Rajinder Singh Rai (born February 14, 1973), better known by his stage name Panjabi MC, is an English recording artist, rapper, record producer and DJ. He is best known for the worldwide Bhangra 2002 hit " Mundian To Bach Ke", which sold 10 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling singles of all time. Among other songs, he gained acclaim with the 2003 release " Jogi".

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

has called him "one of the most prominent names in bhangra".

Biography

Career

Rajinder Singh adopted his stage name from the

Punjabi language Punjabi, sometimes spelled Panjabi, is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language native to the Punjab region of Pakistan and India. It is one of the most widely spoken native languages in the world, with approximately 150 million native sp ...

he uses in the music he plays and raps. "One of ismain goals is to fuse the two worlds

Bhangra and Hip hop music">Hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

music genres]". Nachural Records signed Panjabi MC following a remix he made of "Ghariah Milan De", a song by Indian Punjabi singer Kuldeep Manak; although the single was taken off the market, Panjabi MC continued making records. The first successful release, however, was " Mundian To Bach Ke" ("Beware of the Boys" in Punjabi): it first appeared on the 1998 album ''Legalised'', and samples the

theme music Theme music is a musical composition which is often written specifically for radio programming, television shows, video games, or films and is usually played during the title sequence, opening credits, closing credits, and in some instances at ...

of the television series ''

Knight Rider ''Knight Rider'' is an American media franchise, entertainment franchise created by Glen A. Larson. The core of ''Knight Rider'' is its three-television series: the original ''Knight Rider (1982 TV series), Knight Rider'' (1982–1986) and sequ ...

'' with Bhangra music. Originally, an underground hit on the

internet The Internet (or internet) is the Global network, global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a internetworking, network of networks ...

, it was picked up by the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

record label ''Superstar Recordings'', and became a mainstream

hit song A hit song, also known as a hit record, hit single, or simply hit, is a recorded song or instrumental that becomes broadly popular or well-known. Although ''hit song'' means any widely played or big-selling song, the specific term ''hit record'' ...

across Europe, including Germany and UK. In 2003 was released a version of this single featuring American rapper

Jay-Z Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American Rapping, rapper, businessman, and record executive. Rooted in East Coast hip-hop, he was named Billboard and Vibe's 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time, the ...

, whose title was " Beware of the Boys"; in the same year he released

Yogi A yogi is a practitioner of Yoga, including a sannyasin or practitioner of meditation in Indian religions.A. K. Banerjea (2014), ''Philosophy of Gorakhnath with Goraksha-Vacana-Sangraha'', Motilal Banarsidass, , pp. xxiii, 297–299, 331 ...

, a song which had not the success of the previous single but also topped the charts. His work, particularly the early singles and the "Mundian To Bach Ke" version with Jay-Z, brought Bhangra to a global audience via the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

; he later continued to produce and remix music. In 2004, he recorded a song called "Mirza" and mixed it with " Isyankar", a song by Turkish singer

Mustafa Sandal Mustafa Sandal (born 11 January 1970) is a Turkish singer-songwriter and actor. At the beginning of the 1990s, he wrote and composed a number of songs for other singers and made a reputation for himself in the music industry. He had leading role ...

, but they did not release the remixed version. In 2008 was released Panjabi MC's album ''Indian Timing''; the "

Snake Charmer Snake charming is the practice of appearing to hypnotize a snake (often a cobra) by playing and waving around an instrument called a pungi. A typical performance may also include handling the snakes or performing other seemingly dangerous ...

" music video was screened at Deejay Ra's music video night in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

at the FILMI festival,

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

's longest running South Asian film festival.

Remixes and samples made by Panjabi MC in his songs

Panjabi MC used " Planet Rock", a 1982 song by

Afrika Bambaataa Lance Taylor (born April 17, 1957), also known as Afrika Bambaataa (), is a retired American DJ, rapper, and record producer. He is notable for releasing a series of genre-defining electro tracks in the 1980s that influenced the development of ...

