Rising Stars: Meet Krithi of Brooklyn, NY

Today we’d like to introduce you to Krithi.

Hi Krithi, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I’ve always been musically inclined. My main instrument is my voice. I’ve been singing since I was five years old, started off with Carnatic vocal lessons and sang in my school choir. When I moved to the US in 2001, I joined the high school jazz choir and completely fell in love with jazz vocals, a passion and technique I continued to deepen in college. Random but fun fact: I was in an a cappella group in college called the Crazy Pitches, and Lupita Nyong’o was actually in it with me!

I didn’t get into electronic music and production until my mid-20s. It all started when I went to a SBTRKT show in Fall 2014. I was really intrigued by how he was performing live with all these synths and drum machines. I went home and looked through a bunch of YouTube videos of his performances. I came across one he did at Maida Vale with Sampha where he walks through how he uses Ableton Live. That inspired me to take a bunch of online lessons and eventually go back to school for music production. I’m not a trained instrumentalist, so I really love that music technology has allowed me to experiment and create something entirely new with non-traditional instruments.

I only started releasing electronic music in 2020, right at the start of the pandemic. I got sick during those first two weeks, was living alone, and honestly wasn’t sure what was going to happen to me. When I finally recovered, I told myself I had absolutely nothing left to lose and that I should just put my music out into the world. I’ve been releasing my productions ever since!

As for DJing, I only started about three or four years ago. It was a great way to get my music out there, but it also helped me get a better sense of how to actually produce dance music. I have to credit No Scrubz Worldwide and their founder, Lo Dino for getting me started as a DJ. They’re this amazing collective based out of Las Vegas that gives femme, non-binary, and trans folks the opportunity to learn how to DJ and produce. I played a 15-minute set at their party at Hart Bar, and it’s been an incredible ride ever since.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It definitely hasn’t always been smooth. A lot of my biggest struggles have actually been internal, like navigating my own insecurities and mental health. For a long time, I deeply internalized the idea that I couldn’t find success as an artist. The funny thing is, my family has always been incredibly supportive of me pursuing music. I recognize what a massive privilege that is, especially since a lot of my friends didn’t have that luxury and were pressured into more traditional career paths. Yet, even with my family cheering me on, I somehow still manufactured my own pressure and doubt.

Combine that internal battle with being a woman in this industry, and it is so easy to second-guess your capabilities as a producer and an artist using music technology. It can be really tough not to question yourself.

And then, on a purely practical level, finding consistent, paid opportunities as a producer, singer-songwriter, and DJ is an ongoing hustle. I still have a day job to help pay the bills, so figuring out the path to becoming a full-time creative is a constant, everyday challenge.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m a producer, remix artist, and DJ, and my work really specializes in blending sounds from the Indian Subcontinent with electronica, hip-hop, and dance music. I’ve released over 11 instrumental-only projects. I guess you could say I’ve been pretty busy since 2020! That includes a handful of projects through Epidemic Sound, as well as self-released work like my project “Coping Mechanisms,” which was featured in DJ Mag and Mixmag in February 2024. I was actually featured again in DJ Mag’s “Six Emerging Artists You Need to Hear” in June 2025! Shortly after that, I released an official remix of “Ghana Kasoota” by Raftaar, Rashmeet Kaur, and Surbhi Jyoti as part of the DAYTIMERS compilation project ALTERATIONS, under Sony Music India and Relentless Records. I actually co-produced that remix with my dear friend and collaborator, Sana. I’ve also loved remixing songs for fellow NYC-based electronic and dance artists.

It’s been amazing to see how far my music has traveled. My tracks have been played on BBC Radio, The Lot Radio, Hör, and ZiFM Stereo. Beyond my own releases, my sound design work includes creating vocal and percussion sample packs for Splice and Serato Studio.

As a DJ, I’ve been lucky enough to spin at iconic spots in NYC like The Lot Radio, Silo, Jupiter Disco, Public Records, Mood Ring, and Bossa Nova Civic Club. I’ve also recorded guest mixes for Radio Alhara, Radio Free Brooklyn, Mode London, and Noods Radio. I also did a Desi Dancefloor Mix for Panjabi Hit Squad on the BBC Asian Network earlier this year. 2025 was a particularly incredible year for me. I DJed for the DAYTIMERS UK Residency at the Jazz Cafe in London, and then played at Four Tet & Friends at Brooklyn’s Under the K Bridge. I really appreciate and love everything that DAYTIMERS UK has done for me!

If you ask me what I am most proud of, or what sets me apart, it is definitely my journey as a teaching artist and a community-oriented creative. I started off with We Make Noise (formerly Beats by Girlz), teaching workshops at the Lower East Side Girls Club before stepping up to help expand their global chapters. I even got to facilitate a couple of music production workshops in Chennai, India, and I’ve had the pleasure of working with incredible collectives like Gender Amplified and Femme House! Since 2019, I’ve been with Building Beats, another incredible organization making music tech accessible for marginalized youth and young adults in NYC. I currently serve as their Director of Development, which is really just a fancy way of saying I handle the fundraising and grant writing that keeps our programs running! In 2024, I was appointed as a cultural ambassador through Next Level USA, a hip-hop diplomacy initiative run by the University of North Carolina and the U.S. Department of State. I got to travel to Harare, Zimbabwe, to facilitate beatmaking and production workshops.

Taking the non-traditional music path gave me my voice, and being able to pass that on to others all over the world is what it’s all about for me.

Alright so before we go can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
Email is always the best option to connect if you want to collaborate, hire me to produce, or book me to DJ events and parties: krithi@krithimusic.com. The best way to support me directly is to listen to my music on any streaming platform, and to purchase my tracks off Bandcamp: krithi.bandcamp.com.

If you’re interested in partnering with Building Beats to sponsor our programs or donate, hit me up at krithi.rao@buildingbeats.org. You’ll be joining a huge ecosystem of amazing creatives dedicated to giving under-resourced youth access to music opportunities and helping them thrive in creative careers.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://krithimusic.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/krithimusic/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/krithimusic/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/krithimusic/
• Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/krithimusic

Image Credits
Most of my pictures should have the photographers’ names in the file name! But here they are just in case:

– Zani Razzaque
– HYFN (Humai Mustafa and Atif Ateeq)
– Manu Roy
– Rare Event Productions
– Naveed Jooma