Bollywood hits, pop songs and semi-classical notes: ‘Penn Masala is for everyone’

From Mark Ronson’s Uptown Funk/Benny Dayal’s Badtameez Dil and Maroon 5’s She Will Be Loved/Rahat Fateh Ali Khan’s O Re Piya to The Weeknd’s Blinding Lights/Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy’s Bol Na Halke. If you heard these songs, chances are high you’d know who we’re speaking about. It’s Penn Masala, the US-based acappella group going sturdy for 25 years.

Formed in 1996 by a bunch of South Asian college students on the University of Pennsylvania, Penn Masala went on to carry out for former US president Barack Obama on the White House and featured within the Hollywood movie Pitch Perfect 2. Over the years, the ensemble has delivered deftly crafted mashups, singing the vocals and producing the background music with out the help of devices.

Their newest album, Midnight Oil, embodies the South Asian-American identification of the acapella group.

“At its core, Masala is meant for everyone. Anyone can listen to our music, and hopefully, find some joy and beauty in it. If someone can say that the way you have done this mashup has made me feel seen… made me feel represented, I think that’s the entire point of what we do,” says Partha Rao, the director behind the brand new album.

The newest album, in accordance with Rao, has allowed them to succeed in new audiences and enter new musical areas. With songs like Ragas of Malhar, which is an acapella model of Thyagaraja’s Kamalaapta Kula and Shankar-Ehsan-Loy’s Dhara Hogi, and a mashup of Justin Bieber and Ed Sheeran’s I Don’t Care with Tamil hit Kadhaippoma, the ensemble entered into the beforehand uncharted territory of classical music and new languages.

Penn Masala went on to carry out for former US president Barack Obama on the White House and featured within the Hollywood movie Pitch Perfect 2. (Express Photo)

With a semi-classical tune at one finish, the album additionally options the TikTok Medley of the most well-liked hits on the video-sharing app, representing the totally different tastes of the 14 members that make up Penn Masala. “It’s a reflection of what we like to listen to and the kind of music that we want to make as a group. What is beautiful about this album is that it’s not curated. It’s not a single concept. It’s everyone’s and it reflects the fact that we are an eclectic weird bunch of people,” says Rao.

Inspired by the phrase “burning the midnight oil”, as a metaphor for working via the darkish, troublesome occasions of the Covid-19 pandemic, the album additionally provides its listeners songs like Teri Mitti, Lakshya, Versace on the Floor and Paradise, amongst others.

Penn Masala has given a voice and sense of belonging to a number of South Asians born within the US or India. (Express Photo)

The Covid-19 pandemic pressured the members to “redefine” what Masala meant to them and break the mould. Before 2020, there was a ton of information switch between the graduating seniors and the newly-recruited juniors, explains Rao. “We didn’t have any of that because of the Covid restrictions. We lost out a lot on the things that had previously made Masala function and we had to redefine it for ourselves,” he says.

“The silver lining of the pandemic is that it gave us extra time to essentially look inwards, suppose introspectively, about what sort of music resonates with us and what sorts of content material categorical us as South Asian-Americans exploring our identities, says Sachit Gali, one other band member.

The journey forward

Penn Masala has given a voice and sense of belonging to a number of South Asians born within the US or India.

Gali says, “Growing up I really didn’t see people who looked like me or other South Asian-Americans who spoke the same language or had the same food as me. For 17 years, my life was pretty much like that. It was only when I came to Masala, I found a community of folks who had similar upbringings, and had the same interest in South Asian culture as me. It gave me the avenue to express that deep appreciation I have for South Asian and American culture, fusing it into one incredible mixture.” Sachit was born to a Telugu household within the US.

The group hopes to proceed experimenting with their fashion. Raghunandan Raman, one other member, says, “I think we will seek to expand the audience that we have garnered over the last 25 years, push beyond that and see to whom else we can market our music.”

Penn Masala throughout one in every of their performances. (Express Photo)

Ajay Kilambi, one other member of his batch, provides, “India as a whole has so many different types of musical genres, like Carnatic or Hindustani, or different languages. So, we will be experimenting with those and seeing where we go.”

Penn Masala additionally goals to “create more original songs and to keep pushing our group creatively.” The group took up this problem with the tune Hazy on this album. Speaking concerning the expertise, Gali says, “With an original, every aspect of the song comes from us, which means we can make it extremely suited to our group’s unique sound and add in new elements freely. At the same time, when creating an original, it’s much more difficult to develop a clear picture of how the song should sound in each section, but the end product itself is much more rewarding.”