S-Endz
Encyclopedia
S-Endz, also known as Turi and Casey Rain is a British Asian
vocalist, music producer, songwriter and presenter. He is best known as a member of the critically acclaimed UK rap/alternative/bhangra band Swami
.
S-Endz himself is influenced by funk artists such as Prince
, Michael Jackson
and Roger Troutman
, as well as rock and metal bands such as Nine Inch Nails
and Sepultura
.
and all of the tracks on the 2005 remixed rap-rock version of the album, entitled So Who Am I
released on Sony BMG. This album became a significant milestone for British Asian music, winning many awards. S-Endz himself was awarded with a "Rowdiest MC" award by BBC Radio 1
DJ's Bobby Friction
& Nihal
in 2005.
When asked to describe his musical style in a 2005 interview with UKBhangra.com, S-Endz replied:
"My musical style as a vocalist and performer is like the bastard child of DMX and Courtney Love
that was babysat by Slipknot
and taught to create music by Prince
, Kurt Cobain
and Tupac Shakur
and then genetically modified with the soul of Jason Voorhees while he’s wielding a chainsaw."
In 2007, Swami released the album "Equalize
" internationally through EMI/Virgin Records to great acclaim. The '4 Faces' album cover, featuring the outlines of Diamond, S-Endz, Sups and Bobby became the new Swami logo, appearing on flyers and merchandise. S-Endz appeared on the songs "Electro Jugni" and "Intoxicated" from this album. The album featured many international talents including Pras
from The Fugees
and award-winning South African R&B star Ishmael.
The album was followed by the EP of "Electro Jugni/She's Mine
", on which S-Endz appeared and co-wrote the tracks featured on it, including "She's Mine", Swami's first song to be sang fully in English. S-Endz wrote the male R&B verses that Sups sang on this song, as well as his own rap and adlibs.
In Summer 2009, Swami began to promote an upcoming Greatest Hits compilation entitled "53431". The compilation includes two new songs, "Sugarless" and "Tonight" - both of which were co-written by and feature S-Endz. "Sugarless" was released as a free download in June 2009 to massive critical acclaim from fans and media alike. Indian music blog Bhangraw reported that this would be the last material from Swami that would include Punjabi vocals and that their next album would be entirely in English.
in an exclusive live performance for Bobby Friction
's show. According to S-Endz' official website at the time, the two tracks are called "Welcome 2 the New Wave", and "In the Haze". No release information has been given for either two songs.
In early 2007 the track "Giveit2me
", produced by Simon "Subs" Duggal, was premiered via S-Endz's MySpace page. It is a reggae-fuelled commercial hip-hop track. On the 12th March, it was playlisted on the BBC Asian Network
and remained in their "A" playlist for 2 months.
S-Endz' official website was updated in October 2007, revealing that his upcoming release is to be titled Emanate. It also mentioned the names of two new songs, "Electric Man" and "She's Like My Shadow", both of which later premiered on S-Endz' MySpace page. In 2007 S-Endz also co-wrote and featured on the song "Wise In The Mind" by Fusing Naked Beats. This song also featured London rappers Swami Baracus and Mic Assassin.
On the 5th September 2008, a remix of "She's Like My Shadow" featuring Detroit rapper Kidd Skilly was announced via S-Endz' MySpace blog. It later premiered on S-Endz' official website as well as appearing on Kidd Skilly's mixtape 'Undercover Superstar Vol. 1'.
On the 15th April 2009, a new song entitled "Dark Days" appeared on S-Endz' official website. However, he states the track will not be appearing on his upcoming album.
The USA/Canadian magazine ANOKHI featured an exclusive article about S-Endz in their Summer 2009 issue. The article states that Emanate will be released in the fall of 2009, and the first single "Do U Wanna Come"? will be released in the summer to coincide with a number of live shows.
In mid July 2009, a clip of "Do U Wanna Come?" was uploaded to S-Endz' MySpace page, and a few days later, a brand new track "We Got Some Breaking Up To Do" was premiered on entertainment site DesiHits.com. This track showcases S-Endz' trademark flows on top of the pop song of the same name by the Danish group Private
.
In August 2009, S-Endz announced the release of a digital EP featuring his new single "Outer Space
" which also features vocalists Kazz Kumar and Rukas. The EP was released on the 21st October 2009.
In April 2010, Radio New Zealand aired 'Urban Disturbance in Broadcasting House' - a documentary exploring the life and career of BBC Radio 1
DJ Zane Lowe
. This documentary contained 3 original pieces of music by S-Endz.
