I find it both confusing and invigorating when a musical genre somehow steps into another market where others have tried unsuccessfully. The latest example of this isPanjabi MC Featuring Jay-Z Beware of the Boyz, a song rooted in Bhangara.
Bhangra is a form of dance and music that originated in the Punjabi Region. Bhangra dance began as a folk dance conducted by Punjabi farmers to celebrate the coming of the harvest season. The specific moves ofBhangra reflect the manner in which villagers farmed their land. This dance art further became synthesized after the partition of India, when refugees from different parts of the Punjab shared their folk dances with individuals who resided in the regions they settled in. This hybrid dance became Bhangra. The folk dance has been popularized in the Western World by South Asian communities and is seen in the West as an expression of Indian and Pakistani culture as a whole. Today, Bhangra dance survives in different forms and styles all over the globe – including pop music, film soundtracks, collegiate competitions and even talent shows. And now Panjabi MC Featuring Jay-Z Beware of the Boyz.
Its is not surprising to me that Panjabi MC Featuring Jay-Z Beware of the Boyz has made its way into the Hip Hop and Dance club market, it is a fun song to dance to and easy to mix for a professional DJ. What does surprise me is that Jay-Z is involved in this song and how his name attached immediately makes it a hit. As if the thousands of Bhangara and Bhangara/Hip Hop songs before did not matter till an American pop star was featured. This is nothing new to the pop music market in America. Till The Beatles included Ravi Shankar in their recordings, the Sitar was not known very much in the West and certainly not in pop music. I think it is great that more folks are hearing different forms of musical styles globally, one of the positive uses of the internet. I have recently had the opportunity to professionally DJ a Punjabi event and most of the music was traditional and popular Bhangara. Panjabi MC has many great songs, check this out as well as other popular cross-over stuff like Bhangara Two Step!
I think it is great that more folks are hearing different forms of musical styles globally, one of the positive uses of the internet. I have recently had the opportunity to professionally DJ a Punjabi event and most of the music was traditional and popular Bhangara. Panjabi MC has many great songs, check-out Panjabi MC Featuring Jay-Z Beware of the Boyz, as well as other popular cross-over stuff like Bhangara Two Step!