, for his release "Pyar Wich (Planet Rock Remix)", before the latter could record "Indian Planet Rock"; this version by British-born Indian Dj's was included on the 1998 album ''Legalised''. On ''Indian Timing'', Panjabi MC used vocal samples from " Im Nin'alu", a 1984 song by Israeli singer

Ofra Haza Ofra Haza (; 19 November 1957 – 23 February 2000) was an Israeli singer, songwriter, and actress, commonly known in the Western world as " the Madonna of the East", or "the Israeli Madonna". Her voice has been described as a "tender" mezzo-sop ...

. On "''Jatt Ho Giya Sharabee''", a song released in 1998, Panjabi MC used the

from the television series '' Magnum, P.I.''. In "Mundian To Bach Ke", along with the subsequent remix version featuring

"Beware of the Boys", the Dj used the bassline from the television series ''

''. Both the last two songs were on the album ''Legalised'', released in 1998.

Media use of Panjabi MC's songs

The 1998 single "Jatt Ho Giya Sharabee", included later on the 2003 album ''Beware'', was featured on the television show ''

Heroes Heroes or Héroes may refer to: * Hero, one who displays courage and self-sacrifice for the greater good Film * ''Heroes'' (1977 film), an American drama * ''Heroes'' (2008 film), an Indian Hindi film Gaming * ''Heroes of Might and Magic'' ...

'' (episode 2, '' Don't Look Back'', aired on October 2, 2006). The 2001 song "Yaaran Kollon Sikh Kuriye" was featured in the television show ''

Wildboyz ''Wildboyz'' is an American television series which debuted in 2003 on MTV and moved to MTV2 in its third season. It is a spin-off and follow-up to '' Jackass''. The show stars Steve-O and Chris Pontius, who perform stunts and acts with animal ...

'' as a music video. In the same year, Panjabi MC made his

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

premiere at the ''Payal Banquet Hall'' in

Mississauga Mississauga is a Canadian city in the province of Ontario. Situated on the north-western shore of Lake Ontario in the Regional Municipality of Peel, it borders Toronto (Etobicoke) to the east, Brampton to the north, Milton to the northwest, ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

. Deejay Ra hosted a TV special covering the event entitled "The Bhangramentary", which aired on the

Asian Television Network Asian Television Network (ATN) is a publicly traded Canadian broadcasting company (listed SAT on the TSX Venture Exchange), with 54 television channels in 9 languages, serving the South Asian cultural communities in Canada. ATN operates a So ...

(ATN). The 1998/2002 single "Mundian To Bach Ke" was featured in an episode of '' Queer as Folk'' television series and in the 2002 movie ''

Bend It Like Beckham ''Bend It Like Beckham'' is a 2002 Sports film, sports comedy-drama film directed by Gurinder Chadha from a screenplay by Chadha, Paul Mayeda Berges, and Guljit Bindra. The film stars Parminder Nagra, Keira Knightley, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Anu ...

''; it also was featured, in the remix version of "Mundian To Bach Ke" with Jay-Z, on the soundtrack of the 2021 BAFTA-nominated Netflix film '' The White Tiger''. Panjabi MC has also appeared on ''

Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British record chart television programme, made by the BBC and broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show. For most of its histo ...

'', from which the " Mundian To Bach Ke" videoclip began to appear on music channels around the world in heavy rotation. Together with

Sukhwinder Singh Sukhwinder Singh (born 18 July 1971) is an Indian playback singer who primarily sings Bollywood songs. He sang " Jai Ho" in the film '' Slumdog Millionaire'', for which he won a Grammy Award for Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Televisi ...

and

Sapna Awasthi Sapna Awasthi Singh is a Bollywood playback singer best known for her "Banno Teri Ankhiyan Soorme" from '' Dushmani'' (1995), "Pardesi Pardesi" from '' Raja Hindustani'' (1996), " Chaiyya Chaiyya" from '' Dil Se..'' (1998), "Angoori Badan" fr ...

, Panjabi MC remixed the popular song " Chaiyya Chaiyya" from the 1998

Bollywood film Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, is primarily produced in Mumbai. The popular term Bollywood is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (former name of Mumbai) and "Hollywood". The industry, producing films in th ...

, '' Dil Se..''. This version played during opening and final credits for the 2006

Hollywood movie The cinema of the United States, primarily associated with major film studios collectively referred to as Hollywood, has significantly influenced the global film industry since the early 20th century. Classical Hollywood cinema, a filmmakin ...

'' Inside Man''. Their song "Land of Five Rivers" (the exact translation of

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

, Panjabi MC's original land) was used as a theme song for the

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is an American professional wrestling promotion. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority-owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. A global integrated media and entertainment company, ...

wrestler

The Great Khali Dalip Singh Rana (born 27 August 1972), better known by his ring name The Great Khali, is an Indian-born American former Professional wrestling, professional wrestler, promoter, and actor. He is best known for his tenure with WWE, where he be ...

, and featured on '' Voices: WWE The Music, Vol. 9''.

Discography

Studio albums

* ''Souled Out'' (1993, Nachural Records) * ''Another Sell Out'' (1994, Nachural Records) * ''100% Proof'' (1995, Nachural Records) * ''Grass Roots'' (1996, Nachural Records) * ''Magic Desi'' (1996) * ''Legalised'' (1998, Nachural Records) * ''Dhol Jageero Da'' (2001, Moviebox) * ''Desi'' (2002, Moviebox) * ''Indian Breaks'' (2003, Compagnia Nuove Indye) * ''Mundian To Bach Ke'' (2003, Compagnia Nuove Indye) * ''The Album'' (German version: Superstar/Warner; Germany) (French version: Scorpio; France) (UK Version: Instant Karma) (2003) * ''Beware'' (American version of "The Album"; 2003, Sequence) * ''Steel Bangle'' (2005, Moviebox) * ''Indian Timing'' (2008, PMC Records) * ''The Raj'' (2010, PMC Records) * ''56 Districts'' (2019, PMC Records)

Compilation albums

* ''Sentello II'' (2004, Korsan Cd) * ''Illegal'' (2006, Nupur Audio)

EPs

* ''Jatt Ho Gya Sharabi'' (1996, Nachural Records) * ''Mirza Part Two'' (1997, Nachural Records) * ''Switchin (2000, Moviebox)

Singles

Awards

*2003:

MTV Europe Music Awards The MTV Europe Music Awards (originally named MTV European Music Awards, commonly abbreviated as MTV EMA) are awards presented by Paramount International Networks to honour artists and music in pop culture. It was originally conceived as an al ...

– Best Dance Act – "Panjabi MC" *2003:

MOBO Awards The MOBO Awards (Music of Black Origin, also known as the MOBOs) are an annual British music award presentation honouring achievements in " music of black origin", including hip hop, grime, UK Drill, R&B, soul, reggae, jazz, gospel, and Ba ...

– Best UK Act *2003:

UK Asian Music Awards The UK Asian Music Awards, also known by the abbreviation UK AMA, was an awards show that was held annually in the United Kingdom from 2002 to 2012. The awards show has been produced and broadcast by B4U Music since 2008. Awards winners were dec ...

– Best Single Bhangra – " Mundian To Bach Ke" *2003:

World Music Awards The World Music Awards was an international award show founded in 1989 under the patronage of Albert II, Prince of Monaco and co-founder/executive producer John Martinotti. The event was based in Monte Carlo. Awards were presented to the worl ...

– World's Best Indian Artist *2011: Punjabi Music Awards – Best Sound Recording – "Moorni" *2011: Brit Asia TV Music Awards – Best Single – "Moorni" and Best Asian Music Producer *2018: Brit Asia TV Music Awards – Outstanding Achievement

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Panjabi MC 1970 births British people of Punjabi descent British rappers of Indian descent English people of Indian descent Desi musicians British Asian musicians British hip-hop DJs English DJs English record producers Hip-hop record producers Living people Asian Underground musicians English Sikhs MTV Europe Music Award winners World Music Awards winners Musicians from Coventry Bhangra (music) musicians