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Bringing This Back!
PopShift Sessions - South Asian Music Showcase in New York City on Sep 26.
PopShift Newsletter
September 09, 2024
I am super excited to announce that we are bringing back an event series that is so near and dear to my heart. Allow me to reintroduce PopShift Sessions, a live music experience carefully curated to showcase artists who are proving time and time again that music deserves to be heard by the entire world.
Backstory
PopShift Sessions was first introduced in 2019 as a South Asian music pop-up. The first event saw 150 attendees, and that number quickly doubled and tripled with each new event throughout the year. The momentum was so strong that I took a huge risk and booked Terminal 5 on September 21, 2019, for our finale in New York City. I was extremely nervous, but with the help of a fantastic team and brand partners like Toyota, Sling, and Dil Mil, we pulled off something incredible. A lineup of 20 artists took the stage, and over 1,500 people were in attendance. (Check out the recap here.)
I was riding high for months to come. I had a full event plan drawn up for 2020, quit my full-time job, and was ready for what was next. Then, just a few short months later, everything came to a halt when the COVID-19 pandemic ended all live events.
“Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.” – Mike Tyson.
This sudden end left such a scar on my mind that I completely avoided doing events until 2023 (last year). I’ll share the full story another time!
Why bring it back now?
Over the last couple of years, there has been incredible growth in world music worldwide. At the forefront of this movement have been South Asian artists who are steadily honing their crafts and building audiences song by song. When I reflect on why I started PopShift in the first place, PopShift Sessions is one of those reasons. It’s to provide these artists with a stage where they can fully express themselves, while attendees have the chance to discover their next favorite artist.
PopShift Sessions in New York City on September 26 will feature live performances by Shreea Kaul and Kayam, along with DJ sets by Enchantika and Just Raj. A few more artists will be announced in the coming week, including some special guest performances. Get your tickets here.
Listen to the PopShift Sessions Playlist.
This is Shreea Kaul. Shreea will perform her songs: Tere Bina, Ladke, Burn It To The Ground, and the unreleased banger tagged in the video below. Check out more of Shreea’s music here.
This is Kayam. He will perform songs like Ride For Me, Your Soniya, Senorita, and his latest release, Dangerous Girl. You can check out his music here!
This 25-year-old Indian American is running for the Georgia State Senate.
New Music Discovery
Dhee - I Wear My Roots Like A Medal
Hasan Raheem Releases a 5-track EP titled 1 2 3 4 5.
Killa K x Yung Raja released a Tamil banger called Podu Mike.
Punjabi artist Harnoor is back with a single called Luv Drug.
AP Dhillon dropped a much-awaited The Brownprint album in late August. Bora Bora is my personal favorite from the album.
Indian Rapper Prabh Deep just released a brand new project titled DSP.
Sommaiya - Sabr - bless the YouTube algorithm for this recent discovery. He is an independent artist who has released some low-key hits on YouTube. One of these releases is bound to catch fire very soon!
If you’re into the current DJ Culture and the Mix Masters of the world, you must see what the DJ collective CHOR BAZAAR is doing from Australia. The group recently released a 7 track mix tape on SoundCloud called 365, celebrating 1 one-year anniversary.
Upcoming Events
Written by Raghu Alla
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