Hong Kong: Markie Mark and Bobby Friction hit Kowloon!
We finally made it to our first destination! After leaving London Gatwick early Sunday evening, and a brief stop-over in Dubai, we arrived in Hong Kong late on Monday night.
We caught our first glimpse of the legendary Hong Kong harbour from the City Express train that we rode into the centre of town, and caught a taxi to the area where we would be staying for the next two days - 'Kowloon'.
One thing we hadn't realised is that Hong Kong is actually made up of four main areas: Hong Kong Island to the south, the Kowloon peninsula across the harbour to the north, the New Territories which sprawl northward from Kowloon to mainland China, and over 234 outlying islands.
Kowloon actually means 'Nine Dragons', and our Hotel is in a district called 'Tsim Sha Tsui', renowned as Hong Kong's tourist ghetto, with countless clothing and electronics shops, hotels, restaurants and bars crammed into one tiny area. Our home for the next two days.
Markie : "The first impression you get is just how busy this place is. Even late on a Monday night every street is packed with people and traffic, with a backdrop of neon lights and skyscrapers towering above. There are 14 million elbows in this City jostling for position. It makes even the busiest London road look quiet in comparison".
The business of this place helped us forget our jet-lag and headed into Hong Kong Island to check out the clubs and join all the clubbers who were dressed up to celebrate Halloween..
Bobby: "It might seem strange to say this but Ii'm shocked at how Chinese Hong Kong actually is! And - like - China, it feels young, funky and bursting full of energy"
We had been invited as guests of one of the cities biggest club-owners and party organizers Sam Li and lounged up in the VIP of his super-club Sugar. The place was packed full of clubbers dancing to the latest Hip-Hop, R'n'B and Reggaeton. No Desi Beats yet but we'll try to change that while we're here!
Bobby: "It might seem strange to say this but i'm shocked at how Chinese Hong Kong actually is! And - like - China, it feels young, funky and bursting full of energy. The clubs here seem even more hedonistic than anything in London, and were up to date with all the latest Urban music. It's the furthest both Markie and myself have been from home, and we definitely feel some pioneering spirit."
Hong Kong: More Geisha Girls!
It was Halloween night, everyone was all dressed up, and we bumped into these kimono-clad 'kuriyan' on the way out of the club!
Even hardened clubbers like us need our sleep. After more than 48 hours on the go it was time to head back to the Hotel. There wasn't much time to chow down, so we grabbed some sushi (yes we know it's Japanese) and took a taxi back through the tunnel to Kowloon.
Tomorrow we meet some of the local Desi population in Hong Kong...
Hong Kong: Sam The Tailor
On our second morning we took a trip to meet one of the legendary Desi figures of Hong Kong - 'Sam The Tailor'. This man has measured up everyone from American Presidents to Bollywood stars! Every wall in his Kowloon store was filled with signed photos from people as diverse as Bill Clinton, Shah Rukh Khan, Elton John and Jon Bon Jovi!. He explained to us how many people from the Sindhi community started tailoring back in the 50's for the military and are now regarded as making the best threads in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong: Shopping in Chung King
Local DJ Guru took us out record-shopping. Chung King Shopping Centre in Kowloon is a legendary shopping arcade and the main place to buy Bollywood DVD's and Bhangra CD's, including our own Panjabi Hit Squad and Friction albums! Though very few of the CD's that we saw were legit - 'hera pheri' all over the place - it was good to see that our music is getting some representation this far from home.
'Mithai-Wallah's' were doing frantic business for Diwali, and we even met some peeps who listen to our shows right here on Asian Network. It made us realize how much impact our shows have around the world.
Hong Kong: Bobby Runs Out Of Kucha
Markie: "Two days into the trip and Friction has run out of underwear. What kind of brother packs two pairs for a seven day trip?!!"
Hong Kong: DJ Leo
Just before midnight we headed back into Hong Kong Island to celebrate Diwali at Club 86 and see how the HK Desi's get down. We weren't disappointed - though the music was straight-up 'paneer' Bollywood-House with a little British-Asian music thrown in (predictably Rishi Rich Project and Rouge) the vibe was good. DJ Leo (pictured) was mixing things up and pulled out an interesting bootleg fusing Dr Zeus' 'Kangna' and The Bee Gee's 'Staying Alive'.
The paneer-level went even higher when we were told that DJ Leo chose his DJ name in honour of Leonardo Di Caprio, but we like to think that it was because of that impressive lion's-mane mullet.
Markie: "The favourite Desi DJ's in Hong Kong are normally flown in from Mumbai - the likes of DJ Aqueel and DJ Suketu play out here regularly - but we're hoping to switch things to a British-Asian vibe when we host on the mic at DJ Guru's party tomorrow night! We'll be recording DJ Guru's set so you can hear for yourself."
