Most musicians would probably think they’ve “arrived” when their work is launched worldwide by a tech giant like Apple. Not Divine, though. “I’m just one normal guy from the gullys [streets]. There are hundreds and thousands and lakhs like me,” he said. “I’m nothing special, I’m just special because I’m using the mic.”
The Mumbai born and bred rapper is quickly building up a portfolio of raw, hard-hitting songs based on his experiences of growing up in the slums of Mumbai. With his work finding appreciation beyond just the underground hip-hop community, Divine is being dubbed “the new face of rap” and “the voice of the streets”.
But the 25-year-old is quick to clarify that the labels have had little effect on him.
“It doesn’t get to my head because I have lots to do. I think I haven’t even done 50 per cent of what my capability is,” he said. “I’m just warming up now… I know things have changed for me, and my mind is becoming broader, so the rhymes will come out better I guess.”
The bilingual artist raps in both Hindi and English, and has become known for a gritty style that depicts the harsh realities of growing up on the streets of India. His songs take the sort of approach popular international rappers have always taken — discussing survival in tough conditions — but one which has, so far, been missing from the work of Indian rappers.
“I always thought that they [other rappers] are doing their own thing because they must be living like that, and they can’t say the things I can say, and I can’t say the things they can say, and I have lots to say. When Mere Gully Mein [In My Street] was written, my lines were about the gully, or about the common people, because I wanted to represent something that nobody is representing,” he said. “It’s something that they’re scared or ashamed of representing. They think it’s not cool to be from the gully, or talk like how we talk in the gully… I kept it like that because I wanted people to know where I come from, and I think that worked out for me.”
And work out it did. While Divine’s initial work averaged views in the low 100s on YouTube, his latest video, for Jungli Sher (Wild Lion), has crossed 1.2 million, supported by endorsements from Sony Music India and Apple Music. “When I first started I used to get 100-150 views, and going from there to 100,000 was a big achievement for me,” he said. “It pushed me more, it made me realise that if I work on my craft, maybe I’d become better.”
So maybe it fits when Divine credits smartphones and the internet for their role in his success. “It’s just working out [for me] because of the internet. Because now there’s internet everywhere, even in the slums, and people are using 2G, 3G phones,” he said. “Kids now don’t have to be like me and go write a CD, wait for their mum to leave home and then blast the music, they can just put their headphones on and listen. Everything is cheap now, everything is available everywhere.”
For his steadily growing fan base, the rapper has good news. In between rehearsing and creating fresh material to debut at his debut Dubai performance on July 22, Divine has been working on creating a more consolidated portfolio. “I’m doing a couple of videos. My main objective for this year is to put up a body of work, maybe a mixtape or an EP or an album,” he said. “I don’t know [definitely] yet, but one of the three for sure this year. I have enough music, but I just want to treat every song properly.”
Don’t miss it
Divine performs on July 22 at The Music Room. Tickets, Dh100, are at platinumlist.net or at the door. Call 04-3598888.
— Sayema Wasi is an intern at Gulf News.
