In fact, Divine’s story of coming from the gully was so compelling that in 2019 a real Bollywood movie was made about it, featuring India’s biggest stars, and it was a box office smash.Įnter US superstar Nas and his Mass Appeal label, who signed DIVINE and anointed him the face of Indian Hip Hop, as they opened shop in Mumbai. He had tried his hand at rapping in English, and then by simply telling his story - in street Hindi – it all came together, and he single-handedly raised the Desi Rap game up to the point where it was competing with Bollywood for hearts and minds. The ascent of DIVINE has been nothing short of spectacular, ever since his single ‘Mere Gully Mein’ with Naezy took India by storm back in 2015. Over the Mos Def’s DJ Premier-produced ‘Mathematics’ beat, Jay Park goes so crazy on the mic that at the end, Sway had to scream, “We’ve got a hyena up in here.” But just in case you thought he was just an idol or dabbled too much in R&B, here’s his Freestyle on Sway in the Morning from 2018. There is no doubt that Jay Park has GOAT status, which places him firmly at the top of this LiFTED 50 list. He’s worked with big brands like Nike, has starred in movies, and has done concerts all over the globe. Jay signed to Jay-Z’s Roc Nation, was the only non-Chinese judge on The Rap of China, and he’s been a mentor on Show Me the Money. He harnessed the power of YouTube from the start, and he’s built three record labels with successes across the board at AOMG, H1GHR MUSIC, and now with More Vision. He experienced being canceled before it had a name and came back from his troubles even stronger. Jay started his career in the KPop band 2PM after four years of hardcore KPop training. Jay Park has done more in and for Hip Hop in Asia than any other artist. Now, we humbly submit the LiFTED 50 2022. Hip Hop first took over America, then Europe, and now it’s the fastest growing music genre in Asia. This speaks to the transformative power of Hip Hop music, and its ability to adapt and adopt - and this has been the case ever since Kool Herc started spinning breaks in the South Bronx 49 years ago. To begin with, the Asian Hip Hop landscape is now massive – and every single country is minting new rappers, producers, and DJs daily. We will continue to champion Asian Hip Hop and spread the news.Įven though we love this challenge, it’s not easy. We will continue to look for the stories that matter, and shine a light where there may be none but should be. We decided on a formula that is based on streaming, social media, YouTube views, and probably the most important element of all - the X factor.Īt LiFTED, we have seen all the big names and most of the rest, and even put a spotlight on a few who are now blowing up. We will definitely have fan voting in the future. We decided that in year one we could not include fan voting because honestly, we’re too new. We did it with honesty and to the best of our ability. When we decided to create the LiFTED 50, we did so with some trepidation, knowing there will be some saltiness, but also knowing that there will be great joy. Our platform is only a year old, but we have been in and around the Asian Hip Hop game for decades - as DJs, producers, promoters, and writers - but most of all, as fans. It takes knowledge, experience, curiosity, and a fair bit of IDGAF-attitude to do it. An official ranking of anything is not for the weak of heart.
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