Hong Kong: Sanju
Just before we left the club we bumped into Sanju. Note the facial expression, the tie and the unbuttoned shirt.
Don't you think he's Tariq Khan's long lost brother?
Bobby:-" This guy was Tariq Khans (Legacy) body double! A lot of the Asians here remind me of the super rich kids in Mumbai. It's all International schools and semi American accents. I just hope they can take some full-on West London via Birmingham attitude mixed in with UK levels of 'Daru'!
Hong Kong: Jackie Chan's Handprints
On the way back to the Hotel we checked-out Hong Kong's walk of stars - boasting everyone from Bruce Lee to Chow Yun Fat and Jackie Chan.
Walking round the Harbour brought back memories of scenes from a thousand Kung-Fu movies, including the classic 'Enter The Dragon'.
Bobby : "The famous Hong Kong skyline silenced me and Mark for the first time in days. It's more aggressive and forward looking than any US city. The architecture mixed in with China's resurgent economy feel's like we're in 2055"
Hong Kong: Clubbers in Backroom Nightclub We spent the day sleeping, shopping and shuffling the music around in our heads. Anything to prepare like prizefighters for the nights gig, especially after seeing DJ Leo (a local Desi DJ Celeb) do the business at a club in town on the previous night. So we grabbed some Sushi and Raw Juice before the night and got ready to host the most challing Desi night Hong Kong has ever witnessed.
As it turned out - DJ Guru's club-night at Backroom Club was a moderate success. While it was far from busy by UK Desi standards (most successful parties here only attract 200-300 guests at most due to the small community), we experimented and introduced them to some fresh music, as well as meeting countless listeners who follow us on our radio shows every week. It was great to see a HK-based Desi DJ like Guru do his thing and show us that they are up-to-date with the latest British-Asian beats.
Yes the predominantly Sindhi crowd loved Bollywood, yes they loved their drink, and they may have even loved us! We certainly got a lot of stares as we walked in and caused a bit of a stir. But the business in hand was to represent the UK scene, as well as the BBC Asian Network at one of the first British-Asian orientated club nights ever held in HK.
Hong Kong: Next Stop Bangkok There was no time to sleep after the Hong Kong gig - we had a 10am flight to Bangkok on China Air - but just found time to recollect on our pioneering experience in the Far East.
Markie: "I loved Hong Kong. In terms of the actual Desi scene we realised that things are in a really early stage of development - it's still very Bollywood-orientated and the club-scene is still developing, but I feel we helped show people a whole new side to Desi music."
Bobby: "This was a pioneering trip.. they hadn't been exposed to this kind of music before and that was the most exciting thing about it. I can see a whole scene developing in HK and further north into China - Shanghai, Guang Zhou and Beijing. "
This was Markie Mark and Bobby Friction reporting from Hong Kong - next stop is Bangkok to meet up with DJ Cavo from the Dum Dum Project and check his long-established Bolly Hood club night.
See y'all in Thailand tomorrow...
It felt strange to leave Hong Kong but and we would be there for around 24 hours, this was the briefest amount of time in our three destinations, and may well turn out to have been the best of the trip.
We noticed a difference in climate and in tempo as soon as we hit Bangkok . And even though we hadn't caught any sleep in more than 24 hours, the frantic nature of this place woke us up all by itself.
Bangkok: Hooking up with DJ Cavo DJ Cavo from the Dum Dum Project met us at the airport and became our indispensable guide to the Bangkok experience. Born and brought up in New York he's been in the Desi scene for years and was the man behind songs like Punjabi-5.0. and Jaani Jaan. He relocated to Bangkok two years ago and has since become the one stop shop for the Desi scene across South East Asia. With regular gigs in Thailand, Cambodia, Hong Kong, Singapore and China he mixes up a heady brew of hardcore Bhangra, Bollywood licks and straight up Hip Hop and R&B. As the head of Music at the Q Bar and a few other venues he looks after loads of club nights, and brings big names like Jazzy Jeff and Ice-T over to Bangkok. He also runs a regular night called 'BollyHood' which is the night we played at.
We were staying in an area called Sukhamvit, Soi 11, situated just 5 minutes from Q-Bar. All we can say is that DJ Cavo is the mack-daddy of Bangkok! The man hooked us up with the best suites in Bangkok, complete with jacuzzi's, 42 Inch Plasma screens and four poster beds. And we didn't even get to sleep in them.
Markie: "Bangkok was so different from Hong Kong. Whereas Hong Kong was commercial, sanitized and cooler, Bangkok had the heat, grime, activity and more character. It had more warmth. This was my first time in Bangkok, and Bobby's third. Driving along Sukhamvit highway and under the Skytrain reminded me of times in Mumbai."
