The rap scene in 1990s Malaysia was dominated and revolutionised by a quartet that many still know to this day, despite having been absent from the local scene for the past decade or so. With the name Poetic Ammo, founder Yogeswaran Veerasingam a.k.a. Yogi B knew exactly what his group was set to deliver to hip hop fans.
After the group went on what member Point Blanc called an “indefinite hiatus” in the mid-2000s, Yogi B continued to pursue a solo career – not just in Malaysia, but in India as well.
His chance to enter India’s entertainment industry came when he was approached by music director G. V. Prakash Kumar to compose “Engeyum Eppothum” and perform it with S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, a legend in the Indian music industry, for the 2007 Tamil movie “Polladhavan”.
Yogi B was hesitant at first but he made the right call accepting the offer. That was his opening into Kollywood.
“The song became a huge hit and I was embraced by the people of Tamil Nadu. I was blessed to work with many musical geniuses like AR Rahman, and be part of the Kollywood industry,” he told Bangalore-based The News Minute.
He has since contributed to numerous other Kollywood titles in the past 13 years, such as 2008’s “Ghajini”, 2011’s “Aadukalam”, and 2018’s “Tik Tik Tik” (the Tamil sci-fi film which also features Malaysia-based Singaporean actor Aaron Aziz).
His latest Kollywood work was this year’s A. R. Murugadoss-helmed “Darbar”, which saw his participation in three songs in three different languages: Hindi, Malayalam and Telugu. He recorded the rap version for each song and also participated in penning the Telugu lyrics.
What Yogi B has lined up next is his Kannada debut, having provided the soundtrack for the upcoming Duniya Vijay-helmed “Salaga”.
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| Yogi B with his Icon of Inspiration – Rap Music Award (Photo source: Yogi B’s Facebook). |
Just last year, he was named the recipient of the Icon of Inspiration – Rap Music Award at the inaugural edition of the Behindwoods Gold Mic Music Awards that was held in Chennai, India, on 6 October.
“I dedicate this award to my global Tamil Hip Hop family and my music fans worldwide,” he tweeted following his win.
Most recently, the 46-year-old rap star officially shared his hit song “Madai Thiranthu” on YouTube, 14 years after it brought him international fame. Uploaded on 1 September, he said that it took this long for him to do so because when the song was first released, he neglected to upload it YouTube as he did not fully grasp the video sharing platform’s potential at the time.
Fans will get to hear more new works from Yogi B as he prepares to launch a single track from the album “Manthrahood” in three months’ time.
While waiting for more of Yogi B’s upcoming works, fans can first reminisce the good old times with the “Madai Thiranthu” MV below!
(Photo source: Yogi B’s Facebook)