In the past Two decades in, Coachella has evolved from its roots as an indie rock paradise into a celebration of some of the biggest sounds around the world. Last year's event featured superstars including Bad Bunny and Blackpink as headliners, and this year's lineup continues the momentum with a wide variety of genres, from K-pop to Mexican music and more.
Indo-Canadian singer and rapper AP Dhillon wants to make sure that Punjabi music also benefits from this platform. Dhillon is set to perform at Coachella on Sunday, a year after Diljit Dosanjh reportedly did the first artist never to play a completely Punjabi set at the festival. (Fellow Punjabi Canadian rapper Nav will take the stage right after Dillon's set).
Dhillon's rise in recent years comes amid an era of great growth for music outside India. Spotify mentionted earlier this year that consumption of Indian music on the platform has increased by around 2000 percent globally since the streaming platform came to the country five years ago, and Dhillon believes that the explosion of Punjabi music is not far off.
Talking to me Rolling rock Ahead of his Coachella debut, the singer talked about what to expect for his upcoming set, his recent single released last week with UK rapper Stormzy, and turning India and the rest of the world on to Punjabi music.
You are about to play the biggest concert of your career. This is your first Coachella and you're high on the bill for a first year. Are you nervous at all or is it just another show for you?
It's huge. I play alongside a lot of artists I look up to. I've never been to Coachella, so I'm excited to see some of the music. This can't be a regular show — your fans are there, but there are fans for many other artists who are there waiting for the next show. I won't say I'm nervous, I'm excited. This is huge for our culture, our people, Punjabi speaking people and India as a whole. It's a big deal for us to have slowly built our music to this level. I hope it inspires children born in India or immigrants from these countries. It brings culture together.
Going deeper into it, you are the second Punjabi artiste to headline Coachella. the first came just a year ago. What do you see as the significance of your set, both for Coachella and for Punjabi music as a whole?
I think it makes sense. There are many Indians in USA, Canada, everywhere. This is a huge new audience for [Coachella]. The way we've seen Latin music develop, that's where I think Punjabi music will go more and more. But it goes both ways. We need to connect with this side of the world. We have to play for an audience that might not understand the lyrics but will love the music, the energy, the flow. I hear a lot of bullshit that I don't understand, but I still feel it. Latin music — I don't understand what the hell they're saying, but it's pretty cool.
Do you think Punjabi music can reach the same kind of audience that Spanish-language genres have now?
Yeah, I think we're at a stage where artists are pre-Bad Bunny [level of fame]. Our music is in this stage right now, and it will reach the next destination. It will help our people, it will help other artists to make their appearance in the future.
Is that your goal? To reach Bad Bunny's level of international superstardom?
Well yes. The whole goal is to bring our music to where Latin music is, to be honest. There are many similarities, culturally. I feel like we are slowly making progress. We're taking it to the next level. These little things — even the record I left now, are a small step towards a bigger picture. I hope this opens windows not only for me, but for the next guy and the next guy. That's the goal.
You just released “Problems Over Peace” with Stormzy last week. This is your first collaboration with a major Western artist. How did this come about?
When I first moved to Canada, a friend of mine from Mali introduced me to the British rap scene and I was like, “Yo, that's pretty cool.” Around 2016, 2017, I listened to Stormzy and as a fan I love his music. I made this exercise record. It felt short. I needed someone in this. I thought the only one who could really pull it off was Stormzy. It delivers every time. We had a mutual friend and then the rest is history. He sent me his verse, and damn, it's cold. It's hard. I'm happy with that, because sometimes the collaborations seem really forced, like the labels that make this mess.
For the people you're selling to catch your set this weekend, what should they expect for your show?
My set will have a little bit of everything. I go from trap to pop to rock. You go around the world watching this 45-50 minute show. It's a lot of different kinds of music, there's a lot of good stuff there. It's a new sound, man, it's a good energy. This is what they have to wait for right now. It will be my first time playing guitar on stage. I go into full rock star mode.
I know we're at the point where we're introducing a sound. If one has never heard Punjabi music, the way one imagines it is very different. I want to go beyond the typical way of Punjabi music. So when I work on a drill beat, I perform it the way a drill artist would, so if a Stormzy fan hears it, it won't sound too weird.
Do you think this audience needs that more familiar reference point for the music to click?
We are currently at the stage where we are training our own people in this music. It's not just a battle between bringing the sounds to the west side, or the UK or wherever. For example, I'm going to release a rock record, right? A Punjabi rock record. I have never heard a Punjabi rock record. This is a difficult step to take, even for my own fans. They'll say, “What the hell are you doing, man? You released some fucking hip-hop.' But I got bored and thought I should try something different. I feel like this could inspire some people to just take it and run with it and make a whole career out of it.
What's it like to make a Punjabi rock song when you don't have a reference for it?
You have to be bold. You don't know how people will react to it. It can go over everyone's head because it's not the sound they're used to. But there will be few people who will like it and there will be few people who will be inspired by it. I feel like I started this whole synth-pop wave. Now every album I listen to in India has synth-pop. What can I do differently now?
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