Bangkok: Shopping
Rather than waste valuable time sleeping we headed off to one of BKK's biggest shopping complexes - riding the Skytrain to the notorious MBK. This was a veritable aladdin's café of bootleg Bathing Ape T-Shirts, cut-price designer jeans and exclusive gear that you don't find anywhere else. Three hours later we emerged, Bobby with a pair of Bathing Ape-trainers that looked like they had been made especially for him, and myself with at least 4 pairs of jeans.
Bangkok had a more visible Indian population than that of Hong Kong, from ramaaled-up Sardar's on motorcycles to the huge billboards everywhere for 'Jaspal' - one of the most renowned designer names in Thailand! 'Jaspal' even had Mischa Barton from the O.C modelling his clothes on huge billboards.
Bobby: "Me and Mark got caught up in a world wind of Thai madness as the tour took on a sleep deprived turn. When we started shopping we were in the middle of rush hour after 36 hours awake and must have looked like junkies! Shopping was intense as we tried to fit 4 hours of shopping into 2, and get back to the hotel in time to get dressed for the club. Thailand is the best place to be on tour if you want a hedonistic in your face experience, but can be exhausting."
Bangkok: The Gig By 10pm it was time to hit the Q-Bar. Regulations in Bangkok have recently been introduced that mean all nightclubs close by 1pm, so the action started early with tunes spun by Cavo and ourselves, including a last half-hour mash-up where everyone span tracks back-to-back ranging from 'Rang Barse' to 'Big Pimpin'.
The night was a huge success and was our best yet.
Bobby Friction: "The night kicked ass! The crowd was great, we all felt we played great sets and it was a pleasure to see a mixed crowd of Thai Desi's, Thai locals, assorted South East Asians and expat Europeans. The international make-up of the crowd made me feel like we were breaking new ground for UK-based Desi DJ's"
By the time the night had finished we were just a few hours away from our 8.30am flight to Kuala Lumpur. We hadn't even eaten by this point, let alone got any sleep, but DJ Cavo took us to one of the best street food vendors in the city.
Markie: "Imagine the scene. Markie Mark, Bobby Friction and DJ Cavo at 4am eating Pad Thai on the street right in the middle of the madness that is Bangkok after-dark. This was the realness of downtown life after dark in the city"
We were so tired by this point that we nearly missed our flight to Kuala Lumpur , but got to the Departure Gate just in time. Next stop KL.
We arrive in Kuala Lumpur! After a two-hour flight from Bangkok we touched down in Kuala Lumpur and were met by a local Desi DJ called 'DJ Hit' who was to be our guide to KL for the next few days. He briefed us on the Desi music scene in the City and where it was heading. It was clear that there is a good awareness here of British-Asian artists, with Jay Sean incredibly popular and and UK artists regularly booked to perform in these parts. Dr Zeus had been booked to perform in Kuala Lumpur two days prior to our arrival, but the show had been pulled at the last minute. DJ Sanj was also in.
It took 45 minutes to get to our Hotel in the Subhang Jaya district in the state of Selangor, situated just on the edge of KL itself. On the journey we saw various Mosques, Mandirs and a Gurdwara. Though Malaysia is a predominantly Muslim country there is a large population of South-Asians (just under 3 million according to DJ Hit) who play an integral part in all areas of KL society. There were banners and lights everywhere celebrating Deepavali (Diwali) and Eid together.
Later that night we checked a regular Bhangra night in the city called 'Caravan' and hooked up with DJ Sanj. The crowd was a real surprise - this was a night totally dedicated to Bhangra and though DJ Dev (a cousin of Johal and Jassi from Premi!) span a few British-Asian hits, it was the more popular old-skool tunes that moved the crowd.
Kuala Lumpur: After the extremities we'd pushed our bodies to, a slow start to the day was a god send. Both of us missed breakfast as we slumbered for the first time in days and I think at least an hour or two was spent 'pottering around' our Hotel rooms. Mark ended up at a local Gurdwara watching a 'Giddha' competition which showed just how strongly South Asians hold onto their cultures. Many Malay South Asians here are into their third and forth Generations but still seem to celebrate their religions and traditions with the same passion proper Indians and Pakistani's do. Maybe its a Malay thing? How many Gurdwaras in the UK would be holding giddha competitions in another generation? Bobby was supposed to go to 'Chor Bazaar' the local market in fake, cheap and fenced goods but he didn't make it out of the Hotel! His argument was tiredness, and the fact that we all needed our wits and energy around us to do a good gig.
Early evening after we all got ready we met in the Hotel bar 'La Vida' for drinks. Much mirth ensued as we were hit in the ears with song after song of Phil Collins, and Brian Adams greatest hits! After a couple of drinks we were all putting the world to rights and deconstructing the Asian music scene - MANY secrets from inside the record bags of our fellow UK DJ's were shared that night - but as the old saying goes..."What goes on tour, stays on tour!"
