British Asian identity and music Aim: to give an overview of how British Asians have explored their identity though popular music.

British Asian music- how much do we know? British popular music like its US counterpart is currently dominated by music of ‘black origin’ otherwise known as urban music. We can all name dozens of black artists from the US and UK. However as previously discussed, the Asian pop artist is very definitely under- represented. Discuss the reasons why this might be?

The Asian Popstar- a rare breed? Parental influence. Lack of faith by the record industry. Years of cultural stereotyping. Think: how many ‘would- be popstars’ have you seen auditioning for the X Factor that are of Asian origin? Discuss: Why do you think the record industry successfully promotes so few Asian artists? How much blame can be given to family pressures? What kind of reaction do Asian artists get from the general public?

How much do we know about Asian pop music? How many British Asian artists can we name. Past and present? new Asian popstars MIA Cornershop Panjabi MC Apache Indian Nitin Sawhney Raghav Jay Sean

Asian music genres - Desi anyone? Much Asian pop music is not mainstream. Many young Asians have forged their own musical identity, creating genres that are only popular amongst the Asian community. Do we know any names of these genres? Bhangra- a Punjabi music. Recently it has been mixed with western dance beats. The most popular mainstream example is the Punjabi MCs ‘Mundian to Bach Ke’. Desi – a hindi pop music. Bollywood- songs from films Asian hip hop – often simply copying US hip hop. Some acts such as Asian Dub Foundation are politically motivated. Much Asian music will feature particular instruments, rhythms and vocal styles. Listen to a few examples:

Asian Pop Music - A niche market Asian music artists are not seen as bankable mainstream propositions by the record industry. The BBC has recognised this by creating a radio station just for the Asian community, The Asian Network. What do critics of this station say about its effect on Asian culture? That the BBC are marginalising Asian culture to avoid playing British Asian music on mainstream stations like Radio 1. Asian music effectively becomes a niche market only consumed by other Asians.

Asian pop music and cultural appropriation. In the last few years Asian pop music has simply appropriated black popular music. Many young Asian artists have realised that to succeed you have to ‘lose your Asianess’ both musically and culturally. Example: Jay Sean Kamaljit Singh Jhooti better known by his stage name Jay Sean, is a London born Indian origin singer-songwriter. Before signing a record deal he studied dentistry at Queen Mary’s. He made his recording with "Dance with You (NachnaTere Naal)’, produced by Rishi Rich. He is the first Asian origin solo artist and the first UK Urban act ever to top Billboard's Hot 100“, with his single ‘Down’. He is also only the ninth (but first British) male solo performer to top the US charts with his debut single. The single sold two million copies in the United States, making him "the most successful male UK urban artist in US chart history. Watch the video ‘Down’ and make notes on how it represents Jay Sean as an Asian man. Dailymotion - Jay Sean Feat Lil Wayne - Down / NEW - une vidéo Musique Dailymotion - Jay Sean Feat Lil Wayne - Down / NEW - une vidéo Musique

Cultural Appropriation- not a new thing? Watch this video : why is it an example of cultural appropriation? Apache Indian Videos and Video Codes | Boom Shak-A-Lak Video | Free Music Video Codes | 15129Apache Indian Videos and Video Codes | Boom Shak-A-Lak Video | Free Music Video Codes | The idea of appropriating other cultures/ethnicities through music is not a new phenomenon. Artists from Elvis to the Rolling Stones to Eminem have appropriated black music, style and culture. Popular music, particularly British music has always appropriated other cultures, notably black American. Apache Indian is an example of an Asian artist appropriating Jamaican dancehall reggae culture and music. Jay Sean and other contemporary Asian artists have realised that to attain any success in the record industry you need to appropriate not innovate! Jay Sean is also an example of an artist who has become ‘deracialised’, a term coined to describe Barack Obama. The idea that a person’s ethnicity is somehow taken away so that it loses its importance. Others would argue that he hasn’t become deracialised and that he has an ethnicity, just not the one he was born into!

Read the article; ‘Where is the Asian New Wave’.