Panjabi Hit Squad
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| Panjabi Hit Squad | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Southall, West London |
| Genre(s) | "Urban Asian Fusion" "Desi Beats" "BollyHood" |
| Instrument(s) | DJ/Producer Collective |
| Label(s) | Def Jam / Major Moves |
| Associated acts | Sway, Taz, Mariah Carey, Beenie Man, Ashanti, Bobby Valentino, Jay-Z, Nathan, Kardinal Offishall, Elephant Man, Ms.Jade |
| Website | www.panjabihitsquad.com |
| Members | |
| Rav & Dee | |
| Former members | |
| Markie Mark, Amo | |
Panjabi Hit Squad are regarded by many as the originators of the modern "Urban Asian Fusion" sound[1] (traditional Bhangra music fused with western beats). A Southall, West London based DJ/Producer collective, the Squad was formed in July 2001 by Asian DJ Culture (Dee & Rav) & Markie Mark, who had both been at the forefront of the UK Desi Beats scene since the early 90's.
They are considered to have created the names 'Desi Beats' & 'BollyHood', a term used to describe their unique style of music.
The Squad currently host two weekly radio shows, The first on BBC 1Xtra on Saturday night/Sunday Morning 4am-6am, which has won many awards and the second on Saturdays from 5pm-8pm on BBC Asian Network. Both have high listening figures according to Rajar figures and are considered the 'voice of Asian youth'
Panjabi Hit Squad were the first Asian artists signed to the UK imprint of Hip-Hop giant, Def Jam. They also own their own label called Major Moves and own a recording studio called Kreative Kontrol
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[edit] Biography
Panjabi Hit Squad have been right at the forefront of British-Asian music since their formation in the summer of 2001. The West London based DJ/Producer collective (comprising four members Rav, Dee, Markie and Amo) were originally separate entities in the UK's vibrant urban music scene. With a background in the club-scene going back to the early 90's, they set up one of the most defining club nights for Asian music in 94' called Hot ‘N’ Spicy at the Wag Club and then in 95' moving to The Limelight Club attracting over 1000 clubbers every week and having guest appearances by 112, Puff Daddy, Faith Evans, Horace Brown & Jodeci. In 2001 the Panjabi Hit Squad formed to create a new genre that fused Bhangra with Street music: ’Desi Beats’. Their first self titled debut album was received well and was number one for many weeks on various Asian charts. The album featured singers from India such as Surinder Shinda, Dildar Preet & Kuldip Paras. The album also featured the track 'Dil Churaliya' which featured Dee from the Panjabi Hit Squad. This track is considered one of the first tracks to bridge R'n'B & Hindi vocals together.
By 2002 Panjabi Hit Squad were already succeeding in their bid to build bridges between ’Desi Beats’ and the Black music scene. The Squad were part of the original launch line-up of BBC's Black Music station 1Xtra and in the years since have built a show that has carved a reputation for breaking homegrown British-Asian talent and winning Awards. Their second album titled 'The Streets' was also released featured Ranjit Mani, Satwinder Bitti, Manak-E and included a traditional mix of 'Hai Hai'.
The popularity of the Panjabi Hit Squad and their unique production skills resulted in a signing to Def Jam UK in early 2003 and productions for Sway DaSafo, Mariah Carey, Ashanti, Bobby Valentino and Beanie Man. Their 2003 album released trough Def Jam featured the smash ‘Hai Hai’ which is considered the second most defining Asian record to cross over to the mainstream market. It was also the first Asian video to reach No.1 in the MTV Base chart. Rapper Jay-Z also sampled Hai Hai on the track ‘Higher’. The year also came with Awards at the UK Asian Music Awards. The Squad were nominated for 3 awards which included Best Club DJ, Best Radio DJ & Commitment to the scene awards. The squad won two awards for 'Best Radio DJ' & Commitment to the scene'.
In 2004 the Squad were also nominated for ‘Best Club DJ’ at the MOBO Awards in addition to the nominations for ‘Best Urban Act’ & 'Best Remix' at the EMMA Awards. Also New York Label AV8 Records released Desi Beats to the US urban market attracting massive attention towards the Squad and getting played in clubs by DJ's such as Mark Ronson, Fatman Scoop and Cipha Sounds.
In 2005 Panjabi Hit Squad produced and released 'Ladies First' the debut album by Panjabi Hit Squad discovery Ms.Scandalous. They also ended up taking home the ’Best Specialist Radio Show’ at the Asian Music Awards 2005. Whilst the Squad were on a high from winning awards and gaining massive popularity they were picked to DJ at the biggest outdoor event in the world, Glastonbury festival.
2006 the Squad saw a change in members with Markie Mark taking up a position at BBC Asian Network and Amo pursuing another career. It was for the two remaining members of Panjabi Hit Squad (Dee & Rav) to come back strong.... welcome to the world of BollyHood. BollyHood is a mix of Bollywood music with urban beats. The first Bollyhood artist to come out was Panjabi Hit Squad signing Alyssia. A street track called ‘Pyar Hogiya’ was released in March 2006 and spent 4 weeks at BBC Asian Network top 20, 6 Weeks at Club Asia's T20 Chart and 3 weeks at Sunrise Radio's charts. Quite phenomenal considering the track was not available as a commercial release.
2007 Panjabi Hit Squad started work on Alyssia's debut album, in addition to working on Alyssia's album they spent time in America recording with various rappers and artists for their album ‘Not For Duplication’. In August Panjabi Hit Squad were signed up to present another radio show on BBC Asian Network every Saturday afternoon. In an article in Music Week magazine Panjabi Hit Squad were named amongst the top 10 UK Urban DJ's.
In 2008 the year started off with the release of Alyssia's debut Panjabi Hit Squad produced album. Already the first single ‘Deewana’ Has spent many weeks in many of the top 10 Asian charts & her second single ‘Tera Pyar’ is already on its way to becoming one of the hottest songs of 2008. Also riding high of the release of ‘Alyssia’ Panjabi Hit Squad found time to collaborate with R’n’B Star Jay Sean on the remix to his first single ‘Ride it’ which went to number 12 in the UK charts & ’Maybe’.
[edit] Discography
Albums
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The Album
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| Statistics | Singles |
The Streets
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| Statistics | EP |
Desi Beats E.P.
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| Statistics | Singles |
Desi Beats Vol.1
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Remixes
| Artist | Track | Label | Chart Position |
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Executive Production
| Artist | Album |
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[edit] Desi Beats & BollyHood
Panjabi Hit Squad are considered to have created the names 'Desi Beats' & 'BollyHood', both terms used to describe their unique style of music.
Desi Beats comes from Traditional Panjabi Indian music (Desi is a Urdu/Hindi word literally meaning "of the country") & urban western beats being fused.
BollyHood is the fusion between Bollywood music and Urban music. Panjabi Hit Squad signing Alyssia is considered to be the First BollyHood Artist.
