2.16.2024
Indian Hip-Hop Superstars DIVINE and Karan Aujla Share Street Dreams, A Collaborative Album, Out Now via Mass Appeal India
The Innovative Duo Continues Their World Conquering Ways, Sharing a 7-Track Album That Perfectly Blends Their Styles
Stream Street Dreams On All Platforms
Watch the “100 Million” Video HERE
Home to Lead Single “100 Million,” Which Has Over 20 Million Views on YouTube, Street Dreams Features Production from North American Heavy-Hitters Like Boi-1da and Harry Fraud, Plus Producers From India
With Over 10 Billion Combined Streams Already in the Bank, the Duo Have Collaborated With and Received Co-Signs From Stars Like Nas, Tiësto, Metallica, Pusha T, YG, Jadakiss, Armani White and More
Stats and Accolades for DIVINE & Karan Aujla:
DIVINE:
- Over 1 Billion audio streams and 6 Billion + video views across his catalog
- Winner of 2021 MTV EMA Award for “Best Indian Artist”
- Collaborated with legendary artists like Metallica, Tiësto, Pusha T, Hit-Boy, Jadakiss & many more
- Debut album Kohindor went 20x platinum in India
- Performed at the first-ever halftime show of an Indian Premier League Cricket final, showing out in front of 140,000 attendees in the stadium and over 40 million fans across the globe
The Bollywood film Gully Boy was inspired by his life, growing up from poverty in Mumbai to global stardom - Social stats
- INSTAGRAM (2.4M)
- FACEBOOK (630K)
- X / TWITTER (123K)
- SPOTIFY (4.6M MONTHLY LISTENERS)
- YOUTUBE (6.99M SUBS / 1.2B VIEWS)
Karan Aujla:
- Over 6.6 billion video views and 1.9 billion audio streams across his catalog
- His 2018 debut album B.T.F.U. debuted at #6 on Spotify’s Global Albums Chart
- His 2022 album Making Memories (created in collaboration with fellow Punjabi artist Ikky), debuted at #3 on Spotify’s Global Chart and peaked at #5 on Canada’s Billboard Chart, making it the highest-charting Punjabi album of all time
- Profiled in Billboard Canada, highlighted as part of the country’s “Punjabi Wave”
- Social stats:
- INSTAGRAM (6.4M)
- FACEBOOK (1.2M)
- TWITTER (35.6K)
- SPOTIFY (10.7M MONTHLY LISTENERS)
- YOUTUBE (1.59M SUBS / 1.1B VIEWS)
The Album:
Emerging from poverty off the strength of their formidable rhyming skills, DIVINE and Karan Aujla are on the verge of achieving their wildest fantasies. Today, the two Indian rap superstars connect for their first-ever collaborative album, Street Dreams, a 7-track effort that demonstrates why they are among the most exciting artists in one of the world’s fastest-growing rap scenes.
DIVINE and Karan Aujla hail from the same country, but their contrasting styles are what make the project special. DIVINE is a rapper’s rapper, stacking flexes and throwing elbows in dense, syllable-rich verses, taking no prisoners with his gully, Hindi-language rhymes. Singing and rhyming in Punjabi, Karan Aujla, is a master of melody, mixing in the microtonal runs of traditional Indian music with R&B-flavored hooks and imperious verses. Together, the two artists make a historic combo, as they join forces to claim the Indian crown and put the rest of the world on notice.
Out now via Mass Appeal India, Street Dreams is a relentless effort, bringing bilingual bars that express sentiments that need no translation. The album features production from Western heavy-hitters like Boi-1da, WondaGurl, Harry Fraud, Leven Kali, and Trox, who deliver premium productions for Karan and DIVINE to annihilate, along with hip-hop producers from the Indian scene. “Hisaab” finds the two artists counting their myriad accomplishments in 6/8 time, taunting any comer who can’t match their quick maths, while “Top Class / Overseas” lays playful strings atop sliding 808s as DIVINE and Karan proclaim their valedictory status. “Yaad,” meanwhile displays a softer side of the duo, as they trade off vocals with Indian-Canadian singer Jonita Gandhi.
