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Swami (band)
Encyclopedia
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
(aka DJ Swami), who founded the band with his brother Simon Duggal. Though 'Swami
' traditionally refers to a Hindu teacher, the name is an abbreviation of the English
phrase 'So Who Am I?'. The band has made it clear through interviews that Swami is a band
in the traditional sense, and not a looser collective as is the case with many R&B
groups.
. Nu Skool Beatz was followed by the 2002 album Bhangradotcom, which was less dance-oriented.
, which became popular across the entire British Asian
music scene. By this time Diamond was the only original member remaining and had recruited his cousin S-Endz
as rap vocalist in the band alongside British bhangra singer Jagz and MC Sarpanch.
The title track DesiRock was voted as a BBC Radio 1
favorite, which led to the band doing a Maida Vale session in the summer of 2005,
and the track also appeared in the Official 2006 FIFA World Cup edition of Electronic Arts
' FIFA series
of video games. In the same year DJ Swami won the Media Storm Best Producer award at the UK Asian Music Awards, as well as being nominated for Best Track (DesiRock) and Best Group.
In late 2005, the band signed a deal with Sony BMG to release DesiRock in India
as So Who Am I
with a new line-up losing Sarpanch and replacing Jagz with new vocalist Sups. With a heavily modified sound (nearly all songs re-recorded with live guitar and drums, and additional vocals by S-Endz), they then embarked on a successful promotional tour of India which included a high-profile performance at the MTV
Style Awards. The Hindu
credited Swami with bringing British bhangra back to prominence in Indian clubs.
A fourth album of live recording sessions was scheduled to be released in the spring of 2006. Two songs from the sessions have been heard, Afraid and No Apologies, both at one stage were available on the band's Myspace site. Afraids 'bhangra-fied mix' was also played on the BBC
's Desi DNA
programme. These recordings remain otherwise unreleased.
In December 2006, Dhol player and percussionist Bobby Panesar joined the band.
In March 2007, an update was made to Swami
's website, containing details of the forthcoming album and revealed that it would feature many guest appearances including Pras
of The Fugees
, Boostylz, Lady Ru, French rappers Asuivre, South African vocalist Ishmael, MC Spee from the band Dreadzone
, Yam Boy and more.
It was later announced that Swami's 2007 release was to be named Equalize
and would be out in the fall following a tour including Wychwood and Glastonbury festivals.
BBC Radio 1
premiered 'Hey Hey
', the first single from Equalize
on the 14th August.
The song had been hosted on social networking website MySpace
for 2 weeks prior to this, in a deal which saw Swami as a MySpace
Music Featured Artist. To date, the song has been played nearly 2 million times on MySpace
.
Following the radio premiere of the song on the 14th, Radio 1
DJ Bobby Friction
announced that Swami would be performing an exclusive live session at Maida Vale
in a few weeks time.
The session was recorded and broadcast at the end of September and featured many new songs from Equalize
and guest appearances from some of the featured artists including Boostylz, MC Spee and Ishmael.
Equalize
was released in the UK on the 24th September, and in mid November a music video began rotating for 'Hey Hey
'.
In December 2007, Swami announced that they had signed a new international record deal with Virgin/EMI and would be releasing Equalize
in India imminently. The major label release is a new version including bonus tracks, one of them being an all-new version of the track Electro Jugni featuring Swedish popstar DeDe Lopez.
In January 2008, Swami won the 'Album Of The Year' award on DesiHits, and were nominated for 3 awards (Best Album, Best Producer and Best Underground Act) at the 2008 UK Asian Music Awards. Diamond was awarded the Best Producer award, but couldn't make the event, so S-Endz, Liana and Bobby Panesar accepted it on his behalf.
As of 2008, it is believed that drummer Rocky Singh and bass player Baba Stormz are no longer in the band, and their names have been removed from the list of band members on Swami's MySpace page.
In February 2008, Swami appeared on the UK TV show 'Desi DNA' on BBC 2 and performed Ching and Electro Jugni. The performance of Electro Jugni was also the debut of Swami's new female vocalist Liana. The video to Electro Jugni was shot a few weeks later and is expected to premiere soon.
