Twenty-four-year DJ Shaan Singh, who started his career at 15, has a whole list of firsts. He was the first DJ to play at the Sunburn Festival in Goa aged 15, the first DJ from India to have played twice at Tomorrowland and Ministry of Sound, and the first to be signed by the world-famous UK music label Virgin EMI Records last year. Now, Singh has become the first Indian to be signed by US label Casablanca Records that operates under Republic Records and represents artists like Drake, The Weeknd, Taylor Swift, and Ariana Grande, among others.
“There are a lot of things that happen in life that we don’t realise at the moment, as to where it will lead us,” muses Singh, who started by fidgeting on a music console at home and then at school by playing the trombone. Currently, on his way to understand the US market to add diversity, Singh reveals that he created a track right after his first meeting with the label and played the first draft for them.
“These people at the label have been in the field for years and have built so many artistes. They have got amazing inputs. There are certain things they suggest that I would never do to my song, but when I do, it makes so much sense. I guess, as a producer when you are making something, you listen to it so much that your ears get saturated and you don’t see the elements that others can point out,” the DJ explains. Though his team from Mumbai and the US are always ready with inputs, it is the label that has the last word.
Tight-lipped about his upcoming tracks with Casablanca Records, the DJ does instead divulge how the two tracks are different in nature as compared to his other songs. “It is different and groovy than other tracks. I am collaborating with a British artist and it will make an impact in the US. The other track is very close to my heart. People have heard it, liked it, and responded that they would want it to be released as soon as possible,” shares Singh. Not only did he create a couple of fresh tracks right after signing the deal, but a few of his old tracks will also be rerecorded and launched under Republic Record Label.
In 2013, Armada records picked Singh’s first track Light Up the World after his gig at Tomorrowland, marking the onset of his international career. “DJ and producer Ruben De Ronde was an A&R with Armada music at that time. He heard me and invited me to the Tomorrowland radio because he knew it was my first time at the festival. I was excited and he asked me to play music with him on live radio,” chuckles Singh as he looks back on things falling into place after that.
The DJ in his 10 year long career has not only toured with Miss Nine and DJ Mag, DJ Avicii on the Sunburn Festival Pre-Party Tour, but also did the opening sets for Funkagenda and Helium Project, as well as played with Lost Stories and Pearl. In June this year, he even did a song for Virgin EMI called Must Be Love that was well received in the US and played for straight two months on the radio.
Though dealing in electronic music, to Singh it is the melody that comprises the most important element of a song. “It has to touch the listener in some way — be it the vocals or the melody in the background. For me it is more about telling the story, my sets are all about the journey. I am not here just to play hits. I may make my tracks less dance music and more pop, but the essence of my music will always be emotion,” he smiles.
While he is happy with the knowledge of music increasing among people, Singh wishes to see the love for independent music grow outwards like the K-pop. “The dance music has come down a little as to how it was booming at one point in time. Now the non-Bollywood music is making an impact, which is good to see. But personally, I wish it grows how K-pop has. People who don’t understand the lyrics of K-pop are dancing and throwing themselves at it,” laughs Singh.