Also among the highlights is “100 Million,” the tape’s lead single and music video, which made waves across the globe. Defined by nostalgic hip-hop production reminiscent of Y2K-era Dr. Dre, in this case produced by American producer Trox (50 Cent, Cordae), “100 Million” is an anthem for those with grand dreams, the two icons reflecting on the enduring habits that propelled them to greatness. The song arrived in mid-January, with a video filmed in Dubai and directed by Karan Aujla’s long-time collaborators Rupan Bal, Dilpreetvfx and Anmol Raina. The song and video immediately became a huge success–the song reached the #1 spot of the YouTube Trending Charts in India, and reached the Top 10 in countries including Canada (#2), New Zealand (#4), UK (#6), Australia (#8) and the UAE (#8). Overall, the song racked up over 20 million YouTube views to date, as well as over 3 million Spotify streams.
Karan Aujla and DIVINE have individually topped several charts across India with their albums and songs such as Karan’s “Softly”, “White Brown Black”, “Mexico,” and “Players,” and DIVINE’s “Mirchi”, “359 AM”, “Baazigar” (80 million YouTube views), and “Kaam 25” (65 million YouTube views). Their upcoming collaborative project is the first of its kind in the Indian music space and is poised to be a landmark moment in Indian music history.
With Street Dreams out now, the dynamic duo prepares to make their presence felt on American shores. Stay tuned for more videos and announcements from DIVINE and Karan Aujla in the near future.
Street Dreams tracklist:
- Nothing Lasts
- Top Class / Overseas
- Straight Ballin’
- Yaad ft. Jonita
- Tareefan
- Hisaab
- 100 Million
DIVINE (L) and Karan Aujla (Photo Credit: @anmollium / Anmol Raina)
Critical Praise:
“‘100 Million,’ gives us a glimpse of the charged-up potential between the artists. Over a roomy beat produced by Portland artists Trox aka Samuel Troxel and Samarei aka Sam Waldo, DIVINE and Aujla bring their best bars.” – Rolling Stone India
“The life story of Divine, the rapper who inspired Ranveer Singh’s Gully Boy” – GQ India
“Karan Aujla Incites a New Era of International Punjabi Music” – HYPEBEAST
Karan Aujla featured in Billboard Canada
The Background:
About DIVINE:
Vivian Fernandes, popularly known as DIVINE, has become the embodiment of an entire generation’s aspirations. His come-up story and music inspired the Bollywood film Gully Boy, and sparked a new movement of hip-hop artists and fandom in India and beyond. Having redefined the gold standard of the South Asian music industry, with two #1 albums, an MTV EMA award, dozens of platinum plaques, and over 3.5 billion on-demand streams, the superstar rapper is taking Indian Hip-Hop global with every move he makes.
About Karan Aujla:
Karan Aujla was born in Ghurala, India before he moved to Vancouver, Canada at the age of 17. He began songwriting to express his emotions following the tragic passing of his parents. Having written hundreds of songs for emerging Indian artists, Karan began recording songs leading to his first major hit, which was 2018’s “Don’t Worry.” As he continued to record, write and collaborate with producers, honing in on his unique sonic offering, he released his debut album B.T.F.U. which landed #6 on Spotify’s Global Chart. Followed was his Way Ahead EP which boasted a YG collaboration and his next massive hit, “Don’t Look” which surpassed 180 million views on YouTube alone. More recently Karan released his second studio album Making Memories, which debuted at #3 on the Spotify Global Top Albums chart. Karan has over 6.6 billion official video views, has garnered over 1.9 billion audio streams, and has 20.8 million followers across his channels.
Links:
DIVINE: instagram | facebook | twitter | spotify | youtube
Karan Aujla: instagram | facebook | twitter | spotify | youtube
“100 Million”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dXiVYq8HBc / https://orcd.co/100millionsingle