and Manmohan Singh. His father, Manmohan Singh had lost his father and four brothers during a killing spree by angry mobs allegedly aided by the Delhi Police and Indian National Congress during the 1984 riots in Nangloi Jat, Delhi. Despite the birth of Prabh Deep in 1993, Manmohan struggled with the post-traumatic stress of the riots and developed addictions. The family was, therefore, supported by the earnings through the hair salon run by Prabh Deep's mother, Jaswinder.[2]
While involved in sports such as judo and hockey, he decided to drop out of high school right before his 12th standard board examination on account of the pointlessness of the Indian education system. His mother supported his decision to quit school in order to build his own path in music.[3]
The increasing financial troubles of the family, as well as bullying in school, had eventually got him involved in a street gang, partaking in streetfights, petty jobs such as selling second-hand phones and motorbikes at a mark-up and acting as a middleman for money lenders. Later on, he also had a short stint as a salesman at a garment shop and as a call centre executive for three years before pursuing a full-time career in music.[3]
Career
Around the summer of 2008, Prabh Deep and his childhood friend Happu (also a rapper now) witnessed a dance crew performing stunts in a park. Impressed by the urban dance form, he and Happu joined a hip-hop dance group in the neighbouring area of Vikaspuri and spent the next few years practising b-boying. [2][3] While continuing his routine jobs as a call centre executive and salesman, Prabh Deep maintained close contact with the Delhi hip-hop circuit while undergoing a slow transition from a dancer to an emcee.[4]
Through rapper ZaN Twoshadez and hip-hop culture researcher Jaspal Singh, Prabh Deep was introduced to the open mic nights and similar events in Delhi that laid the foundation of his rapping career. In 2015, Prabh Deep connected with indie music producer Sez on the Beat on Facebook and began co-producing music. Sez signed him to the indie record Azaadi Records.[4] The entire debut album of Class-Sikh was produced in Sez's home studio.[3]
Prabh Deep marked his entry in Bollywood with his song 'Sherni' for Anurag Kashyap's 2018 drama Manmarziyan.[5] He also wrote and performed the song 'Toofan Mein' for the original soundtrack of Amazon Prime crime series Paatal Lok.[6]
Artistry
Influences
Prabh Deep cites Eminem and Dr Dre as his idols.[4]
Themes and genres
Prabh Deep is described as an innovative lyricist whose music has socially conscious origins. Throughout his album Class-Sikh, his music revolved around the hidden, grimy underbelly scenery of suburbs of Delhi.[3] For his album Class-Sikh, he picked up various bits and pieces from his personal experiences including the story of his childhood friend Abu's fall into drug addiction, crime and eventually murder. His music is described as slang-infected with bits of Punjabi, Hindi and English.[7] His song 'Suno' also narrates the complex and unfortunate education system of India that leads to suicides and drug overdoses by youth in India. He also discussed issues like 2019–2021 Jammu and Kashmir lockdown in 'Elan', violence-instigating politics by the governments of global superpowers including U.S. and India in 'King' and the violence and brutalities of the hidden underbelly of Delhi in 'Toofan Mein'. [8]
Controversies
Prabh Deep was also seen marking his presence to support the protesters at the 2019 Shaheen Bagh protest in Delhi, India. [9]
Discography
| Year | Song |
|---|---|
| 2017 | Kal |
| Class-Sikh | |
| 2018 | Vekhi Ja |
| 2019 | K.O. |
| Maya | |
| Kala | |
| Amar | |
| Khat | |
| Hira | |
| King | |
| Tofa | |
| Fly | |
| 2020 | Chitta |
| Pandemic | |
| 2021 | Tabia |
References
- ^ Karkare, Aakash (27 December 2017). "2017: The year when Indian hip-hop cemented its place on the music charts".
- ^ a b Kappal, Bhanuj (1 December 2017). "What makes Prabh Deep Indian rap's next big thing". GQ India. Retrieved 19 July 2021.
- ^ a b c d e Majumdar, Anushree (12 December 2017). "Good Kid in a Mad City: Meet Prabh Deep, a Delhi rapper who has taken the Indian hip-hop scene by storm". Indian Express. Retrieved 24 July 2021.
- ^ a b c Varma, Aditya (22 January 2018). "Prabh Deep and his musical tryst with West Delhi's ghettos". The Hindu. Retrieved 22 January 2018.
- ^ Ghosh, Devarsi (28 September 2018). "Amit Trivedi's 'Manmarziyaan' soundtrack has something for everyone". The Scroll. Retrieved 28 December 2021.
- ^ Arora, Simran (29 May 2020). "Prabh Deep Decodes His Creative Process, His New EP & Working On Paatal Lok's 'Toofan Main'". MensXP. Retrieved 28 December 2021.
- ^ Kappal, Bhanuj (30 November 2017). "New Delhi rapper Prabh Deep is becoming known for his socially conscious rhymes". The National News. Retrieved 24 July 2021.
- ^ Singh Grewal, Amolak (10 January 2021). "Prabh Deep, the Punjabi rapper Punjab doesn't know". The National News. Retrieved 28 December 2021.
- ^ Sur, Prateek (14 December 2021). "Shaheen Bagh, CAA, Farmers' Protest: Hip-Hop Is The Voice Of Dissent In India". Outlook India. Retrieved 28 December 2021.