Hanumankind’s 'Big Dawgs': The Indian Rapper Who Took Over American Hip Hop

[00:00:00] Hello and welcome to Do I Like It, a show where we talk about everything.

[00:00:03] And in this episode, we'll talk about a rapper who has literally put Desi Hip Hop on the map.

[00:00:09] And I'm not talking about Raftar or Divine or Brother V.

[00:00:13] I'm talking about an Indian rapper who's American people are calling their cousin.

[00:00:17] His old man from Bangalore, from Texas, I'm talking about Hanumankind and his insane banger Big Dawgs.

[00:00:24] The song has taken the international hip hop community by storm. The video directed by Bijoyesh Etty already has 7 million views on YouTube.

[00:00:33] And even an OG like Project Pat has shared the video.

[00:00:36] So, that's not a small thing.

[00:00:38] But we'll see in this episode what's in this song that it's so broken.

[00:00:43] It's not the first track by Hanumankind, it's not the first Indian hip hop song that's in English.

[00:00:48] It's also not the first time Indian rappers got the attention of American reaction channels.

[00:00:52] If you type on YouTube, Indian rapper reaction, you'll get so many tracks by Krishna, Brother V, Raftar, Seedha Moth, etc.

[00:00:59] But this one feels different.

[00:01:00] So, let's dive a little deeper on what actually worked for Hanumankind and Big Dawgs.

[00:01:06] First, let's talk a bit about the artist.

[00:01:08] Suraj Cherukat aka Hanumankind is a rapper out of the Bangalore hip hop scene.

[00:01:12] He started making waves a few years ago with his EP Kallari.

[00:01:15] But the dude has been at it for some time.

[00:01:18] I had met him first in Bangalore in 2017.

[00:01:20] He went by the stage name Bad Influence at the time.

[00:01:23] And, brother, he had superstar written all over him.

[00:01:26] We were competing in a rap competition.

[00:01:28] Brother V and Smokey were the judges.

[00:01:30] And, bro, he smoked all of us in the final round.

[00:01:33] He spit his Super Mario freestyle.

[00:01:35] And, bro, we ended up with him.

[00:01:37] And I've been looking out for his music ever since.

[00:01:40] And, brother, it's so nice to see you.

[00:01:41] If someone knows someone's name, I can't even tell you.

[00:01:44] I've also told you that the main reason it worked outside India was because the structure of the song was very western in its arrangement and songwriting.

[00:01:53] And with this, there was something like that.

[00:01:55] Look, Suraj lived in Texas when he was younger.

[00:01:58] So, obviously, he would have heard local legends like 3-6 Mafia, Project Pat, UGK and all in his childhood.

[00:02:04] And that influence is clear in his music.

[00:02:06] Even his accent is not the usual Firangi accent.

[00:02:10] The way he twists the ending of his words.

[00:02:12] It is a very Southern American style.

[00:02:15] In many reaction videos, people were actually surprised that he's Indian.

[00:02:18] Because in his performance and conduct on the mic, there's nothing really desi about him.

[00:02:23] At least by the way he sounds.

[00:02:24] Even the beat has a very in sound.

[00:02:27] Now, look.

[00:02:27] In Indian Hip Hop, there were two major eras that exploded in the mainstream.

[00:02:32] Pre-2015-16, there was this very poppy, synth-based, electronic sound that we had.

[00:02:37] Referred to early Bohemia, Iktira Pyaar, Brother Viz, Atma Rama and Krishna's English songs.

[00:02:43] Very synth-heavy, pad-heavy, club-friendly pop drums.

[00:02:46] And post-2017, there was suddenly this explosion of trap.

[00:02:50] With acts like Siddha Maut says and of course Bombay Kaju artists and Divine M.U. etc.

[00:02:54] It was a very dope, hard sound that Indian Hip Hop had.

[00:02:58] And now, in the post-trap, post-Gully Boy era,

[00:03:01] the gap between India and USA has reduced greatly due to Reels and TikTok.

[00:03:06] So, today's Hip Hop sounds are very diverse.

[00:03:09] So many sub-genres are thriving at the same time.

[00:03:11] There's melodic trap, there's dark grungy boom bap, drill.

[00:03:15] There's a lot of beats in the background.

[00:03:18] And there's a new sound coming out, which is this punk rage sound.

[00:03:23] With artists like Travis Scott, Yeet and Playboy Karti.

[00:03:25] Big Dogs has such high energy beats.

[00:03:27] It's so simple beats, it's 100 beats and just 808 beats.

[00:03:32] I think it's more than 45 tracks.

[00:03:34] I also like the chopped and screwed outro, which is a nod to DJ Screw, a Texas legend.

[00:03:38] But yeah, unlike Yeet and Karti, Suraj has brought top tier lyricism to this simple and tight production.

[00:03:44] Again, it's almost like you're listening to a Memphis rapper.

[00:03:48] The first line is the song's first line, wait a minute, get it how you live it.

[00:03:51] And interpolation of Eniadi and Rihanna's Lemon.

[00:03:54] It was also the name of Hotboyz's debut album, which released in the same year I was born.

[00:03:58] But yeah, the lyrics are filled with references to Southern hip-hop's most iconic bars.

[00:04:04] Like when he says, I'm the big stepper in that classic Project Pact style.

[00:04:08] A lot of people are saying that the flow was copied from Drake's knife talk.

[00:04:11] But actually even that was a homage to Project Pact's classic A.

[00:04:15] Big stepper, money in the dress, that's it.

[00:04:19] It's so cool that today, the South is making such a cool comeback in mainstream hip-hop culture.