In June 2008, Swami revealed a forthcoming digital EP of 'Electro Jugni/She's Mine'. Both songs are new versions, 'Electro Jugni' is a new Punjabi and Hindi version, and 'She's Mine' is an all-new English version of the song. Both songs feature all-new vocals from S-Endz, Liana and Sups. The artwork appeared shortly thereafter on MySpace, and the EP was eventually released on March 9, 2009.
In August 2008, Swami's "Hey Hey" music video received its Canadian premiere at Toronto's FILMI South Asian Film Festival, as part of FILMI's debut music video night programmed by Deejay Ra.
The video for Electro Jugni was premiered on the DesiHits website on the 23rd October 2008.
A trailer for the music video to She's Mine appeared in March 2009, but the full video has yet to be released.
and Tonight) and 2 remixes.
Sugarless received heavy worldwide radio support following its premiere, and shortly afterwards the band released a heavier dance remix, entitled Sugarless (The New Desi Generation Remix) which also went on to receive airplay.
53431 was released on the 17th August 2009 and the music video for Sugarless premiered in early September.
In an interview with Eastern Eye newspaper in November 2009, S-Endz
revealed that the band were currently working on a new album and it would be "an international English pop album which will be released by a major US label".
In a newsletter sent out on 27 January 2010, S-Endz mentioned that he and Diamond
had written 20 new songs for the new album, and that the 20 songs would all be completed before the best ones were chosen.
The "Sugarless Tour 2010" took place in the UK and Canada across June and July, and the set included several new songs from the upcoming album. Shortly afterwards, a photo of Diamond and S-Endz in Metalworks Studios
was uploaded to Facebook alongside a caption indicating that they were mixing the new album.
on BBC Radio 1 that the new album is entitled 'Upgrade'.
The band recently launched an official Tumblr blog specifically to update fans on the status of the album, at UpgradeUrSound.com.
British Indian
The term British Indian refers to citizens of the United Kingdom whose ancestral roots lie in India. This includes people born in the UK who are of Indian descent, and Indian-born people who have migrated to the UK...
pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
/alt/bhangra band from Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It is also the pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
of the band's lead performer, producer, DJ and guitarist Diamond Duggal
Diamond Duggal
Diamond Duggal aka DJ Swami is a music producer, songwriter, DJ and guitarist. He is also the leader of UK pop/ electronic/ bhangra band Swami. He is Ivor Novello and Mercury Prize nominated and produced and played alongside Mutt Lange on the Shania Twain double Grammy nominated 2004 album Up!. He...
(aka DJ Swami), who founded the band with his brother Simon Duggal. Though 'Swami
Swami
A swami sometimes abbreviated "Sw." is an ascetic or yogi who has been initiated into the religious monastic order founded by Adi Sankara, or to a religious teacher.The Oxford English Dictionary gives the etymology as...
' traditionally refers to a Hindu teacher, the name is an abbreviation of the English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
phrase 'So Who Am I?'. The band has made it clear through interviews that Swami is a band
Band (music)
In music, a musical ensemble or band is a group of musicians that works together to perform music. The following articles concern types of musical bands:* All-female band* Big band* Boy band* Christian band* Church band* Concert band* Cover band...
in the traditional sense, and not a looser collective as is the case with many R&B
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
groups.
History
Swami's debut dance album Desi Nu Skool Beatz was initially released on Simon & Diamond Duggal's own Sub Dub label in 1998. After Sub Dub folded the album was picked up by Nation Records. Described as "blinding" by the Birmingham Post, the album received some international recognition when the opening track Mehbooba appeared in the 2004 Olsen twins movie New York MinuteNew York Minute (film)
New York Minute is a 2004 American teen comedy film starring Mary-Kate Olsen, Ashley Olsen and Eugene Levy. It was directed by Dennie Gordon and released on May 7, 2004. In the film Mary-Kate and Ashley play twins with opposing personalities who have a series of misadventures around New York City...
. Nu Skool Beatz was followed by the 2002 album Bhangradotcom, which was less dance-oriented.
2004-2006: The DesiRock Era
The band's big break came with the release of their third album 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...
, which became popular across the entire British Asian
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...
music scene. By this time Diamond was the only original member remaining and had recruited his cousin S-Endz
S-Endz
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....
as rap vocalist in the band alongside British bhangra singer Jagz and MC Sarpanch.