It was announced, via YouTube clip in February 2011 that S-Endz has again collaborated with Kazz Kumar, creating a follow-up to her 2010 single 'Fashion'. The new version, entitled 'Fashion Part II (Neofunk Style)' is set to be released in the spring.
for radio station BBC 1xtra alongside the stations DJ Semtex
. The two of them spent a week in LA interviewing Tupac's friends, family and associates to create the documentary, which aired on the tenth anniversary of Tupac's death to critical acclaim from the media. Leading UK entertainment journalist Miranda Sawyer
remarked in her review that S-Endz "clearly has a future in broadcasting".
In 2008, S-Endz, alongside Swami bandmates DJ Swami
and Sups, guest-hosted the Sony award-winning FRICTION radio show for two days on the BBC Asian Network
whilst presenter Bobby Friction
was away. The shows were well received by fans.
Early 2009 saw S-Endz step back into a presenter role with the audio slideshow "Johnny J Remembered". This piece, uploaded to YouTube, was a tribute to the late hip-hop producer who S-Endz had interviewed for the Tupac documentary 3 years prior. The 20-minute piece looked back on Johnny's life and career with previously unseen pictures from S-Endz' trip to Johnny's studio.
Solo tracks released:
Solo albums and EP's
Guest Appearances:
British Asian
British Asian is a term used to describe British citizens who descended from mainly South Asia, also known as South Asians in the United Kingdom...
vocalist, music producer, songwriter and presenter. He is best known as a member of the critically acclaimed UK rap/alternative/bhangra band Swami
Swami (band)
Swami are a critically acclaimed British Indian pop/alt/bhangra band from Birmingham, England. It is also the pseudonym of the band's lead performer, producer, DJ and guitarist Diamond Duggal , who founded the band with his brother Simon Duggal...
.
S-Endz himself is influenced by funk artists such as Prince
Prince (musician)
Prince Rogers Nelson , often known simply as Prince, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Prince has produced ten platinum albums and thirty Top 40 singles during his career. Prince founded his own recording studio and label; writing, self-producing and playing most, or all, of...
, Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
and Roger Troutman
Roger Troutman
Roger Troutman was the lead singer of the band Zapp who helped spearhead the Funk movement and heavily influenced West Coast hip hop due to the scene's heavy sampling of his music over the years...
, as well as rock and metal bands such as Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails is an American industrial rock project, founded in 1988 by Trent Reznor in Cleveland, Ohio. As its main producer, singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist, Reznor is the only official member of Nine Inch Nails and remains solely responsible for its direction...
and Sepultura
Sepultura
Sepultura is a Brazilian heavy metal band from Belo Horizonte, formed in 1984. The band was a major force in the death metal, thrash metal and ultimately groove metal realms during the late 1980s and early 1990s, with their later experiments melding nu metal, hardcore punk and industrial.Sepultura...
.
History
S-Endz grew up in the culturally diverse area of Handsworth, Birmingham. S-Endz' first cousin Apache Indian broke the UK mainstream pop audience with a blend of bhangra and reggae produced by his cousins Simon "Subs" Duggal and Diamond "DJ Swami" Duggal. Subs & DJ Swami would later form the band Swami, which S-Endz would join as a vocalist in 2004.with Swami
S-Endz contributed rap vocals to many of the tracks on the 2004 Swami release DesiRockDesiRock
DesiRock is the third album by British-Indian producer Diamond 'Swami' Duggal's alternative bhangra group Swami and is also the title of the album's electro/ bhangra/ rock fusion lead track. It is their most popular album to date and voted as one of BBC Radio 1's best DJ tracks of the year. It was...
and all of the tracks on the 2005 remixed rap-rock version of the album, entitled So Who Am I
So Who Am I
So Who Am I is the fourth album by British bhangra group Swami.The album is a re-recorded and re-mixed version of their previous album, DesiRock, and contains massive musical differences, most notably, the tracks have all been re-done with live instruments, giving the album much more of a rock...
released on Sony BMG. This album became a significant milestone for British Asian music, winning many awards. S-Endz himself was awarded with a "Rowdiest MC" award by BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
DJ's Bobby Friction
Bobby Friction
Paramdeep Singh Sehdev , better known as Bobby Friction, is a DJ, television presenter and radio presenter from west London.He studied Contemporary Arts at The Nottingham Trent University....
& Nihal
Nihal
Nihal may refer to:*Nihal , people with the name*Beta Leporis, a star traditionally known as Nihal*Nihāl, a tribe that inhabits parts of Central India; cf. Nihali language...
in 2005.
