MUMBAI: India’s first female rapper M C Kaur, who believes that no genre can confine us, is all set to set the floor on fire at Artist Aloud’s ‘World Music Day Festival’, held today at Hard Rock Cafe Mumbai. Having started rapping at an early age of 13, Kaur came in limelight with her hit album, Hip Hop Bahu that shed light on what it means to be a married female rapper in a country like India. Having faced social stigma and a divorce, the full-of-inspiration rapper is in no mood to settle and keep exploring her thirst for hip-hop and learn different new forms. In an exclusive chat with Radioandmusic, M C Kaur talk about her upcoming performance, her upcoming album and how she only wants to be surrounded by people, who would guide her right.

Tell us about your upcoming performance at Artist Aloud’s ‘World Music Day’ in association with Hard Rock Cafe.

It’s an honour to have this opportunity to be approached by Hungama for the first time, to also perform alongside DM Cee and to reconnect with Bombay through what’s around both on stage and audience. Good that, I will get to witness it before my album.

Any key performance at the fest, you want to talk about?

I would be releasing a song, which is actually released by a friend from Paris, Tis. She is releasing this album, this EP on World Music Day, which is also called Fete de la Musique in France. I will share the song. I will end my set by playing the song. It includes three Mcees and three verses, two French verses and one is me. It’s just a connection with the artists that I have met through my travel.

Apart from that I would perform my freestyles and my originals and start my set with a music video, which was shot in Barcelona last year after a series of events. It’s from my upcoming album, which will be releasing in August. So, I’m excited to share a visual and an audio release.

Tell us more about your Upcoming album

It is an 11-track album that puts light on the current commercialisation of our cities. It is produced by a French producer, who has produced the music score. I’m making this album on my own, mixing and mastering and process is on and I’m recording it also this month. Then, I’m planning to release it in India and then hopefully go to Europe. Soon, on my front page, I will release my India tour dates.

How has been your association with Artist Aloud?

Fame is not something I think about. I don’t have a comment to make, because its a collaboration and Of course my curiosity is there how it would work with Artist Aloud and what would be the aura. I’m excited to work with many people for the first time. To work with people, my associations matter a lot. I don’t make fiction music. It’s my journey, my observation, an independent boat of thought. It’s interesting to reconnect with the people from Bombay and that is through Artist Aloud after a long time.

Any artist you are looking forward to jamming with on the day of your performance?

I would jam on one tune maybe because it’s 30-minute performance. It’s a very less time for me to showcase what I have and within which I have two songs, I’m performing. Since, I coming from Goa, it is easy for musicians in Bombay to call people. So, for me, it’s like what I’m bringing on the table in 30 minutes and that’s the only place and time when I represent myself. Of course, I’m working with some people on new tracks, some Mcees from Bombay. But, this gig to me, in my perspective, is to share what I have to offer the Mcees. But, when I would speak to other artists I would better know. If there is a plan for collective jam or something happening. A lot of times, it is important for artists to communicate work.

Tell us more about your journey so far after starting rapping at the age of 13 and freestyling.

Freestyling is a great way for me to exercise my skills. A lot of times, people have more experience in meeting and making freestyles, some are playback and some are more jingles. You will come across different types of rappers in India For me, it’s an aim is to become as skilfully rich as possible in the initial years of my curiosity. With whatever is happening in the country, for me, it is easy to be inspired by freestyling because there is a lot of space and a lot to simplify. There are many social problems I want to address. My job is to make people uncomfortable and to make them dance and think.

Your previous album ‘Hip Hop Bahu’ was a hit that made you very famous. Tell us more about it.

It was at the time of time when I was shifting from culture to another. Now I have some strong decisions after my divorce. All these personal things don’t matter in the long run. It’s just a part of your progress. My complete focus is on my upcoming album now.

Through this and after this how I’m going to utilise the coming months to connect with right people and wake people and shake them up.

Tell us about your struggle and challenges you faced for being a female married rapper in India?

I have many people who disagree with me and don’t like me also. This doesn’t really stop me from my responsibility as an artist and it is beyond my gender also. I get some crazy ideas when I meet some inspiring people and how we can change it by re-communicating with both men and women. Believe it or not, women are the first perpetrators of misogyny in our culture today and I have seen in my person. It’s interesting to have different perspectives coming together and what Artists Aloud is doing is great to show two female rappers and one crew. You will see three dimensions of hip-hop. And, if I have a different approach to hip-hop, it is different and no one can box it any one particular category.

Any social change, you want to bring through your rapping?

I had earlier worked on social issues earlier. I got married to a right-wing supporter and divorced. Earlier, I was a participant. Now, I’m saturated with anger. I choose to not live in the cities. I choose to reside and look minimally at people. We are forcing ourselves and cities have become supermarkets and my 11 track album speaks about it. It points out in this direction, which would lead us to a solution of social normalcy. I’m there to show it with a little a hope. Not to just educate people, but also talk about it.

How different was it working with musicians from India from that with International artists?

I have worked with Bombay Basement. All are friends, music is different. Every time I see them, I feel happy to see their progress. We are silent observers and occasional commenters of each other’s progress. When it comes to the hip-hop scene abroad, there is a lot of obvious urge to be really good and qualitative in Europe. They choose to maintain a competition of quality through the commercialisation of music or any genre. Once, when in Europe, I went to a random Cafe, where a crew of musicians was playing baseline genre. They got inspired and we all got along so well. That kind of a sound, I had never heard in India. It was hip-hop. I came back and we did that sound in Bombay. When I performed at Little Door. I believe, no band has made this music earlier. There are so many musicians who make fusion music. When it comes to me, I cannot confine me to the style I have right now. Nobody can confine me, calling me an old school. Nobody is ready for what I have to offer after this also. So, I’m full of inspiration. I have decided to do a lot of sensible things and be surrounded by people, who will guide me right only as I’m my own mentor. I’m really inspired and want inspiration around.