The title track DesiRock was voted as a 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...
favorite, which led to the band doing a Maida Vale session in the summer of 2005,
and the track also appeared in the Official 2006 FIFA World Cup edition of Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
' FIFA series
FIFA Series
FIFA, also known as FIFA Football or FIFA Soccer, is a series of association football video games, released annually by Electronic Arts under the EA Sports label...
of video games. In the same year DJ Swami won the Media Storm Best Producer award at the UK Asian Music Awards, as well as being nominated for Best Track (DesiRock) and Best Group.
In late 2005, the band signed a deal with Sony BMG to release DesiRock in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
as 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...
with a new line-up losing Sarpanch and replacing Jagz with new vocalist Sups. With a heavily modified sound (nearly all songs re-recorded with live guitar and drums, and additional vocals by S-Endz), they then embarked on a successful promotional tour of India which included a high-profile performance at the MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
Style Awards. The Hindu
The Hindu
The Hindu is an Indian English-language daily newspaper founded and continuously published in Chennai since 1878. According to the Audit Bureau of Circulations, it has a circulation of 1.46 million copies as of December 2009. The enterprise employed over 1,600 workers and gross income reached $40...
credited Swami with bringing British bhangra back to prominence in Indian clubs.
A fourth album of live recording sessions was scheduled to be released in the spring of 2006. Two songs from the sessions have been heard, Afraid and No Apologies, both at one stage were available on the band's Myspace site. Afraids 'bhangra-fied mix' was also played on the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
's Desi DNA
Desi DNA
Desi DNA is a British television show on the BBC covering Desi art, culture and entertainment, currently broadcasting its fifth series in 2008....
programme. These recordings remain otherwise unreleased.
In December 2006, Dhol player and percussionist Bobby Panesar joined the band.
2007-2009: The Equalize Era
Swami
A swami sometimes abbreviated "Sw." is an ascetic or yogi who has been initiated into the religious monastic order founded by Adi Sankara, or to a religious teacher.The Oxford English Dictionary gives the etymology as...
's website, containing details of the forthcoming album and revealed that it would feature many guest appearances 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:...
of 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...
, Boostylz, Lady Ru, French rappers Asuivre, South African vocalist Ishmael, MC Spee from the band Dreadzone
Dreadzone
Dreadzone are a British band whose music is an eclectic fusion of dub, reggae, techno, folk and rock. They have so far produced six studio albums and two live albums.-Career:...
, Yam Boy and more.
It was later announced that Swami's 2007 release was to be named 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...
and would be out in the fall following a tour including Wychwood and Glastonbury festivals.
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...
premiered 'Hey Hey
Hey Hey
"Hey Hey" is the lead track from Swami's 2007 album, Equalize.The song features vocals by Harlem-based R'n'B singer Boostylz, guest Punjabi vocalist Romesh Chohan, and was produced by DJ Swami....
', the first single from 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...
on the 14th August.
The song had been hosted on social networking website MySpace
MySpace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
for 2 weeks prior to this, in a deal which saw Swami as a MySpace
MySpace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
Music Featured Artist. To date, the song has been played nearly 2 million times on MySpace
MySpace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
.
Following the radio premiere of the song on the 14th, 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 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....
announced that Swami would be performing an exclusive live session at Maida Vale
Maida Vale
Maida Vale is a residential district in West London between St John's Wood and Kilburn. It is part of the City of Westminster. The area is mostly residential, and mainly affluent, consisting of many large late Victorian and Edwardian blocks of mansion flats...
in a few weeks time.
The session was recorded and broadcast at the end of September and featured many new songs from 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...
and guest appearances from some of the featured artists including Boostylz, MC Spee and Ishmael.
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...
was released in the UK on the 24th September, and in mid November a music video began rotating for 'Hey Hey
Hey Hey
"Hey Hey" is the lead track from Swami's 2007 album, Equalize.The song features vocals by Harlem-based R'n'B singer Boostylz, guest Punjabi vocalist Romesh Chohan, and was produced by DJ Swami....
'.
In December 2007, Swami announced that they had signed a new international record deal with Virgin/EMI and would be releasing 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...
in India imminently. The major label release is a new version including bonus tracks, one of them being an all-new version of the track Electro Jugni featuring Swedish popstar DeDe Lopez.
In January 2008, Swami won the 'Album Of The Year' award on DesiHits, and were nominated for 3 awards (Best Album, Best Producer and Best Underground Act) at the 2008 UK Asian Music Awards. Diamond was awarded the Best Producer award, but couldn't make the event, so S-Endz, Liana and Bobby Panesar accepted it on his behalf.
As of 2008, it is believed that drummer Rocky Singh and bass player Baba Stormz are no longer in the band, and their names have been removed from the list of band members on Swami's MySpace page.
In February 2008, Swami appeared on the UK TV show 'Desi DNA' on BBC 2 and performed Ching and Electro Jugni. The performance of Electro Jugni was also the debut of Swami's new female vocalist Liana. The video to Electro Jugni was shot a few weeks later and is expected to premiere soon.
In June 2008, Swami revealed a forthcoming digital EP of 'Electro Jugni/She's Mine'. Both songs are new versions, 'Electro Jugni' is a new Punjabi and Hindi version, and 'She's Mine' is an all-new English version of the song. Both songs feature all-new vocals from S-Endz, Liana and Sups. The artwork appeared shortly thereafter on MySpace, and the EP was eventually released on March 9, 2009.
In August 2008, Swami's "Hey Hey" music video received its Canadian premiere at Toronto's FILMI South Asian Film Festival, as part of FILMI's debut music video night programmed by Deejay Ra.
The video for Electro Jugni was premiered on the DesiHits website on the 23rd October 2008.
A trailer for the music video to She's Mine appeared in March 2009, but the full video has yet to be released.
2009-2011: The 53431 Era
On June 12, 2009, a brand new Swami song entitled Sugarless was premiered via the entertainment website DesiHits, who reported that the track would feature on an upcoming Swami compilation called 53431 that would contain the hits from the band's previous studio albums as well as 2 new songs (SugarlessSugarless
Sugarless is the first single from Swami's 2009 Greatest Hits compilation 53431.Initially released as a free download on the popular Asian entertainment website DesiHits.com, the track quickly gained steam in the UK and North America, garnering critical acclaim from popular Asian media outlets such...
and Tonight) and 2 remixes.
Sugarless received heavy worldwide radio support following its premiere, and shortly afterwards the band released a heavier dance remix, entitled Sugarless (The New Desi Generation Remix) which also went on to receive airplay.
53431 was released on the 17th August 2009 and the music video for Sugarless premiered in early September.
In an interview with Eastern Eye newspaper in November 2009, S-Endz
S-Endz
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....
revealed that the band were currently working on a new album and it would be "an international English pop album which will be released by a major US label".
In a newsletter sent out on 27 January 2010, S-Endz mentioned that he and Diamond
Diamond Duggal
Diamond Duggal aka DJ Swami is a music producer, songwriter, DJ and guitarist. He is also the leader of UK pop/ electronic/ bhangra band Swami. He is Ivor Novello and Mercury Prize nominated and produced and played alongside Mutt Lange on the Shania Twain double Grammy nominated 2004 album Up!. He...
had written 20 new songs for the new album, and that the 20 songs would all be completed before the best ones were chosen.
The "Sugarless Tour 2010" took place in the UK and Canada across June and July, and the set included several new songs from the upcoming album. Shortly afterwards, a photo of Diamond and S-Endz in Metalworks Studios
Metalworks Studios
Metalworks Studios is a music recording studio in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. It was established in 1978 by Gil Moore of the Canadian rock group Triumph.-Music Artists:*Alexisonfire*Adriana Lombardo*Jason Dawson*Kate Voegele*Demi Lovato*Fair to Midland...
was uploaded to Facebook alongside a caption indicating that they were mixing the new album.
2011-current: The Upgrade Era
On the 17th May 2011, a new track entitled "Dumdaraka (Dub Upgrade)" was released to BBC Radio 1 and Asian Network. The following week, on the 24th May, Diamond revealed in an interview with DJ NihalDJ Nihal
DJ Nihal is an English radio and TV presenter, as well as club night promoter and DJ, currently broadcasting on BBC Radio 1, BBC Asian Network and since August 6, 2010 BBC Radio 5 Live...
on BBC Radio 1 that the new album is entitled 'Upgrade'.
The band recently launched an official Tumblr blog specifically to update fans on the status of the album, at UpgradeUrSound.com.
Discography
- Desi Nu Skool Beatz (1999)
- BhangraDotCom (2002)
- 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 MineElectro 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....
EP (2009) - 53431 (2009)