Post by Kam Gill on Sept 27, 2004 0:07:23 GMT
(Kam) Ok, Lets move away from B21 now..
{Jassi) You Sure?
(Kam) Well for the time being. We will come back to it in a moment!
(Jassi) Ha-ha…ok!
(Kam) Lets talk about ‘Reality Check’. Walking away from , like you said, the biggest band in the country at the time, must have been hard. How did you feel recording the album?
(Jassi) It was a nightmare. I swear, I had one and a half years to two years of recording that album. I’ll be honest with you, it was a F**king nightmare! It really was bad. When there’s three of you, you don’t question it. It’s just the three of you bouncing ideas off one another. During the recording of my album, I was always double guessing myself. Is this right? Am I doing this right? Things like that. When it was finished and was released I was like….Oh my god, the relief. And in a way it gave me closure on the break-up of the band. I was very bitter over the split up. At the time , I felt that I shouldn’t have had to leave that band, It was my band. I paid for the first album. I put that whole thing together. If it weren’t for me, having a part time job, then that album wouldn’t have come about. It would have still been lying in my bedroom. And I’ll totally honest with you I felt very bitter. But now I just see it as I’ve had my closure. ‘Reality Check’ was such a huge success for me, I won at the ETC Punjabi music awards with it. We cleared half a million in India. I can’t walk in India anymore. I do get recognised in some places, as with America. It rewarded me a lot in that sense. I did work hard on the album. So it’s nice to get such a response.
(Kam) On the ‘Sound of B21’, you actually wrote a couple of songs. Is that something you wanted to do? Write songs too?
(Jassi) No, no, no. We were just poor! We couldn’t afford to pay writers. I’m serious! We just couldn’t afford to pay them so I thought, bugger it.. I wrote those two songs when I was younger and thought, right they are going on the album. That’s the truth of it.
(Kam) Let’s Talk about where Asian music is heading at this present moment in time. What’s Your views on the hitting the ‘Mainstream’? Can Asian Music stay there?
(Jassi) I hope it can stay there. Not necessarily Asian music, but I mean keep the Jay Sean’s, the Rishi Rich’s in there. You know, Asian Artists producing good music. I hope that does continue. That’s all we wanted. Someone to break that barrier. We don’t want EVERY Bhangra Artist going into the charts. As long people like Rishi Rich and Panjabi MC can keep producing good tracks and keep us in the eye of the mainstream then that’s great. It’s not about being brown and talented, it’s about being talented. It’s about time the western society understood this. We are not just there to make restaurant music. Jay’s track ’Eyes on you is brilliant. His album is booming man. People might think ‘oh Jay is Asian so there will be a tabla in there or something’, but its not about that. It doesn’t have to have a tabla in there at all. In a way the whole taking bhangra into the charts thing has been done. We have done it. We can’t keep saying we need to get bhangra in the charts because we have already.
(Kam) I understand your point about it should be about the music not the fact that Jay Sean or Panjabi MC are Asian, but I think it’s because they are the First few that are Asian and broken through that the being Asian thing will be brought up again and again. As a artist can that be frustrating?
(Jassi) No I don’t think so. At the end of the day, these guys are role models for younger British Asians. If someone thinks “I want to be like Panjabi MC or Jay Sean” I think that’s a good thing, Go for it. It’s good to have role models. I don’t think Jay’s track got to number six in the charts just because he is Asian. it’s a good track. That’s why it got there. As long as People make good music it will sell. To whites, to Blacks, whoever. Look at R’n’B. It’s not just brought by Black people. It’s good music, everybody listens to it. Same with any kind of ethic music. We need to get away from the stigma of getting ‘Asian Music’ in the charts. Its there already. Now we just got to prove we can continue to make good music. I mean there is a lot of crap music out there. Half these bhangra albums I wouldn’t buy. They really are pants. But there’s a lot of good artists like DCS and Sukhsinder Shinda. We should support good music.
(Kam) Who were your role models then?
(Jassi) Bhangra wise, it was people like Shin , Achanak, Anakhi, they were a lot of great bands when I was growing up. I was lucky. I saw that era. Unfortunately the Kids growing up now won’t be able to say that in a few years time. I can look back and say Malkit Singh , DCS, Safri etc,etc. What you going to say now? What the Hell are you going to say now? I won’t even mention people’s names, its that bad. From an English point of view I liked Backstreet boys, Nsync. That is why my style is so weird. It’s a cross between the east and west.