[00:04:25] Like Atlanta has always been a center of hip-hop.

[00:04:28] But today, places like Memphis, Houston and New Orleans are getting their well-deserved due.

[00:04:33] Remember Kendrick Lamar's element flow?

[00:04:35] People thought they wasn't gonna see me, huh?

[00:04:37] That was juvenile flow.

[00:04:39] Eminem also did that flow on his latest album.

[00:04:41] It's so cool, from the South got something to say.

[00:04:44] Hip-hop has come such a long way.

[00:04:46] Even the subject matter of HMK's rhymes is very American.

[00:04:50] The slang he uses, pouring up for the people who are gone, RIP,

[00:04:54] these things are outside.

[00:04:55] If we say a drink and funeral, we'll sing it.

[00:04:58] So it's not surprising that people outside India related to this song so well.

[00:05:03] But now you'll say that this is American.

[00:05:06] Beat is American, accent and flow is Southern.

[00:05:09] Even the references, top-notch, who are the most, not the lesser, from UGK's International Players Anthem.

[00:05:15] So what's in this song actually?

[00:05:18] Bro, video.

[00:05:20] We all like to represent our culture in our art.

[00:05:23] And knowingly or unknowingly, our influences come from our art.

[00:05:26] Now Hanuman Kind is in Houston, he hears it in his accent and flows.

[00:05:30] But bro, that person is Bangalore and Malayali.

[00:05:34] And that is seen in the way he embraces Indian popular culture and signifiers.

[00:05:38] Unlike a regular Desi Rap video, there isn't a studio, no cars, models or dancers.

[00:05:44] Just a regular day in an Indian circus.

[00:05:46] As I watch this video, I'm doing cash money videos.

[00:05:49] Life in the hood, simple static shots of a baby crying, some people playing dice, etc.

[00:05:54] Just embracing the life people live.

[00:05:57] There are fancy cars, but it's also in the hood.

[00:06:00] And it's still hardcore.

[00:06:01] Just look at that woman being a total badass on that bike.

[00:06:05] I've always wanted to go to a moth-ka-cuna live in a circus.

[00:06:08] I could never do it.

[00:06:09] But this video is making me live that vicariously.

[00:06:12] So bro, the video strikes a perfect balance between Desi and Global.

[00:06:16] And I think that's what Americans love.

[00:06:19] A rooted cultural story packed in a globally palatable style.

[00:06:23] Whether you watch RRR or Squid Games, this basic thing is common between them all.

[00:06:28] The people like the public in the firing packaging.

[00:06:31] And I think that was the reason for even Kantara's huge success.

[00:06:35] But man, I'm afraid of these things.

[00:06:38] When anything happens, everyone will inspire it.

[00:06:41] And honestly speaking, it's not a bad thing to inspire.

[00:06:44] But you're inspired by what you're doing is that it's very important.

[00:06:47] Now, like Barbie was released, Mattel announced a franchise of Toys.

[00:06:51] If one of the Marvel Cinematic Universe was released,

[00:06:53] then everyone had to make a connected film.

[00:06:55] If one of the Prateek was released, then everyone started singing on guitar.

[00:06:59] And now this.

[00:07:01] I won't be surprised if in the coming months, we see more such tracks tailor-made to appeal to American sensibilities.

[00:07:08] With their references and their lingo, all sounding very fake coming from a Desi rapper.

[00:07:13] Man, it suits Hanuman kind because it's life is a good thing.

[00:07:16] We're like Kochi and Barafpani people.

[00:07:18] Why are we gun bars?

[00:07:20] And if your favorite rapper is a video on the roller coaster or on the Columbus,

[00:07:24] and you're like, you can make a video on the GoPro.

[00:07:26] So, you understand where inspiration comes from.

[00:07:29] But jokes aside, I think if you have to learn something from this song,

[00:07:32] then it's the way that it's related to your roots and influences and how to stay slick at the same time.

[00:07:40] In English, there's no problem with rap.

[00:07:42] But if you're talking about this song or you're talking about N-word,

[00:07:46] then you're actively going against the spirit of hip-hop.

[00:07:50] I was in my first year and Arshak Malik was taking my audition for our college's music club.

[00:07:56] I spit a rap verse in English.

[00:07:57] It was a very pretentious southern accent.

[00:08:00] It was top, tap and R and all of that.

[00:08:04] And he was like, dude, your rhymes are sick.

[00:08:05] But do you have to rap in that accent?

[00:08:07] And that shit hit me so hard.

[00:08:09] Sometimes it gets out of the bottom,

[00:08:10] but I actively try to bring out my lived experience and slang in my rhymes.

[00:08:16] And that's the story telling,

[00:08:17] you've lived a little imagination and make something new.

[00:08:21] Or else, AIB is writing rap today.

[00:08:23] And yes, these were some of my thoughts on Hanuman Kind's Big Dogs.

[00:08:27] I like both the songs and artists.

[00:08:29] But you know what my favourite track of his is?

[00:08:32] It's an old song from one of his SoundCloud mixtapes.

[00:08:35] It was about him writing two letters in two verses.

[00:08:38] One to his mother and one to his father.

[00:08:40] The song is called Two Letters, I think.

[00:08:41] Zaroor, Sunna.

[00:08:42] But tum badau, yaar.

[00:08:43] Tumhe ye gana kaisa laga?

[00:08:44] And which is the next underground rapper you want to see burst into the scene?

[00:08:48] Drop their names in the comments below.

[00:08:49] As always, the conversation continues down.

[00:08:52] This was Prateek and I'll see you in the next one.

[00:08:57] You were listening to The Quince Podcast.