Kathmandu: Music provides a way for youth to express and explore their feelings and emotions. Adolescents often use music to address specific developmental themes important to them such as love, sex, loyalty, independence, friendship, and authority.
Rum and music have always had a strong connection, right from Bacardi’s overlying theme of freedom depicted through dancing and music, to the fact that “Rum and Coca-Cola” composed by Lionel Belasco in 1945 spent ten weeks at the top of the Billboard Pop Singles chart.
Among these big names is Khukhri’s multi-initiatives to conduct trendy concerts throughout Nepal.
The Himalayan nation of Nepal is home to over 126 ethnic groups, and this diversity is reflected in the country’s rich musical output. Some of Nepal’s most popular genres today include folk, classical music, Ratna, pop, rock and Nep-hop (Nepali hip-hop); indigenous musical genres span Newar, Gurung, Kirat, Tamang, Magar, Tharu, Sherpa music and many more.
To rekindle this love for music, Nepal Distilleries Pvt Ltd organised one of the biggest programmes of the country – Khukri Music Tour in 2018-19. The event lasted over a month and was held all over the country, including Illam, Birtamod, Itahari and 22 other cities of Nepal. The artists include Indira Joshi, Sugam Pokharel, Shiva Pariyar, Sandhya Joshi and comedian Sandeep Chettri. There were a number of local singers as well. One of Nepal’s most renowned comedians Mr. Jitu Nepal also joined the program as a guest artist in Narayanghat.
After the completion of the tour, follow-up restaurant events named Khukri Music Night were held in major cities like Pokhara and Kathmandu where artists and bands like Sabin Rai and The Pharaoh band, Sanjeev Singh and The Gone Elvis, Dharmendra Sewang, Nabin K Bhattarai.
In recent years, Nepal’s musical heritage has enjoyed a revival as young musicians fuse the sounds of traditional instruments with contemporary styles, thus making it enjoyable for all audiences.
To celebrate the spirit of music, and cheer up our citizens during the pandemic, Khukri announced the launch of “Khukri Music Nation” on the 14th of December 2020. Keeping in mind the covid regulations, this contest was held via Khukri Rum’s website. Participants poured in with their video entries, each better than the previous. The contest was judged by the biggest Nepali music stars – Bipul Chhetri, Sambriddhi Rai and Sabin Rai- from the popular Nepali band Sabin Rai and the Pharaoh. Announcement of the Top 16 was made via Khukri Music Nation’s grand musical show on January 1st, 2021. The musical show on Jan 1st also featured performances by leading Nepali artists like The Axe Band and The Elements, apart from the ones already mentioned above.
The quest for the new Nepali Music Star ended with the winner announcement on February 21st, 2021, who won a Khukri Musical contract worth NRS 11 lakhs, and had an opportunity to perform with the most esteemed artists in Nepal.
Speaking about this event, the Event Manager – Khukri Rum, Shrida Shah said, “Khukri Rum takes pride in Nepali Music and talents. We have organized and supported various Music Shows throughout the years, and with Khukri Music Nation too, we are hoping to give a platform for emerging Nepali artists to exhibit their talents. The new normal phase of Covid-19 has made things difficult for all of us, the music industry is no exception. But it should not halt the aspiration of creating good music. Hence, we have come up with an event celebrating Nepali music and Nepalese artists but this time virtual.” She adds.
This contest was open to all Nepali people residing within Nepal and abroad as well. It was exciting to see how people infused their own cultures with music and ultimately proclaimed #GarvaKaSaathNepali. It was a celebration of our identity, culture and art.
This write-up, sent by Khukri Rum, has not been edited by Nepal Live Today.
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