(Kam) Well, like you said…we know who to blame for killing off the live bands….
(Jassi) Ha-ha! Who? Nah, I mean the P.A craze….when we started them off they were kind of original. We were the best at it. I mean it was stupid we got away with it so long. But some of the P.A’s around now are just Naff. There is an art form to it , I think People Forget. I see in Juggy D and Jay Sean ,onstage, a lot of what B21 were. They got a great chemistry. I think now that Juggy and Jay are doing solo shows it will be a whole different experience for them. It took me months to adapt. I’d look back and there was no one there. It was just me!
(Kam) So are we likely to see yourself doing a mainstream track?
(Jassi) I was always saying I wanted to do an English track. I was so wrapped up in the whole India thing last year, breaking into the India market and promoting my music there, that it took a back seat. It will happen sooner or later. I’m doing a couple of tracks for Rishi Rich’s album. You never know what we might do. But I don’t think you will ever see a Singh on top of the pops. They will never have it. PMC’s performance was more about him than the guy miming the track. But I do not think any record company will have a Singh on top of the pops.
(Kam) You are very selective about what you do. Is that a conscious effort? If another Producer came up to you and said he wanted to use your vocals, would you do it?
(Jassi) I have always been very selective about what I do. You have heard my voice once every two, three years. I think you need to be selective. I mean look at Lembar Hussianpuri. He is an amazing vocalist. But he is on every sodding album! I think he has recorded something like 65 vocals in England. They are all going to come out at once, they are all going to sound the same. No matter what you do to them. Your only going to stick a dhol over them! Over exposure is never a good thing. Having said that, if a producer offered me a ludicrous amount of money obviously I’d consider it! I’m very happy now where I am. I can pick and choose what to do. I work with my friends. There is no pressure on me to do anything I don’t want to.
(Kam) Likewise, Would you produce an album for another vocalist? You produced your album, would you do it for some one else?
(Jassi) I did a track for Sukhbir. I done some for 4X4. Depends on who it is and if I want to. I’m very unmotivated! If I want to I will do something. I was meant to do a mix for Juggy D’s album but I was busy in India and couldn’t get back in time. So maybe, if it’s someone I know.
(Kam) Remember when I said I will come back to B21.………..
(Jassi) Ha-ha! yes……
(Kam) I just want to clear things up with the ‘Ranja’ track that Bally Jagpal did on untruly yours. Heard a lot of rumours.
(Jassi) Yeah me too! It was nothing, honestly. I was supposed to sing it but he said he wanted to sing it. It was never a problem for me. He did a great job with it. You can’t say he didn’t. Same with ‘Pheli War’. It was supposed to be for me, but he wanted to sing it. It wasn’t a problem at all.
(Kam) Coming back to you…..Do you play any instruments?
(Jassi) I can play the keyboard. I composed and wrote all the music for my album. Once you learn the keyboard you don’t really need to play any other instruments ha-ha!
(Kam) What’s next for Jassi Sidhu?
(Jassi) I’ve just finished working on a greatest hits album for India. I’ve done a couple of the B21 tracks, redone them and put them on the album for India. That should be out soon. I’m just gathering material for my next album, which will be out about February next year. But the greatest hits album was the one that India was pushing us to release, so we had to step aside and do the album which includes three exclusive remixes of ‘Din Raat’, “Dear Tha Viah’ and ‘Chandigarh’.
(Kam) Any words for your fans?
(Jassi) I just want to thank them for their support. Without them I couldn’t be doing this. B21 wouldn’t have been a success so a big thank you to the fans. I will continue to make stupid music for them to listen to! My music is no brainer man. Big dhols and vocals. I don’t try to be something I’m not. It’s just music. I will try to keep producing music that will keep them dancing!
Although the B21 days are over for Jassi Sidhu, he continues to be a major draw in the Industry. His distinctive voice and style of singing has won fans from around the world. ‘Reality Check’ marked a new chapter for Jassi in his career and if the results of that album are anything to go by, his career is by no means over. He has the ability and determination to remain a major force in Bhangra for many years to come. What ‘Reality Check’ did for Jassi was prove there is life after B21.….
