It is a historic day for hip-hop music in India as DIVINE added yet another feather to his cap of laurels with a collaboration featuring the legendary rapper Nas. Titled ‘NY se Mumbai’, the latest release on JioSaavn’s Artist Originals label is a global collaboration featuring Indian rapper DIVINE and Naezy, hip-hop legend Nas, Grammy Award-winning producer iLL Wayno, and actor Ranveer Singh.
With the track set to play out as the end credit song for Bollywood’s highly anticipated blockbuster Gully Boy, starring Ranveer and Alia Bhatt and directed by Zoya Akhtar, Divine talked about this landmark moment saying:
“Nas is my idol, I’ve looked up to him all my life. When I first heard his album Illmatic it gave me the chills, I was inspired to tell my story. I saw him perform in Dubai recently… I was shook and inspired all over again. I cannot digest that I’m on the same beat as him. Big shoutout to everyone that made this happen. And Naezy is back! Hip-hop zindabad!”
‘NY se Mumbai’ was a global production. With Naezy, Divine, and Ranveer recording out of Mumbai, the record was developed with AO producers XD Pro in Toronto; iLL Wayno of Mass Appeal Records, who worked alongside the AO A&R team in New York; and, of course, Nas in Los Angeles. Grammy Award winning producer iLL Wayno said:
“Working on ‘NY se Mumbai’, for me, was an affirmation of my understanding that hip-hop has a global reach and cultures around the world are more similar than they are different. We all share similar experiences and this song was a collaborative effort to showcase that.”
You can listen to ‘NY Se Mumbai‘ on JioSaavn. Gully Boy releases on February 14, 2019.