Panjabi MC is a British-Indian recording artist, rapper, producer and DJ. He is widely known for his classic Bhangra songs from several albums such as Dhol Jageero Da, Mundian To Bach Ke Rahi, Jatt Ho Gya Sharabi and Morni.
Wiki/Biography
Panjabi MC was born Rajinder Singh Rai on Wednesday, February 14, 1973, in Coventry, Warwickshire, England (age 51; as of 2024). His zodiac sign is Aquarius. Passionate about music since childhood, he later moved to London to pursue a career in music.
appearance
Height (approximately): 5′7”
Weight (approximately): 75kg
Hair color: black
Eye color: black
family and caste
He belongs to a family of Jat Sikh immigrants who settled in the UK.
Parents and siblings
Rajinders’ parents were Punjabi immigrants who settled in the British industrial town of Coventry. His father was a spray painter at the Jaguar car factory and later owned an Indian textiles store. He reportedly has a brother living in the United States of America.
wife and children
Not much information is available about his wife and children.
Profession
Panjabi MC signed a contract with Nachural Records and subsequently the remix of Kuldeep Manak’s song “Ghariah Milan De” became a success, although the song was later withdrawn from the market. Another of his successful songs was “Mundian To Bach Ke”, released in 1998 from the album “Legalized”. The song is sampled from the 1980 TV show Knight Rider, which featured David Hasselhoff and a talking car. The Punjabi host recalled the show and said:
Like all kids, I wanted that car, but I was always equally surprised that the theme song had an oriental rhythm,”
The song has been featured in various TV shows and movies, including Bend It Like Beckham (2002), The White Tiger (2020), and an episode of the TV show Queer as Folk. Before recording Afrika Bambaataa’s “Indian Planet Rock”, he remixed the song Pyar Wich and the American hip-hop song Planet Rock on the album.
Legalized album released in 1998
In 2001, his album “Dhol Jageero Da” was released with Moviebox Records. The album was a huge success, especially the song “Dhol Jageero Da” sung by Salim Guru.
Dorje Giroda 2001
His song “Jatt Ho Giya Sharabee” was included in the album “Beware”, which was released in 2003 and became an instant hit. It also appeared on the American TV show Heroes. The song was sampled from the TV show Magnum, PI. On this album, the song Mundian To Bach Ke was re-released and featured a collaboration with American rapper Jay-Z, titled “Beware of the Boys”.
Beware the Album 2003
In 2008, his album “Indian Timing” was released, for which he used vocal samples from Ofra Haza’s “Im Nin’Alu”. The music video for the song “Snake Charmer” from the album was showcased at the Music Video Night at Toronto’s FILMI Film Festival, the oldest South Asian film festival in North America.
Indian Time Album 2008
His other notable works include the remix of the popular song “Chaiyya Chaiyya” with Sukhwinder Singh and Sapna Awasthi. This song appeared as the background music of the opening credits of the Hollywood movie “Inside Man”. He recorded the song “Land of the Five Rivers” by WWE wrestler The Great Khali as the opening song. He made his Bollywood debut in the 2013 film “Mere Dad Ki Maruti” and lent his voice to the song “Haaay!” that played in the opening sequence.
Awards
- MTV European Music Awards – Best Dance Performance – “Panjabi MC” (2003)
Punjabi host wins MTV Music Award 2003
- MOBO Awards – Best British Ac (2003)
- British Asian Music Awards – Best Single Bhangra – “Mundian To Bach Ke” (2003)
- World Music Awards – Best Indian Artist in the World (2003)
- Punjabi Music Awards – Best Recording – “Moorni” (2011)
- Brit Asian Television Music Awards – Best Single – “Moorni” and Best Asian Music Producer (2011)
- Brit Asian Television Music Awards – Outstanding Achievement (2018)
car collection
He loves high-end cars and has a few vintage classic cars in his garage.
Panjabi MC’s Instagram post about his old car
Favorites
Facts/Trivia
- After Panjabi MC appeared on the British music show Top of the Pops, the song “Mundian To Bach Ke” became popular on global music channels.
- Panjabi MC made its Canadian debut in 2001 at the Payal Ballroom in Mississauga, Ontario.
- The name “Panjabi MC” was given to him by rappers in the black community in the early 1990s.
- Panjabi MC used money from her college education to buy a sampler.
- He runs a chilli sauce business called ‘Bach Ke Chilli – Be Careful with the Sauce’.
Bach Co – Watch out for the sauce 🌶️
>>> https://t.co/cBUjz3ellM
Introducing hissing sounds inspired by Panjabi MC’s iconic song “Beware of the Boys,” and the famous tumbi sound… 🎵 # chili sauce pic.twitter.com/JhR5Ho4LEl
— Punjabi MC (@PanjabiMC1) November 17, 2023
- The first version of Panjabi MC, Rootz, was banned by the Muslim community due to cultural concerns.
- Panjabi MC lost 90% distribution share to Universal Music Group as he did not have distribution rights for the song “Mundia to Bach Ke”.
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education