Interview by Kam Gill
{Jassi) You Sure?
(Kam) Well for the time being. We will come back to it in a moment!
(Jassi) Ha-ha…ok!
(Kam) Lets talk about ‘Reality Check’. Walking away from , like you said, the biggest band in the country at the time, must have been hard. How did you feel recording the album?
(Jassi) It was a nightmare. I swear, I had one and a half years to two years of recording that album. I’ll be honest with you, it was a F**king nightmare! It really was bad. When there’s three of you, you don’t question it. It’s just the three of you bouncing ideas off one another. During the recording of my album, I was always double guessing myself. Is this right? Am I doing this right? Things like that. When it was finished and was released I was like….Oh my god, the relief. And in a way it gave me closure on the break-up of the band. I was very bitter over the split up. At the time , I felt that I shouldn’t have had to leave that band, It was my band. I paid for the first album. I put that whole thing together. If it weren’t for me, having a part time job, then that album wouldn’t have come about. It would have still been lying in my bedroom. And I’ll totally honest with you I felt very bitter. But now I just see it as I’ve had my closure. ‘Reality Check’ was such a huge success for me, I won at the ETC Punjabi music awards with it. We cleared half a million in India. I can’t walk in India anymore. I do get recognised in some places, as with America. It rewarded me a lot in that sense. I did work hard on the album. So it’s nice to get such a response.
(Kam) On the ‘Sound of B21’, you actually wrote a couple of songs. Is that something you wanted to do? Write songs too?
(Jassi) No, no, no. We were just poor! We couldn’t afford to pay writers. I’m serious! We just couldn’t afford to pay them so I thought, bugger it.. I wrote those two songs when I was younger and thought, right they are going on the album. That’s the truth of it.
(Kam) Let’s Talk about where Asian music is heading at this present moment in time. What’s Your views on the hitting the ‘Mainstream’? Can Asian Music stay there?
(Jassi) I hope it can stay there. Not necessarily Asian music, but I mean keep the Jay Sean’s, the Rishi Rich’s in there. You know, Asian Artists producing good music. I hope that does continue. That’s all we wanted. Someone to break that barrier. We don’t want EVERY Bhangra Artist going into the charts. As long people like Rishi Rich and Panjabi MC can keep producing good tracks and keep us in the eye of the mainstream then that’s great. It’s not about being brown and talented, it’s about being talented. It’s about time the western society understood this. We are not just there to make restaurant music. Jay’s track ’Eyes on you is brilliant. His album is booming man. People might think ‘oh Jay is Asian so there will be a tabla in there or something’, but its not about that. It doesn’t have to have a tabla in there at all. In a way the whole taking bhangra into the charts thing has been done. We have done it. We can’t keep saying we need to get bhangra in the charts because we have already.
(Kam) I understand your point about it should be about the music not the fact that Jay Sean or Panjabi MC are Asian, but I think it’s because they are the First few that are Asian and broken through that the being Asian thing will be brought up again and again. As a artist can that be frustrating?
(Jassi) No I don’t think so. At the end of the day, these guys are role models for younger British Asians. If someone thinks “I want to be like Panjabi MC or Jay Sean” I think that’s a good thing, Go for it. It’s good to have role models. I don’t think Jay’s track got to number six in the charts just because he is Asian. it’s a good track. That’s why it got there. As long as People make good music it will sell. To whites, to Blacks, whoever. Look at R’n’B. It’s not just brought by Black people. It’s good music, everybody listens to it. Same with any kind of ethic music. We need to get away from the stigma of getting ‘Asian Music’ in the charts. Its there already. Now we just got to prove we can continue to make good music. I mean there is a lot of crap music out there. Half these bhangra albums I wouldn’t buy. They really are pants. But there’s a lot of good artists like DCS and Sukhsinder Shinda. We should support good music.
(Kam) Who were your role models then?
(Jassi) Bhangra wise, it was people like Shin , Achanak, Anakhi, they were a lot of great bands when I was growing up. I was lucky. I saw that era. Unfortunately the Kids growing up now won’t be able to say that in a few years time. I can look back and say Malkit Singh , DCS, Safri etc,etc. What you going to say now? What the Hell are you going to say now? I won’t even mention people’s names, its that bad. From an English point of view I liked Backstreet boys, Nsync. That is why my style is so weird. It’s a cross between the east and west.