When asked to describe his musical style in a 2005 interview with UKBhangra.com, S-Endz replied:
"My musical style as a vocalist and performer is like the bastard child of DMX and Courtney Love
Courtney Love
Courtney Michelle Love is an American rock musician. Love is the lead vocalist, lyricist, and rhythm guitarist for alternative rock band Hole, which she formed in 1989, and is an actress who has moved from bit parts in Alex Cox films to significant and acclaimed roles in The People vs...
that was babysat by Slipknot
Slipknot (band)
Slipknot is an American heavy metal band from Des Moines, Iowa. Formed in 1995, the group was founded by percussionist Shawn Crahan and bassist Paul Gray...
and taught to create music by Prince
Prince (musician)
Prince Rogers Nelson , often known simply as Prince, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Prince has produced ten platinum albums and thirty Top 40 singles during his career. Prince founded his own recording studio and label; writing, self-producing and playing most, or all, of...
, Kurt Cobain
Kurt Cobain
Kurt Donald Cobain was an American singer-songwriter, musician and artist, best known as the lead singer and guitarist of the grunge band Nirvana...
and Tupac Shakur
Tupac Shakur
Tupac Amaru Shakur , known by his stage names 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper and actor. Shakur has sold over 75 million albums worldwide as of 2007, making him one of the best-selling music artists in the world...
and then genetically modified with the soul of Jason Voorhees while he’s wielding a chainsaw."
In 2007, Swami released the album "Equalize
Equalize
Equalize is an Urban Desi album by the UK band Swami released on September 24, 2007.Their two previous albums were DesiRock in 2004, and So Who Am I in 2005...
" internationally through EMI/Virgin Records to great acclaim. The '4 Faces' album cover, featuring the outlines of Diamond, S-Endz, Sups and Bobby became the new Swami logo, appearing on flyers and merchandise. S-Endz appeared on the songs "Electro Jugni" and "Intoxicated" from this album. The album featured many international talents including Pras
Pras
Prakazrel Samuel Michel, known as Pras, is a Grammy Award-winning Haitian-American rapper, actor, film producer, and member of the hip hop trio The Fugees.-Early life:...
from The Fugees
The Fugees
Fugees were a Haitian American hip hop group who rose to fame in the mid-1990s. Their repertoire included elements of Hip hop, soul and Caribbean music, particularly reggae. The members of the group were rapper/singer/producer Wyclef Jean, rapper/singer/producer Lauryn Hill, and rapper Pras Michel...
and award-winning South African R&B star Ishmael.
The album was followed by the EP of "Electro Jugni/She's Mine
Electro Jugni/She's Mine
"Electro Jugni/She's Mine" is the third single from Swami's 2007 album, Equalize, written by Diamond Duggal and S-Endz.It was released as a digital EP on March 9, 2009....
", on which S-Endz appeared and co-wrote the tracks featured on it, including "She's Mine", Swami's first song to be sang fully in English. S-Endz wrote the male R&B verses that Sups sang on this song, as well as his own rap and adlibs.
In Summer 2009, Swami began to promote an upcoming Greatest Hits compilation entitled "53431". The compilation includes two new songs, "Sugarless" and "Tonight" - both of which were co-written by and feature S-Endz. "Sugarless" was released as a free download in June 2009 to massive critical acclaim from fans and media alike. Indian music blog Bhangraw reported that this would be the last material from Swami that would include Punjabi vocals and that their next album would be entirely in English.
Solo career
The early roots of S-Endz' solo career began to take shape in September 2006, when two tracks written, produced and performed by S-Endz under the name Turi were premiered on the BBC Asian NetworkBBC Asian Network
BBC Asian Network is a British radio station serving those originating from and around the Indian subcontinent. The music and news comes out of the main urban areas where there are significant communities with these backgrounds. The station has production centres in Birmingham, Leicester and London...
in an exclusive live performance for Bobby Friction
Bobby Friction
Paramdeep Singh Sehdev , better known as Bobby Friction, is a DJ, television presenter and radio presenter from west London.He studied Contemporary Arts at The Nottingham Trent University....
's show. According to S-Endz' official website at the time, the two tracks are called "Welcome 2 the New Wave", and "In the Haze". No release information has been given for either two songs.
In early 2007 the track "Giveit2me
Giveit2me
"giveit2me" is a track by S-Endz from his upcoming album Emanate. It was premiered via his MySpace page on March 7, 2007. It was playlisted on BBC Asian Network throughout March and April of 2007....
