Apache Indian

Biography and career

Born into a family of Indian origins, Kapur was raised in Handsworth, Birmingham, UK, a racially mixed area with large Black and Asian communities, home of reggae bands such as Steel Pulse and UB40, and by the early 1980s he was working with local sound systems and grew dreadlocks. By the mid-1980s he had trimmed his hair and began to make a name for himself as a dancehall deejay. Apache recorded his first single in 1990, "Movie Over India", initially a white-label pressing, until it was picked up by the reggae distributor Jet Star. The single mixed ragga and bhangra sounds and was hugely popular among audiences of both genres. Two further singles followed in a similar vein, "Chok There" and "Don Raja", bringing him to the attention of the major labels, and in 1992 he signed a recording contract with Island Records.

With the collaboration of his cousins Simon & Diamond (Diamond aka DJ Swami), he introduced the new hybrid sound of bhangra raggamuffin – also known as bhangramuffin – to the world with his first album No Reservations, recorded in Jamaica and produced by Simon & Diamond, Phil Chill, Robert Livingston, Bobby Digital and Sly Dunbar) in 1993. It was followed by Make Way for the Indian, (produced by Sly & Robbie, The Press, Mafia & Fluxy, Pandit Dineysh and Chris Lane), which featured rapper Tim Dog and spawned the hit, "Boom Shack-A-Lak". By 1997 he parted ways with Island and his next album, "Real People" (produced by Harjinder Boparai) was signed and released by Warner Bros. Sweden and proved to be his most experimental album, and also featured more Indian elements than the other albums. In his heyday, he also made an appearance in the Tamil film, Love Birds, dancing alongside Prabhu Deva. By 2000, Apache had parted ways with Warners and has since been signed to US management company, Sunset Entertainment Group, which would lead later on 2013 for Apache to collaborate on an album with hit producers Jim Beanz & Charlie Hype (both also signed to Sunset Entertainment Group).

Lyrically, Apache Indian usually sings in Jamaican patois, and is known for his daring edge to speak about socially conscious subjects i.e. "Arranged Marriage", "Aids Warning", and more recently in 2015 "Election Crisis". as well as his party tracks i.e. "Boom Shack-A-Lak", "Jump Up", "Girls Dem Fiyah", "Celebrate".

Apache Indian has recorded with Wreckx 'n' Effect, the United States chart topper Sean Paul, Maxi Priest, General Levy, Brian and Tony Gold, Shaggy, Yami Bolo, Boy George, A. R. Rahman, Sameera Singh, Asha Bhosle and Pras of the Fugees, Malkit Singh, and, more recently, with Jazzy B (self proclaimed as the Crown Prince of Bhangra) on the album Dil Luteya, StereoNation, Bally Sagoo, Raghav, and Jim Beanz. He has also recorded a song with Mukhtar Sahota on the album 4 The Muzik, with backing vocals from Am'nico.

Reggae singer Sean Paul, who has been on the top of Billboard charts with his single with Beyoncé Knowles, toured the U.S. with Apache Indian.

For his first album No Reservation, he had signed a recording contract worth £250,000 with Island Records – one of the largest sums paid for a debut album by a non-white artist.

"Boomshakalak" is featured in more than eight different Hollywood movies, including Dumb and Dumber and Dumb and Dumber To. It is also featured on the soundtrack for Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed, along with artists such as Fatboy Slim, The B-52's, 2 Unlimited and New Radicals and the movie "Threesome".

His single "Om Namaha Shivaya" features on the Putumayo World Music compilation album, World Reggae which is a collection of reggae tracks performed by artists from around the world.

Apache Indian has been nominated and has received several significant awards over the years, from an Ivor Novello award for best contemporary song for "Arranged Marriage" to a Mercury Music Prize for his debut album "No Reservations" in 1993. Apache Indian was also nominated for the Central Britain Media and Arts Asian Jewel Award in 2004. Apache was presented an award at the Asian Media Awards in Manchester UK for his talk show "Real Talk" (popularly featured on Brit Asia TV) in 2013 and in 2014 he received the Lifetime Achievement Award also at the Asian Media Awards. In late 2014, Apache closed the year with a lifetime achievement award from Brit Asia TV, celebrating 25 years in the Music Business and received a standing ovation for his stellar performance at the same event. Apache has just received his fourth Life Time Achievement Award from the Black Country Asian Business Association (BCABA) in Wolverhampton, West Midlands UK.

Apache Indian has also been involved with numerous multicultural initiatives, such as International Headliner at Toronto's Dundas Square in front of 10,000+ people as part of the 'Desi Fest' May 2008, the South Asian Heritage Month celebration at Canada's Wonderland 'Canadian-Indian Music Festival' July 2011, and Toronto 6 degrees club's 'Luv to Bhang' 5 year anniversary event in July 2013.

Apache Indian did a limited release of his latest album titled "It Is What It Is" (IiWiI) in the fall of 2013 on Universal India. The album's first single "Celebrate" was a collaboration with Canadian pop singer Raghav and legendary producer Jim Beanz. The album was written and recorded in Philadelphia at the Sunset Entertainment Group headquarters, featuring production from Jim Beanz, Charlie Hype, TroyBoi and J.Nick.

Apache Indian Music Academy

In November 2013, Apache Indian opened the Apache Indian Music Academy at South and City College, in his hometown of Handsworth.

Awards

Albums

Singles and EPs

Other Singles: