Panjabi MCਰਜਿੰਦਰ ਸਿੰਘ ਰਾਏ

Early life

Rajinder Singh Rai was born on 14 February 1973 in Coventry, England, and grew up in a Punjabi household steeped in bhangra. As a teenager he taught himself to rap and freestyle, and he began folding desi samples into hip-hop beats. In 1993 Ninder Johal of Nachural Records heard his remix of Kuldip Manak's 'Ghariah Milan De' — a bold desi/hip-hop hybrid — and signed him.

Coventry's Punjabi community in the 1980s was steeped in bhangra, and the teenage Rajinder Rai absorbed it alongside the hip-hop pouring out of Britain's cities. Teaching himself to rap and freestyle, he began doing what no one else was doing: cutting Punjabi folk samples into hip-hop beats. The remix of Kuldip Manak's 'Ghariah Milan De' that caught Ninder Johal's ear in 1993 was the work of a kid who heard no contradiction between Manak and American rap.

Career

Through the 1990s Panjabi MC released a steady run of records — Souled Out, Another Sell Out, Grass Roots and Legalised among them — becoming one of the most prominent names in bhangra, as AllMusic later put it. 'Mundian To Bach Ke' ('Beware of the Boys'), built on the bassline of the Knight Rider television theme played on dhol and tumbi, first appeared on Legalised in 1998 and was already an underground hit when German label Superstar Recordings picked it up.

The worldwide release of 2002 turned it into a phenomenon: it sold around 10 million copies, one of the best-selling singles of all time, put him on Top of the Pops and earned a remix featuring Jay-Z. He followed it with 'Jogi' in 2003 and continued to work across hip-hop, jungle, UK garage and reggae styles on later releases.

The 1990s were a slow build — albums like Souled Out, Another Sell Out, Grass Roots and Legalised, and a reputation as one of bhangra's most inventive producers. 'Mundian To Bach Ke' changed everything, but it is worth remembering the song was already four years old and an underground hit before Superstar Recordings took it worldwide. Its genius was its familiarity: the Knight Rider bassline was something every Western listener already knew, and Panjabi MC rebuilt it with dhol and tumbi into something nobody had heard.

The Jay-Z remix sealed its status, and 'Jogi' proved he was no one-hit wonder. Across later releases he ranged through jungle, UK garage and reggae, always anchored by Punjabi folk instrumentation.

Major works

'Mundian To Bach Ke' is his monument — a record that took bhangra to every continent. 'Jogi', 'Mirza' and the albums Souled Out, Legalised and The Album round out a catalogue that consistently fused Punjabi folk instruments with electronic dance production.

'Mundian To Bach Ke' towers over everything — ten million copies, one of the best-selling singles in history. 'Jogi', 'Mirza' and the albums Legalised and The Album complete the essential catalogue.

Personal life

Panjabi MC is based in the UK and continues to DJ, produce and tour internationally.

Panjabi MC has stayed close to his Midlands roots while touring the world as a DJ, and he remains active in production.

Legacy

Few records have done more for bhangra's global reach than 'Mundian To Bach Ke'. By marrying a television theme every Western listener knew to Punjabi rhythms, Panjabi MC made bhangra legible — and irresistible — to the world.

Before 'Mundian To Bach Ke', bhangra was a diaspora pleasure; after it, bhangra was world music. Panjabi MC's record did for Punjabi music what few records have done for any regional genre: it made the whole planet dance to it.