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Buraka Som Sistema, M.I.A.
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Punjabi-inspired hip-hop star
" The real Panjabi MC "
For many in the Western world, Panjabi MC’s proto-meme bhangra banger ‘Mundian To Bach Ke’ was probably both the first and sadly, last encounter with Punjabi music, but that might change soon. Proving that cultural intermingling bears rich fruit, Punjabi-American MC Alo Wala is riding a hybrid hip hop sound into an interconnected global world.
Spearheaded by Alo Wala’s lightning-fast flow, her music takes inspiration from her multicultural background, weaving cosmopolitan influences into hard-hitting songs that transcend boundaries of both the geographical and the genre kind. There’s a militant precision and rhythm to her tracks, along with copious amounts of attitude and self-assurance, the mark of an artist who clearly knows her place in the world, having lived on four continents.
In case you were wondering, that place is firmly atop the musical food chain. Alo Wala’s starter-kit discography is peppered with captivating, genre-bending songs that highlight her resilient personality through elements of everything from UK garage to four-on-the-floor beats, slinky flirtation to tongue-in-cheek wordplay. Having performed at the likes of Glastonbury, Roskilde, and Dour, it’s a clear case of a star in the making. With a debut full-length album on the way, it seems a given that people are about to get a fresh new taste of Punjabi music.