B21

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B21
Origin Handsworth, Birmingham, United Kingdom
Genre(s) Bhangra
Years active 1996–Present
Label(s) Moviebox UKMovieBox Records
Associated acts Sardool Sikander, Shazia Manzoor
Website http://www.b21online.com
Members
Bally Jagpal
Bhota Jagpal
Former members
Jassi Sidhu
Notable instrument(s)
Punjabi Saaj, Dhol, Harmonium, Flutes, Korg's, Roland's... 808's

B21 is comprised of brothers Bally & Bhota Jagpal. The duo—originally a trio with Jassi Sidhu, who left the band in 2002 —take their name from the Handsworth postcode in Birmingham, England

Contents

[edit] Controversy

Jassi Sidhu made a move to walk out on B21 so he could pursue a solo career. During the bitter walk out, B21's PC HDD containing production from Bhota Jagpal was stolen from the studio where the 3 worked. However in recent years this production was used on Simon Nandhra's albums, evident that samples had been lifted from Bhota Jagpal's work. Also, the fact that some songs that were planed for future B21 releases had been rush-released by Simon Nandhra (a close accomplice of Jassi Sidhu) with poor production so that B21 could not release these songs.

[edit] B21 album for 2008

Album for 2008 contains various tracks with guest artists such as:

Sardool Sikander
Shazia Manzoor
Bhota Jagpal
Bally Jagpal
Bally - No not the same one!

Bhota Jagpal recently appeared on the BBC Asian Network and played a forth coming track off the 2008 album, Singapore Airline, a track with the vocals of Shazia Manzoor and Bally Jagpal. Although this track was near 98% complete Bhota stated his finishing touches were being added to the tracks.

[edit] Ghost Production

B21 are pioneers for being the first ever bhangra producers to ghost produce for another bhangra "producer". B21 has gone on to ghost produce many other project as they are responsible for several bhangra hits over the years, yet they have never got credited for them. B21 paved the way for other ghost producers in the bhangra industry, like Kam Frantic and RDB, amongst many. This however is looked upon in a negative manner, as many bhangra fans claim that ghost production is killing bhangra because bhangra is losing its creative sound, and everything sounds like a Kam Frantic or B21 song.

[edit] Discography

[edit] Albums

  • The Sounds of B21 (1996) — includes "Put Sardaran Da"
  • By Public Demand (1998 — includes "Chandigarh", "Din Raat", and "Put Sardara Deh"
  • Made in England (March 2000) — includes "Darshan", which was featured in Bend It Like Beckham and included on the film's soundtrack album.[1] An instrumental of "Darshan" was used in the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Games held in the UK 2002.[2]
  • Long Overdue (2002) — includes "Jawani". Jassi Sidhu released the album in India under his own name.[citation needed]
  • B21 have recently re-signed with Moviebox where a new album is planned for July 2008.

[edit] Solo albums by Bally Jagpal

  • Live and Direct (1997)
  • Dark and Dangerous (1999/2000) — includes "Aja Soneya", which features Pakistan's Shazia Mansoor. The album topped the Asian charts for 22 weeks and is considered the best selling bhangra of all time in the UK.[citation needed]
  • Untruly Yours (2001) — includes "Ranjha"

[edit] Awards

  • 1998 Pop Awards (Birmingham)
    • Best Newcomers B21
    • Best Up-coming B21
    • Best Song Bally Jagpal ("Nakhre Bin Soni Temi")
  • 1998 Student Poll Awards (Leicester)
    • Best Newcomers B21
    • Best Album B21
  • 1998 Movie Pagent Awards (London)
    • Best Newcomers B21
    • Best Selling Album Live and Direct (Bally Jagpal)
  • 1998 Movie Box Records (Birmingham)
    • Exceeding Sales Of 25,000 B21
  • 1999 Toor Films International Awards
    • Best Music Producer Bally Jagpal
  • 2000 Asian Pop Awards (Bimingham)
    • Best Selling Album Dark & Dangerous (Bally Jagpal)
    • Best Song Aja Soneya (Bally Jagpal)
  • 2003 Asian Music Awards (AMA) London
    • Best Band B21 (Bhota Jagpal & Bally Jagpal)

Verified on B21's Myspace

[edit] External links

[edit] References

  1. ^ Bend It Like Beckham Soundtrack. Amazon.com. Retrieved on 03-01-2008.
  2. ^ B21 Myspace Bio.
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