Will next Jay-Z be from Southeast Asia? Hip-hop label Def Jam banks on region’s rap stars
- US music label behind superstars like LL Cool J and Rihanna hopes to capitalise on a new wave of rappers in Southeast Asia
- One of these is Yung Raja, who has drawn comparisons to Kendrick Lamar
When Singapore’s Yung Raja remixed Gucci Gang by US rapper Lil Pump, he swapped the original’s flashy cars and a prowling tiger for a beer can and Tamil food in a viral YouTube video that caught the attention of US hip-hop label Def Jam.
His 2018 remix – Poori Gang – was a trial run for the “concoction of Tamil and English” the 24-year-old says defines his flow. The overnight success, even among non-Tamil speakers in ethnically diverse Singapore, proved to Yung Raja that he could embrace his own identity without copying other Western artists he admired.
He is among a growing number of artists from Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines snapped up by the label behind superstars from LL Cool J to Jay-Z and Rihanna. Def Jam is hoping to capitalise on a new wave of regional rap stars from the untapped Southeast Asian market where streaming platforms are flourishing.
“It’s just exploding,” says Yung Raja, who has drawn comparisons to US superstar Kendrick Lamar. Moving from DIY passion projects to big stage shows, regional rappers are now touring beyond their borders, delivering verses in slick videos streamed online.
In a secluded patch of forest on Bangkok’s outskirts, Thai-American DaBoyWay is shooting Baby You. Bonfires and dancers illustrate verses about being cast under a spell for a track from his new album – for release in March – that will be Def Jam’s first major Southeast Asian test.