", produced by Simon "Subs" Duggal, was premiered via S-Endz's MySpace page. It is a reggae-fuelled commercial hip-hop track. On the 12th March, it was playlisted on the BBC Asian Network
BBC Asian Network
BBC Asian Network is a British radio station serving those originating from and around the Indian subcontinent. The music and news comes out of the main urban areas where there are significant communities with these backgrounds. The station has production centres in Birmingham, Leicester and London...
and remained in their "A" playlist for 2 months.
S-Endz' official website was updated in October 2007, revealing that his upcoming release is to be titled Emanate. It also mentioned the names of two new songs, "Electric Man" and "She's Like My Shadow", both of which later premiered on S-Endz' MySpace page. In 2007 S-Endz also co-wrote and featured on the song "Wise In The Mind" by Fusing Naked Beats. This song also featured London rappers Swami Baracus and Mic Assassin.
On the 5th September 2008, a remix of "She's Like My Shadow" featuring Detroit rapper Kidd Skilly was announced via S-Endz' MySpace blog. It later premiered on S-Endz' official website as well as appearing on Kidd Skilly's mixtape 'Undercover Superstar Vol. 1'.
On the 15th April 2009, a new song entitled "Dark Days" appeared on S-Endz' official website. However, he states the track will not be appearing on his upcoming album.
The USA/Canadian magazine ANOKHI featured an exclusive article about S-Endz in their Summer 2009 issue. The article states that Emanate will be released in the fall of 2009, and the first single "Do U Wanna Come"? will be released in the summer to coincide with a number of live shows.
In mid July 2009, a clip of "Do U Wanna Come?" was uploaded to S-Endz' MySpace page, and a few days later, a brand new track "We Got Some Breaking Up To Do" was premiered on entertainment site DesiHits.com. This track showcases S-Endz' trademark flows on top of the pop song of the same name by the Danish group Private
Private (band)
Private is a pop music trio that weaves classic pop melody with modern dance beats. Private was formed in 2006 by Danish producer/singer Thomas Troelsen, along with guitarist Asger Tarpgaard and vocalist Tanja Simonsen. Sonically, Private's music is filled with infectious pop hooks and rhythms...
.
In August 2009, S-Endz announced the release of a digital EP featuring his new single "Outer Space
Outer Space (EP)
Outer Space is an EP album by the British-Asian music producer and vocalist S-Endz, who is well known as a member of the band Swami. The song Outer Space itself also features vocals from Kazz Kumar and Rukas.-Information:...
" which also features vocalists Kazz Kumar and Rukas. The EP was released on the 21st October 2009.
In April 2010, Radio New Zealand aired 'Urban Disturbance in Broadcasting House' - a documentary exploring the life and career of BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
DJ Zane Lowe
Zane Lowe
Zane Lowe also known as 'Zipper', is a radio DJ and television presenter. He was born in New Zealand and grew up in Auckland, where he was a presenter on the local music station Max TV, before moving to England...
. This documentary contained 3 original pieces of music by S-Endz.
It was announced, via YouTube clip in February 2011 that S-Endz has again collaborated with Kazz Kumar, creating a follow-up to her 2010 single 'Fashion'. The new version, entitled 'Fashion Part II (Neofunk Style)' is set to be released in the spring.
As a presenter
In 2006, S-Endz was given the opportunity to create a documentary about Tupac ShakurTupac Shakur
Tupac Amaru Shakur , known by his stage names 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper and actor. Shakur has sold over 75 million albums worldwide as of 2007, making him one of the best-selling music artists in the world...
for radio station BBC 1xtra alongside the stations DJ Semtex
DJ Semtex
DJ Semtex is a disc jockey and presenter for BBC Radio 1Xtra digital radio station, presenting the flagship hip-hop shows, the Friday and Saturday Night Mixtapes from 19:00-22:00 on Friday and Saturday nights.-Biography:...
. The two of them spent a week in LA interviewing Tupac's friends, family and associates to create the documentary, which aired on the tenth anniversary of Tupac's death to critical acclaim from the media. Leading UK entertainment journalist Miranda Sawyer
Miranda Sawyer
Miranda Sawyer is an English journalist and broadcaster.She grew up in Wilmslow, Cheshire with her brother Toby, who is an actor. She has a degree in Jurisprudence from Pembroke College, Oxford...
remarked in her review that S-Endz "clearly has a future in broadcasting".