At about ten we made our way to the club where DJ Hit and DJ Manjit were warming up for us. It was a very hot and sticky night, and we had to hang out for ten minutes outside the club as we waited for the Dholi's who were going to herald our arrival as we walked into the club. It was a lot like at a Punjabi wedding but instead of the Dholi's introducing the Bride and Groom you had them leading in Bobby Friction, Markie Mark and DJ Sanj! The club was pretty full and we got a good cheer when we walked in. We were then introduced to the audience in the manner of a cheesy game show as each one of us had to step forward while the audience shouted our names! (A very surreal experience....)
We then started to DJ and to be honest it was a bit of a weird night. DJ Hit told us he recently tried dropping Northern Lights and the audience had walked off - which to us with our UK centric record bags was a nightmare scenario. All of our sets were well received(ish!) with some Bhangra classics and Bollywood remixes being the highlights - but with newer stuff the crowd hadn't heard there was a definite lull in the dancing with some people even looking at us nonplussed and a bit annoyed. We felt like jukeboxes again just playing the big hits to keep people happy - and as any DJ worth his salt will tell you - being a Jukebox is horrible. Every DJ wants to create a story through his set and we all felt that K.L. didn't really let us do that.
On the good side though we managed to talk, and hang with loads of local desi's and realised the same characters exist whether you're in Manchester or Malaysia. We met the local bad boys, the local pretty girls, the bhangra obsessive, the drinkers, smokers, hip hop crew and everything in between. Mark also met a local soap star called Jessie Kaur and saw the effect on the audience of a local celebrity. The night finished with us three in the Hotel restaurant breaking down which tracks worked and what didn't whilst stuffing our faces with burgers and chicken satay.
Day Seven
Time to head back to the UK as a huge torrential rainstorm hits KL! As both Bobby and I write this we can see lightning bolts hitting trees nearby the Hotel! The feel of this place is truly tropical - rain pouring outside, while the heat and humidity gets even more stifling.
DJ Sanj left earlier this morning but we have a late night flight back, but still find time to head to the scenic City of Putrajaya to see the amazing new Mosque and Government building.
We had both learnt so much from our three-city excursion... Markie: "We have both learnt a lot about the Desi population in South-East Asia and the Far East and perhaps seen the direction in which the youth of the Desi diaspora are heading.
The most successful night of the three was Q-Bar in Bangkok. The great thing about it was the mix of the crowd - Desi, European and Thai - a really open-minded crowd who appreciated the latest UK Bhangra as much as they enjoyed the biggest Bollywood anthems. They expected the DJ's to test them with new music. This contrasted with the Desi clubbers in Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur, where the expectation of the DJ seemed to be to play 'Kajra Re' or 'Dhoom Machale' as many times as possible rather than break new ground on the turntables.
There is good awareness of British-Asian artists, but distribution is a real problem here and means the scene is so Bollywood-centric out in these places. It's a strange situation for British DJ's.. everyone in Asia gets excited about them, but when it comes to the party just want them to play the latest Bollywood rather than fresh tunes from here! But it's all down to evolution, and the progression in places like Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur will come, with more mixed crowds and a more open attitude to music. It's also down to the club promoters and the clubs themselves. DJ Cavo is leading the way in Bangkok right now, but within a few years the scenes in Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore and Shanghai won't be far behind.
Bobby Friction's thoughts on the trip... "I came back from this trip with a real sense of just how spread out the Desi Diaspora are. All 5 continents have cities where there are desi's in their millions all hungry for new music and new experiences. I also learnt that in the UK we can be a bit arrogant sometimes thinking everyone's interested in what we;re doing, when in fact the only true international desi music is 'Bollywood' - like it or not! A lot of that is down to the international reach of Bollywood movies and songs through DVD's and CD's, and if any UK artist wants to be listened to overseas then that's the only way to reach these new audiences. Still, all of this was minor, what really struck me was the international connections Desi people have and my dream after being on this tour is an International DJ tour of Desi DJ's playing in all five continents. After the last seven days I believe this can truly happen."
Many Thanks to all the DJ's, Promoters and Media who helped make this South-Asia Tour happen!
Hong Kong: DJ Guru, Alex (South China Morning Post), Cynthia & Randy (Backroom), Nick (Hong Kong Clubbing), DJ Leo, DJ Romi, Sanjay Sital, Sam Li, MC-G, Sam's The Tailor.
Bangkok: DJ Cavo, Matt and all at Q-Bar.
Kuala Lumpur: DJ Hit, The Rampal's, Sanj, Malaysian Punjabi Bhangra, Kiran Dholi, Jessie Kaur.
Coming Up
29th Nov: Ameet Chana brings you the best in all things Bhangra.
