When Indians think of their first prime minister and music, they might recall how he responded with tears to Lata Mangeshkar's Aye mere watan ke logon. They probably would not think of hip-hop.
But when you leave a legacy as profound as Jawaharlal Nehru's, there's no telling who will respond to it ‒ or how. So it shouldn't really be surprising to learn that India's first prime minister left such a great impact on Markel Scott, the 18-year-old rapper and producer from New York changed his name to Bishop Nehru.
Three years ago, at the age of 15, Bishop Nehru released his debut mixtape, titled Nehruvia. Last month, he and his collaborator DOOM released an album appropriately titled NehruvianDOOM. The album seems to be inspired by a variety of sources, including Hindu philosophy. An entire song is based on the Sanskrit word “Om”.
That didn't stop the album from hitting No 4 on the Billboard rap chart.
As with so many people, the musician discovered Nehru after studying about Gandhi. “In Global History, like 9th or 10th grade, we were learning about India, Gandhi and the peace movement,” he said in an interview with Crack Magazine. “So after that, when I said the name Nehru, it just hit me in a certain way.”
The Bishop part of his name comes from Tupac Shakur’s role as Roland Bishop in the 1992 film Juice, says the rapper, who in another interview says he only likes to listen to the Golden Age of rap.
Here is the other kind of music Jawaharlal Nehru inspired.
We welcome your comments at
[email protected].
But when you leave a legacy as profound as Jawaharlal Nehru's, there's no telling who will respond to it ‒ or how. So it shouldn't really be surprising to learn that India's first prime minister left such a great impact on Markel Scott, the 18-year-old rapper and producer from New York changed his name to Bishop Nehru.
Three years ago, at the age of 15, Bishop Nehru released his debut mixtape, titled Nehruvia. Last month, he and his collaborator DOOM released an album appropriately titled NehruvianDOOM. The album seems to be inspired by a variety of sources, including Hindu philosophy. An entire song is based on the Sanskrit word “Om”.
That didn't stop the album from hitting No 4 on the Billboard rap chart.
As with so many people, the musician discovered Nehru after studying about Gandhi. “In Global History, like 9th or 10th grade, we were learning about India, Gandhi and the peace movement,” he said in an interview with Crack Magazine. “So after that, when I said the name Nehru, it just hit me in a certain way.”
The Bishop part of his name comes from Tupac Shakur’s role as Roland Bishop in the 1992 film Juice, says the rapper, who in another interview says he only likes to listen to the Golden Age of rap.
Here is the other kind of music Jawaharlal Nehru inspired.