The refreshing part about music is that it’s my vision from start to end: Sunny Kaushal

From being an Assistant Director, to actor, to now being a hip hop artist, Sunny Kaushal has been giving us moments of his superlative talent to be seen and experienced. Almost a year and a half after his first song, Jhandey, Sunny has released his next called Mid Air Freeverse, via Mass Appeal. In collaboration with UpsideDown and ICONYK, the song has captured a sonic space, within the industry and outside. We had a candid interaction with Sunny recently, check out what he has to say;

Your first song was Jhandey, about a year and a half ago, and now we have Mid Air Freeverse. Both your songs have one thing common, which is Rebellion, however with Mid Air Freeverse there is personality and philosophy also added to the mix. Where is the writing stemming from?

I think it stems from reaching a certain age where you realize life is short. There is a conditioning set inside you from the society, and it makes you work and behave in a particular way. I became an actor, started working in movies and became a part of the film industry. But, it was when COVID hit that I started writing — I had an epiphany one morning that I had to pursue the things I’d always wanted. There’s conditioning from society, family, friends, and even ourselves that stops us from exploring what we want. I had to break-away from this psychological barrier and this is where my writing comes from.

Why hip-hop? How does it connect with you out of all the music forms?

I grew up on hip-hop — Eminem, Bohemia, 50 Cent. It connected with me deeply because of its raw lyricism and honesty, as well as the music that made their songs enjoyable. This is the music that was exploding 20 years back when I was growing up. It made me realise that hip hop is a great art form where you can mix your thoughts, your personal opinions and put it out for people to enjoy in a music format which is really listenable. Plus, being Punjabi, I naturally merged Punjabi sounds with hip-hop and here we are with Mid Air Freeverse.

The title Mid Air Freeverse seems to match how the lyrics flow — from personality to ambition to philosophy and back. Was that intentional, also what’s the story behind the title of the track?

It wasn’t a conscious thought process but subconsciously it worked out on its own. I was on a flight from Delhi to Bombay where I started writing, and just let my thoughts flow freely. Since the song is written on a flight and has a free-flowing style, it is named Mid Air Freeverse. I let my thoughts come on a paper and later in the studio, I structured it better, but the essence stayed the same.

How did your collaboration with UpsideDown and ICONYK happen?

I posted a story looking for producers for a Punjabi rap song. UpsideDown messaged me, and I was thrilled because I’d admired his work with artists like PropheC, Mickey Singh, and more. ICONYK and UpsideDown came on board, and that’s how it started.

Given the song’s structure, have you thought about splitting it into parts or collaborations for an EP?

That’s a great idea, and I do think in terms of acts or parts. While I didn’t want to split Mid Air Freeverse, I’d love to work on an EP that explores concepts with multiple songs. I’m not ready for a full album yet, but an EP is definitely on my mind.

Watch the song here:

Any collaborations you are interested in?

I’m new in this industry, so I’m just starting to connect with artists. I have recently started interacting with the people who are connecting with me over DMs, messages, etc. Once I finalize a concept, I’ll think about who fits that sonic space best as every artist has a specific vibe and appeal. I want the collaborations to do justice to the vision of all the artists involved in the process.

How did your tie-up with Mass Appeal India happen for this song?

UpsideDown played the song to Navjosh and the Mass Appeal team. They liked it, and things fell into place. I learned so much from that collaboration and was grateful they gave a new artist a chance.

You’ve experienced both film and music industries. How do they compare?

The processes are quite similar — it’s about creating something personal, then figuring out how to market and package it. You would want to get more and more audience to listen to your song or watch your movie. When I’m promoting a film, I have to go on ground, entertain people, do radio trails and interviews, etc., so in that sense there is nothing new. The refreshing part about music is that it’s my vision from start to end, unlike films, where you bring the director’s or a writer’s vision to life.

It’s been 1.5 years between your first and second songs. Will you shorten that gap moving forward?

Absolutely. I’d love to release more music this year, maybe a couple of singles and start working on an EP. I’m learning how to go about it more efficiently now.

Well, as we look forward to more music and especially the discussed EP coming out from Sunny Kaushal, here is a shout out to the Mid Air Freesever, which is playing on loop at our end for sure!

Article by Vishwa Deepak Dikshit

Photo credit to the artist and label