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‘Josh’ling for position
Some of Canada’s most revered cultural exports include Rush, Neil Young and Kids in the Hall. Not quite in that bracket though, Montreal-based desi-pop band Josh have indeed made their mark on Indian and Pakistani audiences across the world, doing particularly well in the subcontinent. Though the band has been together for close to 11 years, it was propelled to fame on the back of its second record Kabhi in 2004, peppered with guest appearances by Sukhbir and Apache Indian, as well as a remix of Nelly Furtado’s Powerless. The duo – Rup (Rupinder Magon) of Indian origin and Q (Qurram Hussain) with Pakistani roots – are enjoying the sticky fruits that come with being desi semi-superstars. The boys were in Karachi recently on a whistle-stop tour to perform at an ice cream makers’ carnival as well as to catch up on PR.
At first glance the twosome doesn’t really strike you as pop stars. The turbaned Rup can pass off as a modern Sardar-ji crossed with an all American frat boy, while Q, with his curly Afro, looks like your standard westernized desi gang banger. But with a hit pop record already under their belts and another potentially hit album in the works (they are coy about a release date), Josh are anything but regular ABCDs. They are ABCDs with some fame and considerable fortune.
Seriously speaking though, their music strays little from convention, combining elements of western Top 40 pop and bhangra, producing a winning hybrid that has struck all the right chords with young desi fans across the world, ensuring regular airplay on local FM stations, as well as music channels both here and in India. First thing’s first: are they resting on their laurels, or do they have a game plan ready to capitalize on their current success?
“We’ve just finished our third record. We haven’t named it yet but we’ve been working on it for the past six to eight months. We’ve also just finished a soundtrack for a Bollywood film, which should be releasing in October, as well as a video for Josh Naal Pao Bhangra,” starts off Rup, itemizing their accomplishments. “I think our sound has changed and you’ll be able to hear that when the record comes out,” he adds.
‘The Powerless remix was played pretty much all over North America but because it’s a remix, the masses didn’t quite really identify with who the band was. It was called the Josh Desi remix. People didn’t know if the name of the band was Josh, or Desi, or Josh Desi’
The duo has made Pakistan a regular feature on their tour stops, this being their fifth or sixth visit in the past year-and-a-half. Why the sudden love affair with Pakistan? Do they come because of the loving fans, the charming architecture or is it because of the gorgeous weather?
“We go to India a lot, so we swing by here on the way and do some promos. Not necessarily concerts. We do interviews and that sort of thing,” explains Q.
Though they may have hit the big time in the subcontinent as well as with expatriate desi communities the world over, have they managed to cross over to mainstream western audiences? After all, having remixed a Nelly Furtado number, one would expect them to have gained considerable mileage after the fact. Yet the boys are surprisingly honest, admitting their fame is more desi-centric and that they have yet to dent the mainstream western charts.
“In terms of the mainstream, we haven’t really hit that market till about two or three months ago. The Powerless remix was played pretty much all over North America but because it’s a remix, the masses didn’t quite really identify with who the band was. It was called the Josh Desi remix. Now people didn’t know if the name of the band was Josh or Desi or Josh Desi. They don’t know that. But recently we’ve been getting a lot of attention in Canadian newspapers as an Indian and a Pakistani being in a band and how it’s very possible for that to happen in a place like Canada,” says Rup. “It was always a goal for us to get in the mainstream, so everything we’ve done has been working towards that,” chimes in Q.
Considering the novelty of two individuals from different backgrounds working together in a band, does the political context of the whole relationship ever overshadow the music?
“It has at times but I believe that in order for it to be news, there’s got to be a bigger base. People need to care about why they are talking about Rup and Q. It is indeed news that we are a Pakistani and Indian working together, but I can give you 30 people off the top of my head, who are couples. Is that newsworthy? So the base for us is the fact that the music is there,” claims Rup.
“It doesn’t make a difference to us. We don’t sit here and try to make a point. At least we haven’t yet. When I met him (Rup) he had already formed the band and I didn’t really think about who he is and where he’s from. We just wanted to do music. Later, it’s people who made us realize that there’s a story that can be used to propel the band and the music. But it’s not a source of inspiration for us,” adds Q. “We don’t want to use it as a gimmick,” both say almost simultaneously.
With desi-flavoured music in vogue in the western mainstream, specially considering many hip-hop acts nowadays heavily sample Indian filmi tunes as well as vocals and tablas, is the fascination with all things desi a flash in the pan, or do the guys think this time it’s here to stay?
“The desi thing started off as a fad, but now when you hear the melange of desi influences in mainstream music, it’s tasteful. You don’t hear someone sampling a tabla beat and singing a hip-hop song over it anymore. You can’t force the desi-ness in a song. I think it’s going to have a little bit of influence on music from now on. It’s going to trickle its way in. Right now it’s all hip-hop. It hasn’t made it to pop. There’s no desi Livin’ La Vida Loca yet,” observes Qurram. “To add to what Q said, I don’t see the desi flavour going, but I do see it leaving a certain genre and moving on to another. Everything has a cycle. Everything gets boring and then comes back,” Rupinder says. “A good song is a good song and it will remain so,” concludes the pop star sardar.
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