Jason Derulo opens up on his maiden performance in India, possible Bollywood collaborations
Jason Derulo is making his maiden visit to India and is totally "kicked" about it. The singer-songwriter, who has eleven platinum singles to his credit, is going to perform at the Time Out 72 Hours music festival in Vagator, Goa, along with his contemporaries — rapper Wiz Khalifa and DJ Martin Garrix.
Before recording his first single, 'In My Head' in December, 2009, the singer used to write songs and produce records for artists like Lil Wayne, Pitbull and rapper Diddy. However, despite working from behind the scenes, here he is now: Eight years and 30 million single sales later, having already shared the stage with the likes of Stevie Wonder, Keith Urban, Nicki Minaj, Jennifer Lopez and Demi Lovato.
Jason Derulo/ Image from Twitter/@Smooth981FM
True to form, he shows no signs of pre-show jitters. Rather, Derulo is making sure that his first performance in India is a "grand theatrical show". He promises that his set will be "one huge party" as he is bringing with him his finest dancers and musicians and the best of his crew. He isn't sweating it out too much and is going in for a relaxed vibe for his set. which will comprise all his party hits - 'Talk Dirty','Wiggle' and 'Watcha Say'.
Although he has never been to the country before, he already feels connected to the land and talks at length about the different layers that constitute Indian music. "Music is the soul of your country and I feel privileged and humbled to be coming to India. The musical scale is so varied, vast and powerful here," he says excitedly.
Since internationally, there has been increasing interest in the Hindi film industry and what it has to offer artistically, Derulo, too, isn't too far from jumping on the bandwagon, or so he says. "I’d like to believe that India is as good as any country in the world when it comes to music." He adds optimistically, "I know Bollywood is quite the thing in India and if an opportunity arises I'd love to explore that angle." While he admits that collaborative opportunities help an artist interpret the subject in multiple ways, he also maintains that collaborations should not be forced. He believes that combining creative energies must be an "organic" process.
Ask him about the Indian artists he listens to or knows of, and he says, "I have listened to Indian music before and I keep discovering new artists online. I don't know their names but your musicians are very talented and your music is very diverse. Who knows maybe after this trip I may just be inspired to do a song that is inspired by India's beautiful culture."
Speaking of culture, Derulo is intrigued by what the country has in store for him. He has his heart set on exploring the art and architecture of our land. His outings are going to be restricted to the beaches of Goa, for whatever time he's here, but he does promise his fans the best time of their lives.
You can book your tickets for the Time Out 72 Hours show here.
