New Delhi (PTI): Singer Shreya Ghoshal says digital platforms have changed the Indian music landscape drastically, making it easier for independent artists to breakthrough and thrive.
The singer, who recently collaborated with Egyptian rapper Afroto for Coke Studio Global's new release "Sunn Beliya", said great artists now don't lack exposure.
"Music scene has drastically changed over the last two-three years. Thanks to the digital way of consuming music, a big number of independent artists are coming to the forefront. They are empowered. The ecosystem is also building around it and helping them out. I am happy that we are not losing out on great artists just because they don't have a way in," Ghoshal told PTI in an interview.
As somebody who forayed into the music industry as a teenager, the 39-year-old said entering the close and controlled playback circuit was challenging.
"I came into the industry when there was only playback music. So even then, to enter the kind of monopoly that was there and to be able to find a space for myself was another journey... But the journey for artists today is so different and I'm so happy. It is a very positive space to be in. Even if you put up a good song cover on Instagram, you will be heard," she added.
Ghoshal, known for singing chartbuster songs such as "Bairi Piya", "Jaadu hai nasha hai", "Teri meri", "Teri Ore" and "Tum Kya Mile", said the easy access to audience still does not guarantee success.
"With all the exposure we have to start thinking of making music differently. We need to look at the taste of people and the accessibility of music. We have to really do something fresh to be able to be heard and liked. The access is there but one has to put in a lot more effort to sustain."
The playback artist said the experience she has gained by working with musicians from across the globe has been an "eye opener" for her. Ghoshal said her international collaborations made her realise that it's not the language but the emotion that audiences connect with.
"We have similar thought processes, interests, dislikes, problems, and solutions. We have just different cultures and languages, but ultimately all human emotions are the same and that's what the message is in 'Sunn Beliya'," she added.
"Sunn Beliya" is penned by Afroto and Rashmi Virag. The composers are Afroto, Kaushik-Guddu, Issa & Assouad and NOVO. The peppy number features Ghoshal singing in Hindi and Bangla.
The singer said she always wanted to collaborate with Coke Studio and "Sunn Beliya" seemed like a perfect opportunity.
"I always wanted to do something with Coke Studio. When this happened, I was very excited and then I got to know it's global, so it was even better... This was a very organic, beautiful collaboration and Afroto is a sweet personality himself. He is eager, excited and full of ideas and energy. He is a fabulous performer," she said.
Even though there was a language barrier, Ghoshal said, creating the song was a smooth process as the concept was clear in their minds.
"'Sun Beliya' is a product of a proper global crossover and for me, it's a first so it was exciting. I think this is a beginning for me and I'm so glad that I'm the first Indian artist to do a song on Coke Studio's global platform. I'm happy to be representing India and Indian languages," the singer said.
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Washington (AP): Kash Patel was sworn in as the FBI director and he called the opportunity to lead the nation's premier federal law enforcement agency the "greatest honour" of his life.
Patel was confirmed by the Senate on Thursday by a 51-49 margin, with two Republican lawmakers, Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, breaking party ranks and voting against him.
"I think he'll go down as the best ever at that position," President Donald Trump told reporters Friday ahead of the White House swearing-in on Friday, which was conducted by Attorney General Pam Bondi and attended by Republican supporters in Congress, including Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas and Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio.
Trump added that the "agents love this guy".
Patel will inherit an FBI gripped by turmoil as the Justice Department over the past month has forced out a group of senior bureau officials and made a highly unusual demand for the names of thousands of agents who participated in investigations related to the January 6, 2021, riot at the US Capitol.
Democrats had sounded the alarm about the appointment, saying they fear Patel will operate as a loyalist for Trump and abuse the FBI's law enforcement powers to go after the president's adversaries. They've cited past comments such as his suggestion before he was nominated that he would "come after" anti-Trump "conspirators" in the government and media.
Patel sought to assuage those concerns at his confirmation hearing last month, saying he intended to follow the Constitution and had no interest in pursuing retribution, though he also said at his swearing-in Friday that reporters had written "fake, malicious, slanderous and defamatory" stories about him.
Republicans angry over what they see as law enforcement bias against conservatives during the Democratic Biden administration, as well as criminal investigations into Trump, have rallied behind Patel as the right person for the job.
Patel has spoken of his desire to implement major changes at the FBI, including a reduced footprint in Washington and a renewed emphasis on the bureau's traditional crime-fighting duties rather than the intelligence-gathering work that has come to define its mandate over the past two decades as national security threats have proliferated.
He said Friday that the FBI's "national security mission" was equally as important as its efforts to fight violent crime and drug overdoses.
"Anyone that wishes to do harm to our way of life and our citizens, here and abroad, will face the full wrath of the DOJ and FBI," Patel said. "If you seek to hide in any corner of this country or planet, we will put on the world's largest manhunt and we will find you and we will decide your end-state."
A former Justice Department counterterrorism prosecutor, Patel was selected in November to replace Christopher Wray, who was picked by Trump in 2017 and who resigned at the conclusion of the Biden administration to make way for his chosen successor.
Wray infuriated Trump throughout his tenure, including after FBI agents searched his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida in August 2022 for classified documents in one of two federal investigations that resulted in indictments against Trump that were dismissed after his election win.
FBI directors are given 10-year terms as a way to insulate them from political influence and keep them from becoming beholden to a particular president or administration. But Trump fired the FBI director he inherited, James Comey, after Comey had spent over three years on the job and replaced Wray after more than seven years in the position.