Today we’d like to introduce you to Satnam Narang.
Satnam, please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
I’m a poet and a rapper. I started writing poetry when I was in Junior High school. It was part of the curriculum, but I enjoyed it so much that I continued to write even after I finished the class. Most of my poetry from my adolescence was centered around unrequited love and crushes I would develop during my academic life. In fact, much of my poetry in my adult life has centered around the same.
I started rapping in High School over instrumental beats and performed for my entire school as a contestant in a male pageant during my Senior year. This would mark the beginning of a 9 year hiatus from making music and writing poetry in full. I would start writing poetry again and performing at open mics in 2009. I released my first 3-song mixtape in 2010, titled “The 18th Letter Diaries” which was about a girl I really liked.
This was followed by my first official EP, “Heart of a Lion” which was released in 2012. In 2013, I released “The Pushpa Project,” a collaborative project to raise awareness to female infanticide and foeticide in India. It featured myself and other artists like Sonia Rao, Saraswathi Jones and Saint Soldier.
Can you give our readers some background on your art?
I am a poet and a rapper, also known as an M.C (or “emcee”) which stands for Master of Ceremonies. My writing was mostly for myself. I never shared any of my poetry with anyone for most of my life. It wasn’t until a good friend of mine would encourage me to go out and perform. “You have a gift and you should share it with the world,” she told me.
My poetry and music are often about unrequited love and about the women I’ve developed crushes on over the years. My music runs the gamut. I write about issues that I’m passionate about, like raising awareness of causes such as mental illness and female infanticide and foeticide.
My album “Heart of a Lion” was intended to be a statement about my mental state and where I was at in my life — focusing on the positive, cherishing each day. My hope for people who listen to my music or hear my poetry is that they see a piece of themselves in my words and they connect with it. At the end of the day, life is all about connection.
Much of the music we are fond of and artists we enjoy we connect to in some way, shape or form. I’ve always wanted to be that for others and I’ll continue to strive to achieve that goal.
Given everything that is going on in the world today, do you think the role of artists has changed? How do local, national or international events and issues affect your art?
I don’t believe the role of an artist has necessarily changed. It’s always been a part of music for as long as I can remember. I think it’s important for artists to align themselves with causes that they’re passionate about. For me, events have shaped my art. I worked on The Pushpa Project in response to what I had learned about relating to female infanticide and foeticide in India.
It was fueled even further by the horrific and tragic event in New Delhi in 2012, when a young woman named Jyoti Singh Pandey was gang-raped, brutally beaten and tortured by several men on a bus. She would eventually succumb to her injuries. This event sparked international outrage and it influenced a song I wrote called “Sunshine” which was already focused on how women are treated in India, particularly from a young age. There are other topics that influence my art, such as mental illnesses, animal cruelty and others.
What’s the best way for someone to check out your work and provide support?
More information about The Pushpa Project can be found at https://pushpaproject.com. I have more things on the horizon including another album and possibly a book. My music is also available on Spotify, iTunes/Apple Music, Amazon Music, Tidal, Google Play Music and other streaming services.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://satnam.co
- Instagram: satn.am
- Twitter: satnam
- Other: http://music.satn.am
Image Credit:
Amy M. Jasperson, Jennifer Christine, Jason Haniuk
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