Rajinder Singh Rai (

Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...

: ਰਜਿੰਦਰ ਸਿੰਘ), better known by his stage name Panjabi MC, is a

British-Indian British Indians are citizens of the United Kingdom (UK) whose ancestral roots are from India. This includes people born in the UK who are of Indian origin as well as Indian people, Indians who have migrated to the UK. Today, Indians comprise ...

recording artist, rapper, producer and DJ. He is best known for the worldwide 2002 bhangra hit "

Mundian To Bach Ke "Mundian To Bach Ke" ( pa, ਮੁੰਡਿਆਂ ਤੋਂ ਬੱਚ ਕੇ, ), also titled "Beware of the Boys (Mundian To Bach Ke)" or "Beware", is a bhangra music song produced by British musician Panjabi MC, with vocals and lyrics by Punjab ...

", 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 Music ...

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

Career

Rajinder Singh adopted his stage name from the

Punjabi language Punjabi (; ; , ), sometimes spelled Panjabi, is an Indo-Aryan language of the Punjab region of Pakistan and India. It has approximately 113 million native speakers. Punjabi is the most widely-spoken first language in Pakistan, with 80.5 ...

he used in the music he plays and raps. "One of ismain goals is to fuse the two worlds Bhangra_and_ Bhangra_and_hip_hop_music">hip_hop.html" ;"title="hip_hop_music.html" ;"title="Bhangra_(music).html" ;"title="f Bhangra (music)">Bhangra and hip hop music">hip hop">hip_hop_music.html" ;"title="Bhangra_(music).html" ;"title="f Bhangra (music)">Bhangra and hip hop music">hip hop" Nachural Records signed Panjabi MC following a remix of Kuldeep Manak's "Ghariah Milan De". Although the single was taken off the market, Panjabi MC continued making records. Another successful release was "

" ("Beware of the Boys") (1998; it first appeared on the album ''Legalised'') which mixed the theme of the TV series '' Knight Rider'' with Bhangra. An underground hit on the internet, it was picked up by the German record label Superstar Recordings, and became a

hit record A hit song, also known as a hit record, hit single or simply a 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 ...

in Germany and across Europe, including the UK. A version of this recording in 2003 featured American rapper

Jay-Z Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and founder of Manhattan-based conglomerate talent and entertainment agency Roc Nation. He is regarded as one o ...

titled "

Beware of the Boys "Mundian To Bach Ke" ( pa, ਮੁੰਡਿਆਂ ਤੋਂ ਬੱਚ ਕੇ, ), also titled "Beware of the Boys (Mundian To Bach Ke)" or "Beware", is a bhangra music song produced by British musician Panjabi MC, with vocals and lyrics by Punjabi ...

". His work, particularly the early singles and the "Mundian To Bach Ke" remix with

, brought Bhangra music genre to a global audience via the BBC. He continues to produce and remix music. In 2004, he made music called "Mirza" and mixed this song with Turkish singer Mustafa Sandal's " Isyankar", but they did not release the mixed version. His album ''Indian Timing'' was released in 2008. His music video " Snake Charmer" was screened at Deejay Ra's music video night in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

at the FILMI festival,

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and th ...

's longest running South Asian film festival. The remix of "Mundian To Bach Ke" with Jay-Z appears on the soundtrack of the 2021 Netflix film '' The White Tiger''.

Sampling

On ''Indian Timing'', Panjabi MC uses vocal samples from Ofra Haza " Im Nin'Alu". He used " Planet Rock" ("Pyar Wich (Planet Rock Remix)" on the album ''Legalised'') before

Afrika Bambaataa Lance Taylor (born on April 17, 1957), also known as Afrika Bambaataa (), is an American DJ, rapper, and producer from the South Bronx, New York. He is notable for releasing a series of genre-defining electro tracks in the 1980s that influence ...

recorded "Indian Planet Rock". On "''Jatt Ho Giya Sharabee''", Panjabi MC uses the theme music from the TV show '' Magnum, P.I.'' "Mundian To Bach Ke" (along with the subsequent remix version featuring

, "Beware of the Boys") uses the bassline from the television show '' Knight Rider''.

Television work

In 2001, Panjabi MC made his Canadian premiere at the Payal Banquet Hall in Mississauga (Ontario). Deejay Ra hosted a TV special covering the event entitled "The Bhangramentary", which was aired on the Asian Television Network (ATN). His single, "Jatt Ho Giya Sharabee", from ''Beware'', was featured on the television show '' Heroes'' (episode 2, '' Don't Look Back'', which aired 2 October 2006). The single "Mundian To Bach Ke" was featured in an episode of ''

Queer as Folk ''Queer as Folk'' may refer to: * ''Queer as Folk'' (British TV series), 1999–2000 * ''Queer as Folk'' (American TV series), a 2000–2005 American and Canadian version of the UK series ** ''Queer as Folk'' soundtracks, soundtrack albums from ...

'' and in the 2002 movie '' Bend It Like Beckham''. It also features in the BAFTA-nominated film '' The White Tiger'' in 2020. The song "Yaaran Kollon Sikh Kuriye" was featured in the show ''

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

'' as a music video. Panjabi MC has appeared on ''

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

'', from which the video to "

" began to appear on music channels across the globe. Together with

Sukhwinder Singh Sukhwinder Singh (born 18 July 1971) is an internationally acclaimed Indian playback singer who primarily sings Bollywood songs. He is famous internationally for singing " Jai Ho" from the film '' Slumdog Millionaire'' which won an Academy Awa ...

and

Sapna Awasthi Sapna Awasthi Singh is a Bollywood playback singer best remembered for her "Chaiyya Chaiyya" from '' Dil Se..'' and "UP Bihar Lootne" from '' Shool'' (1999). Early life and career Sapna Awasthi started training in classical music at a young age ...

, Panjabi MC remixed the popular song "

Chaiyya Chaiyya "Chaiyya Chaiyya" (" alkin shade") is an Indian pop-folk song, featured in the soundtrack of the Bollywood film '' Dil Se..'', released in 1998. Based on Sufi music and Urdu poetry, the single was composed by A.R. Rahman, written by Gulzar, a ...

" from the

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" ...

film, '' Dil Se..''. This song was used as the background during opening credits for the Hollywood movie ''

Inside Man ''Inside Man'' is a 2006 American heist thriller film directed by Spike Lee and written by Russell Gewirtz. It centers on an elaborate bank heist on Wall Street over a 24-hour period. The film stars Denzel Washington as Detective Keith ...

''. Their song "Land of Five Rivers", used as a theme song for the WWE wrestler

The Great Khali Dalip Singh Rana (born 27 August 1972) is an Indian professional wrestler and wrestling promoter better known by his ring name The Great Khali. He is best known for his tenure in WWE where he became the first Indian-born WWE World Heavy ...

, features 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 Jageroo 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

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

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 a ...

– 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 ...

– 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 – "

" *2003:

World Music Awards The World Music Awards is 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 is based in Monte Carlo. Awards are presented to the world' ...

– World's Best Indian Artist *2011: Punjabi Music Awards – Best Sound Recording – "Moorni" *2011:

Brit Asia TV Music Awards The Brit Asia TV Music Awards, also known as Brit Asia TV World Music Awards or the abbreviation BAMA, is an awards show that is held annually in the United Kingdom since 2010 (except in 2016), usually in October. The awards show is produced by ...

– Best Single – "Moorni" and Best Asian Music Producer *2018: Brit Asia TV Music Awards – Outstanding Achievement

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Panjabi MC 1973 births British people of Punjabi descent British rappers of Indian descent English people of Indian descent Desi 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