(Kam) Well, like you said…we know who to blame for killing off the live bands….
(Jassi) Ha-ha! Who? Nah, I mean the P.A craze….when we started them off they were kind of original. We were the best at it. I mean it was stupid we got away with it so long. But some of the P.A’s around now are just Naff. There is an art form to it , I think People Forget. I see in Juggy D and Jay Sean ,onstage, a lot of what B21 were. They got a great chemistry. I think now that Juggy and Jay are doing solo shows it will be a whole different experience for them. It took me months to adapt. I’d look back and there was no one there. It was just me!
(Kam) So are we likely to see yourself doing a mainstream track?
(Jassi) I was always saying I wanted to do an English track. I was so wrapped up in the whole India thing last year, breaking into the India market and promoting my music there, that it took a back seat. It will happen sooner or later. I’m doing a couple of tracks for Rishi Rich’s album. You never know what we might do. But I don’t think you will ever see a Singh on top of the pops. They will never have it. PMC’s performance was more about him than the guy miming the track. But I do not think any record company will have a Singh on top of the pops.
(Kam) You are very selective about what you do. Is that a conscious effort? If another Producer came up to you and said he wanted to use your vocals, would you do it?
(Jassi) I have always been very selective about what I do. You have heard my voice once every two, three years. I think you need to be selective. I mean look at Lembar Hussianpuri. He is an amazing vocalist. But he is on every sodding album! I think he has recorded something like 65 vocals in England. They are all going to come out at once, they are all going to sound the same. No matter what you do to them. Your only going to stick a dhol over them! Over exposure is never a good thing. Having said that, if a producer offered me a ludicrous amount of money obviously I’d consider it! I’m very happy now where I am. I can pick and choose what to do. I work with my friends. There is no pressure on me to do anything I don’t want to.
(Kam) Likewise, Would you produce an album for another vocalist? You produced your album, would you do it for some one else?
(Jassi) I did a track for Sukhbir. I done some for 4X4. Depends on who it is and if I want to. I’m very unmotivated! If I want to I will do something. I was meant to do a mix for Juggy D’s album but I was busy in India and couldn’t get back in time. So maybe, if it’s someone I know.
(Kam) Remember when I said I will come back to B21.………..
(Jassi) Ha-ha! yes……
(Kam) I just want to clear things up with the ‘Ranja’ track that Bally Jagpal did on untruly yours. Heard a lot of rumours.
(Jassi) Yeah me too! It was nothing, honestly. I was supposed to sing it but he said he wanted to sing it. It was never a problem for me. He did a great job with it. You can’t say he didn’t. Same with ‘Pheli War’. It was supposed to be for me, but he wanted to sing it. It wasn’t a problem at all.
(Kam) Coming back to you…..Do you play any instruments?
(Jassi) I can play the keyboard. I composed and wrote all the music for my album. Once you learn the keyboard you don’t really need to play any other instruments ha-ha!
(Kam) What’s next for Jassi Sidhu?
(Jassi) I’ve just finished working on a greatest hits album for India. I’ve done a couple of the B21 tracks, redone them and put them on the album for India. That should be out soon. I’m just gathering material for my next album, which will be out about February next year. But the greatest hits album was the one that India was pushing us to release, so we had to step aside and do the album which includes three exclusive remixes of ‘Din Raat’, “Dear Tha Viah’ and ‘Chandigarh’.
(Kam) Any words for your fans?
(Jassi) I just want to thank them for their support. Without them I couldn’t be doing this. B21 wouldn’t have been a success so a big thank you to the fans. I will continue to make stupid music for them to listen to! My music is no brainer man. Big dhols and vocals. I don’t try to be something I’m not. It’s just music. I will try to keep producing music that will keep them dancing!
Although the B21 days are over for Jassi Sidhu, he continues to be a major draw in the Industry. His distinctive voice and style of singing has won fans from around the world. ‘Reality Check’ marked a new chapter for Jassi in his career and if the results of that album are anything to go by, his career is by no means over. He has the ability and determination to remain a major force in Bhangra for many years to come. What ‘Reality Check’ did for Jassi was prove there is life after B21.….
Interview by Kam Gill
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