Where is the Indian-American Justin Bieber
“Tell me what you see when you look at me…” Everyone is singing and I’m looking around - just shocked.
A few friends from New York are visiting Houston and they are singing along to Asake’s Sungba remix. And I’m not shocked that they are singing the song, but by the fact that they know it at all Everyone is singing along because Sungba is a dope ass song. But here’s the thing - Sungba’s not in English.
And I’m sitting here amazed, when I’m not singing along too, that my hyphenated (Dominican, Jamaican, African, Indian) -American friends know this song!
And while this isn’t about Asake (and I will definitely write about him at some point), it is very much about his music and the music of artists that are going mainstream that are very steeped in a specific culture.
It was this moment watching wide-eyed as my English-only speaking friends sang a Yoruba and pidgin-filled song, that brings today’s question, which is, which culture/group is most likely to dominate music next (if they can, because we Nigerians are not letting go anytime soon).
Or, as it came to my mind,”Where is the Indian-American Justin Beiber?”
Now while I am non-ironically ready to defend the honor of Justin Beiber as an artist, I mean this in the pejorative. Justin Beiber simply represents a talented artist who reaches commercial success. You can replace him with any artist you like, but he made Usher cry in his audition* and he’s sold 150 million records.
Also, I don't think the Indian-American Justin Bieber could come from Bollywood. I think it takes just the right mix of Western and Indian heritage to hit breakout (10 million+ albums sold) success. Hassan Minhaj grew up in California, Burna Boy spent time in the UK after high school, and Omar Apollo was raised mostly in the US. Even Ali Sethi lives in NYC. Jay Sean, Zayn (kinda counts?), and MIA all basically grew up in the UK. Charli xcx and Doja Cat are part-Desi - they definitely count if Zayn counts!
With that set, here are the reasons why I think the world is due a South Asian-American artist specifically.
The English-speaking Internet will soon have more English-speakers of South Asian descent than not
As Internet and English penetration increase in India, streaming numbers, which are more and more of the calculus for award-winning artists, will begin to naturally skew towards India. An amazing Indian-American talent could harness not just the American market, but the Indian market as well.
According to Wikipedia, 35% of the top 50 most subscribed YouTube channels are based in India. Many of them are children-focused and these Indian kids will soon be tweens and will move from Indian Cocomelon to Indian Just Bieber.
The pioneers have taken the arrows
As a first-generation American, I can say with my entire chest that being a singer was NEVER an option for me. Even if I sang like Wanye Morris from BoyzIIMen (and I do - when he’s also singing), I could never go to my Dad and tell him I’m foregoing an engineering (legal/medical/etc) education to become a musician. I’d be dead. I know from experience and first hand conversations that most Indian-Americans also fall in the same camp. My friend Anish from college LOVED rap. He was always freestyle battling and recording songs in undergrad. He used to rap and talk about rap ALL the time. Anish is a doctor now. Just like his Momma wanted.
But, our parents have seen the Burna Boys and Hassan Minaj’s can find their way in the world. They don’t still actually believe it, but at least we can point to someone and say, but they made it before we get backhanded. That makes space for a talented Indian girl or boy to practice and improve their voice without being shut down and redirected solely to their academic studies like 2-3% of the time..
The statistical probability of a super talented Indian artist is high
There are 1.4 billion Indians - ONE of them has to be able to sing like an angel. Or a Justin Beiber (which is pretty much the same thing). It’s just math. Yes, I know I said Indian-Americans, but I get to include Indians in India and the 32 million outside of India. Write your own article if you don’t like it.
Indian culture is steeped in music
Have you ever watched a Bollywood movie? Until recently, every single one was a musical or at least had at least one person break out into song. I’m telling y’all, the samples from Khabir Singh are going to SLAP!
Lastly, Americans love stealing Indian culture
Yoga, khakis, curry, samosas, spirituality, jewelry, tech CEOs on and on and on. Americans have been massively influenced by Indian culture for a long time. It’s wild that Columbus first made it to America while trying to get to India for spices - that was in 1492! It’s been that long that India was giving the world game.
Altogether, I think Americans, Indians, and the World are ready for sitar-laden RnB and frankly, I’m here for it.
This is also why I think that our superstar will be Indian-American. You must have global appeal to sell 100 million records and, while the world of music has become more globally-tied, the music that spans that range in today’s world will blend elements from multiple cultures. Who is better than Americans and Canadians at having people live side-by-side and create? Shout out to Jay Sean, Zayn, and MIA, but I think Americans are more comfortable putting the tabla and the 808 together.
There’s no call-to-action - just be sure to spread the vibes and remember that I told you so.
Shoutout to my Indian-American friends and family for the proofreading and editing.
*I made up the part about Usher crying in Bieber’s audition. It sounds believable though!