Author : Aarohi Agarwal
Image Source: scmp.com
Though it has been two long years, it is still hard to accept the fact that the legendary singer and musician KK is no more. The significance of his name is huge among not just his Indian audience, but to the global stage. An entire generation grew up listening to his songs, to his emotional and deep vocals, which made us fall in love with the music itself, while always setting a different mood. KK and his songs have always been a constant in our music libraries, especially for the 90’s generation, whether we are in school, college, or even at work. His 1999 hit ‘YaaronDosti‘ is still the most visited song whenever in life we go through any nostalgic moment regarding our old life or friends.
Now it has been two years since the music world has lost its legendary voice. So let’s take a look at his memorable journey and remember one of the brightest musical talents India has ever seen!
The start of KK: The musical legend
KK was a Malayali by birth, and never underwent any music training for his vocals or skills. He also never shied away from singing in any language he was not familiar with. Maybe this is another reason that made his versatility very visible, and one of the top reasons why his fans ardently love him. He gave us emotions and feelings, the language never mattered to him. You will be able to find songs sung by the singer in languages like Marathi, Bengali, Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, Gujarati, Hindi, etc. which made his fan base across the country even stronger.
The singer was born in New Delhi and was an alumnus of Delhi’s Mount St Mary’s School. After finishing college, KK was a marketing associate in the hotel industry for a short period before moving to Mumbai to pursue his career in music. This decision proved to be right for the singer and gave us the memorable songs that we today know of KK.
His career as a playback singer
After shifting to Mumbai, he finally took a chance with his talent and in 1994, he gave a demo tape to Louis Banks, RanjitBarot, and Leslie Lewis, some of the most renowned music composers of India. Over the next few years, KK worked on some jingles and finally made his debut as a playback singer with A R Rahman‘s hit song ‘KalluriSaaley’. In the same year, he also sang ‘Hello Dr.’ from Kadir’s ‘KadhalDesam’ and ‘Strawberry Kannae’ from the musical film ‘MinsaraKanavu’.
It was the year 1999 when he eventually made his Bollywood debut as a playback singer and gave us one of the most beautiful and haunting break-up songs ever, ‘TadapTadap’ from ‘Hum Dil De ChukeSanam’. But this was not his first Hindi song, previously he had sung a small portion of ‘ChhodAaye Hum’ from Gulzar’s ‘Maachis’. It was also the same year when KK debuted his first solo album ‘Pal’. This album, composed by Leslie Lewis is one of those albums that is very dear to every 90’s kid in India. The title track ‘Pal’, and ‘Yaroon’ are those songs that every kid will be singing at farewells or even in moments where they miss their childhood friendships and their simplicity.
Read More: Hugely Acclaimed Singer KK Dies Aged 53 After A Concert In Kolkata
The golden era for the golden voice
After his successful debut in Bollywood in 1999 and a blockbuster hit first solo album, KK soon became a household name in the music industry. His voice struck such a chord in every listener’s heart that it only left them wanting more of his talent. It is almost impossible and shocking to understand that a singer who has never undergone any professional training for his singing can deliver such powerful and emotional music!
He lent his beautiful voice next for ‘Jab Bhi Koi Haseena‘ for the movie ‘Hera Pheri’ and by the year 2001, the talented singer had hit songs like ‘JhanakJhanakBaaje‘ for the movie ‘Farz’, ‘Mil Jaye Khazana‘ for ‘YehTeraaGharYehMeraaGhar’ and ‘Aaja Gufaon Mein’ for ‘Aks’. The following year he again appeared in another Bhansali movie for such exceptional songs like ‘Dola Re Dola‘ and ‘Maar Daala‘ for the movie ‘Devdas’, and made India fall in love with his voice all over again with ‘Bardaasht’ from Abbas Mastan’s ‘Humraaz’.
Over the next few years, the singer kept giving hit after hit in Bollywood, and in 2008 he finally released his second solo album, ‘Humsafar‘. This was an experimental record for the artist, showcasing his creativity and artistic growth. He presented a mix of Bengali Baul with rock in ‘Raina Bhai Kaari‘. It was the year 2010 when Bollywood again delivered masterful collaborations with one of the most versatile singers of India in songs like ‘Zindagi Do Pal Ki’ and ‘DilKyunYehMera’ for the movie ‘Kites’. His audience reaches extended overseas and he also sang for an international album called ‘Rise Up – Colors of Peace‘. This album contained songs sung by artists from 12 different countries and written by Turkish poet FetullahGulen. KK’s song on the album was called ‘Rose of My Heart’.
Unparalleled versatility
KK’s glorious career spanned over almost 3 decades and he sang more than 500 tracks in Hindi alone. In other languages like Telugu, Bengali, Kannada, and Malayalam, he recorded over 200 songs. For his unique talent and extremely versatile vocals, the singer has received several prestigious awards, and recognition in his life.
KK was a musician who could not be labeled by any music style or genre, his vocals were so powerful that it was able to connect to the listeners on a level not many can do. In his 3-decade-long career, the artist sang upbeat dance tracks, as well as songs for heartbreak, and for being crazily in love, and this is precisely what made the singer that could resonate with all ages. It is a real pain that we cannot hear anymore from him after his tragic death by a heart attack at the age of 51, his last ever recorded song ‘VadaHumseKaro’ from the movie Savi is out now.
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