In 2008, S-Endz, alongside Swami bandmates DJ Swami
Diamond
In mineralogy, diamond is an allotrope of carbon, where the carbon atoms are arranged in a variation of the face-centered cubic crystal structure called a diamond lattice. Diamond is less stable than graphite, but the conversion rate from diamond to graphite is negligible at ambient conditions...
and Sups, guest-hosted the Sony award-winning FRICTION radio show for two days on the BBC Asian Network
BBC Asian Network
BBC Asian Network is a British radio station serving those originating from and around the Indian subcontinent. The music and news comes out of the main urban areas where there are significant communities with these backgrounds. The station has production centres in Birmingham, Leicester and London...
whilst presenter Bobby Friction
Bobby Friction
Paramdeep Singh Sehdev , better known as Bobby Friction, is a DJ, television presenter and radio presenter from west London.He studied Contemporary Arts at The Nottingham Trent University....
was away. The shows were well received by fans.
Early 2009 saw S-Endz step back into a presenter role with the audio slideshow "Johnny J Remembered". This piece, uploaded to YouTube, was a tribute to the late hip-hop producer who S-Endz had interviewed for the Tupac documentary 3 years prior. The 20-minute piece looked back on Johnny's life and career with previously unseen pictures from S-Endz' trip to Johnny's studio.
Other
In 2010, S-Endz appeared in the music documentary 'Made in Birmingham : Reggae Punk Bhangra' - an independent documentary covering Birmingham's role in popular music. The documentary has been shown across the UK and is being submitted for international film festivals in 2011.Discography
With Swami:- DesiRockDesiRockDesiRock is the third album by British-Indian producer Diamond 'Swami' Duggal's alternative bhangra group Swami and is also the title of the album's electro/ bhangra/ rock fusion lead track. It is their most popular album to date and voted as one of BBC Radio 1's best DJ tracks of the year. It was...
(2004) - So Who Am ISo Who Am ISo Who Am I is the fourth album by British bhangra group Swami.The album is a re-recorded and re-mixed version of their previous album, DesiRock, and contains massive musical differences, most notably, the tracks have all been re-done with live instruments, giving the album much more of a rock...
(2005) - EqualizeEqualizeEqualize is an Urban Desi album by the UK band Swami released on September 24, 2007.Their two previous albums were DesiRock in 2004, and So Who Am I in 2005...
(2007) - Electro Jugni/She's Mine (2009)
- 53431 (2009)
- Upcoming 2011 Swami Album (2011)
Solo tracks released:
- Giveit2me (released on MySpace)
- Electric Man (originally released on MySpace and later on the Outer Space EPOuter Space (EP)Outer Space is an EP album by the British-Asian music producer and vocalist S-Endz, who is well known as a member of the band Swami. The song Outer Space itself also features vocals from Kazz Kumar and Rukas.-Information:...
) - She's Like My Shadow (released on MySpace)
- She's Like My Shadow (remix featuring Kidd Skilly) (released on S-Endz.com)
- Dark Days (released on S-Endz.com)
- S-Endz VS Private - We Got Some Breaking Up To Do (released on DesiHits.com)
Solo albums and EP's
- Outer Space EPOuter Space (EP)Outer Space is an EP album by the British-Asian music producer and vocalist S-Endz, who is well known as a member of the band Swami. The song Outer Space itself also features vocals from Kazz Kumar and Rukas.-Information:...
(2009)
Guest Appearances:
- featured on the remix to Swedish R'n'B artist Gigi's track "Masquerade" (2004)
- backing vocals on 'Get Loose!' by Apache Indian & PrasPrasPrakazrel Samuel Michel, known as Pras, is a Grammy Award-winning Haitian-American rapper, actor, film producer, and member of the hip hop trio The Fugees.-Early life:...
(2005) - featured on 'O Sikander (International Dance Mix)' produced by DJ Swami from the smash-hit Bollywood movie 'CorporateCorporate (film)Corporate is a Bollywood film released in July 2006. The film directed by Madhur Bhandarkar stars Bipasha Basu, Kay Kay Menon, Payal Rohatgi, Minissha Lamba and Raj Babbar.-Plot:...
' (2006) - featured on DJ Camille Starr's remix of AmerieAmerieAmerie Mi Marie Rogers , known professionally as Amerie or Ameriie, is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. She debuted in 2002 with the album All I Have, primarily co-written and produced by Rich Harrison, and was well-received in the urban market...
's Take ControlTake Control"Take Control" is a song by American R&B singer-songwriter Amerie from her third studio album, Because I Love It . Written by Cee-Lo Green, Mike Caren, and Amerie and released as the album's lead single in late 2006, the Caren-produced track contains excerpts from Brazilian musician Tom Zé's 1970...
(2007) - featured on 'Wise In The Mind' by Fusing Naked Beats (2007)
- produced and featured on 'Fashion Part II (Neofunk Style)' by Kazz Kumar (2011)
Filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Type | Miscellaneous |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Made In Birmingham : Reggae Punk Bhangra | Himself | Music Documentary | |