Interview With Yama Buddha
September 30th, 2011 | By NepHop
He is the rapper of the moment that everybody is talking about, Yama Buddha is becoming a household name within the Nepali music industry. NepHop.net caught up with the emcee for an exclusive interview.
For those who don’t know you, please introduce yourself
Well, my name is Anil Adhikari. I was born in a small village called “Salakpur’ which is in the far-eastern part of Nepal. My family moved around a lot coz of my Father’s profession and we came to Kathmandu when I was in the 6th grade and been living here permanently ever since. So basically, Kathmandu is my hometown.
As you may know, my stage name is “Yama Buddha”. “Yama” represents the dark devil aka “Lord of death” and of course “Buddha” is the opposite inclined to the peaceful state. So Yama and Buddha are like the two faces of human. It also means he/she has a choice to be good or evil depending on their daily actions.
How is the Hip-Hop scene in Kathmandu?
Well, it is very limited as far as sales and revenues are concerned. Also, very few gigs happening around that solely promote hip hop if any. But it is getting better though and we’ve got a few MCs that really promise to deliver good things in future. At least we have hopes for now you know coz when I started out there weren’t many MCs you could look upto. I have been writing poems for almost 15 years now and I always liked how powerful the hiphop movement could be. I started off listening to Nepsydaz (ofcourse), GP, Eminem, even Lil John but then later I started liking deep lyricists. Immortal Technique, Mos Def, Canibus, Big L, Jedi Mind Tricks, AOTP to name a few. Well, I really like Jay Electronica and Blue at this moment in time.
You have a mixtape and album both dropping this year. What will be the main difference between the two?
The mixtape as you might know is already out. You can buy a digital tape online or get a printed copy if you are inside Kathmandu Valley. The album is set to drop in a few months time. The mixtape is self-titled as “Yama Buddha”. It is in two languages “English” and “Nepali”, the majority of the songs being English whereas the album is going to be completely in Nepali. I have experimented a lot of variations in the mixtape but then the album is going to consist of different Nepali rap techniques I been working on.
I feel really blessed to be working around so many talented individuals like Aidray, Duke, Dougie, Mac, Spadix (Jehova Beats) , Imp (Chronicz Productionz) MistaH.K and Loorey (Nepsydaz). The name of the album isn’t decided yet. The distribution company for both projects is “Superstar Entertainment.”
What is your favorite cut from the mixtape?
My favorite tune would be “Saathi” coz I feel the song more than anyone else. Since I wrote the lyrics out of my experience with drug addiction and also a lot of other incidents I witnessed in life. It was this one day when I realized all my good friends were addicted to some form of narcotic substance. I felt guilty for being there with them all this time and supporting each other to continue using drugs as a daily habit. So I quit but I had to write something to relieve myself from the pain inside and the lyrics just came out as soon as I heard this beat on the internet. I was living in London and missing my friends a lot. I knew they wouldn’t stop so it was dedicated to them I guess. I wanted to inspire them to quit in a way. And not just them but everyone who share similar feelings and can relate to the song. I just want them to realize that life is way more than just a chemical substance.
What made you choose Saathi as your first offical video?
The first official music video will be “Saathi”. I didn’t choose it actually. It was the CEO of the company who did and the rest followed. I am the director, the editor and camera person is “Sanjeev Rai”. It just took us a day to shoot the video and it was fun doing it.
Lyrically, there’s so much expectation from fans with every single you leak out. Do you feel any pressure when putting out new music now?
Frankly, I don’t feel any pressure coz I do my music solely coz of the passion. There are no strings attached. I don’t fear being unheard or hated coz I think that’s where I was a few months back. Obviously though, getting love from so many people makes you feel nice and in some ways pushes you to do better.
You’ve performed at many gigs within the last few months. What is the response you get from the crowd?
I’m just thankful that I’ve never been booed off stage. So I have to say they’ve been very supportive. I’ve had moments where I was real nervous on the stage but now it’s all good. I’ve learnt my way to handle the crowd and I guess it is still a part of the whole learning experience. Every new gig is a new challenge to outdo the last one. I always get amazing response from random people from the crowd after the show or at the after party.
What does NepHop mean to you and are there any rappers you are feeling and would like to collaborate with, if you haven’t done so.
“(NepHop) means more than just Nepali Hip-Hop to me. It is a lifestyle that you represent and express yourself through Hip-Hop.”
Actually I didn’t even know what Nephop meant a few years back. But now it means more than just Nepali Hip-Hop to me. It is a lifestyle that you represent and express yourself through Hip-Hop. You don’t have to be stylish or have a lotta swag. You could just be yourself and still get ya point across.
Artist I wanna work with – MastaKush, Mami, Sammy Samrat, Sash, Mr. KC, Cyclops, Boka Mystics, Schizo
Do you have any plans to tour outside Nepal?
My career hasn’t really started off yet. But definitely, It would be amazing to perform anywhere outside the country. For now, the focus is all on doing some projects here in Nepal and taking it from there.
Yama Buddha” is a self-titled mixtape comprising of 21 tracks is now available for purchase from Band Camp
any budding or established artist can learn a thing or two from Yama Buddha. having known him as an artist first, i was already in awe with the consistency he showed on pushing his work 2 the forefront. but getting to know our brethren as a friend, my respect has shot through the roof. from following through any task that needs gettin’ done, savin’ our asses in sticky situations to tirelessly promoting his music on his own, selflessly supporting other artists, always open 2 criticism and heavily action-oriented – he’s got it all together. but if i had to summarize him in one word, it’ll have 2 be CONSISTENCY. thank you, our fellow comrade, for showing how it’s done. i do hope we can all learn from your dedication and apply the same principles to our body of work. peace, ❤ + blessings,
MAMI
Ive been a huge ‘YamaBuddha Fan’ since the time ive come across his songs on youtube. I look unto him as a soulmate……. though i dont know him officially. But, people dont really have to be facing each other everytime for the inner-connection to happen…..sumtimes it just happens unexpectedly. Sumthing like this happened to me from the time i met him on facebook. I was always in search for reality, inspiration, change, forgiveness and a perfect person who’s made mistakes……Finally, i found all these in YamaBuddha. His songs are not just his voice…..but the notes of the fallen, cries of the desolate, petition of a citizen. Infact, he’s the ‘voice of the nation’. I dont write Diary anymore…..bcoz ive found sumone i can soulfully relate to.
This interview with YamaBuddha is so very helpful for the new Nephop audiences who can recite his songs but dont know him as a person. This is the best insight on YamaBuddha. Thank u Nephop. U’l are indeed the No 1 source of Nepali Hip-Hop. U’l are doing a tremendous job. Get it going. God Bless!