General Zooz of Reggae Rajahs tells us why he makes music that sounds good to him.
by PALLAVI MAJUMDER

One-third of Delhi-based Reggae group, Reggae Rajahs, General Zooz (aka Zorawar Shukla) dons many hats. He is an emcee, DJ and also produces and writes music. Having toured over 20 countries and opening for some of the biggest names in the industry such as Snoop Dogg, Major Lazer, Shaggy, UB40 and Apache Indian to name few. He also co-founded India’s largest reggae festival, Goa Sunsplash. As he talks about his solo projects, latest music video Mumbai Gyal, we find his inspiration. Excerpts:

**What fuels you to make the kind of music that you do?**
Life experiences! I write songs about what I feel passionately about. I find myself writing on subjects that traverse from falling in love to speaking up for social injustices to feeling good about life.

**How did you get inducted to Reggae? Whose music are you most inspired by?**
Reggae music caught up with me as a teenager. After discovering Bob Marley while browsing through my parents’ CD collection, I started digging deeper into the roots of reggae artists such as Burning Spear, Horace Andy, Don Carlos and Jacob Miller.
Around the same time, I started exploring dancehall because there was a lot of crossover into hip-hop at that time with artists like Sean Paul, Shaggy and Beenie Man gaining worldwide attention. It’s difficult to choose one person whose music I am most inspired by. Reggae has so many different sub genres and I am drawn to each and every one of them because at the end of it, there is certain energy in this music that I have not found anywhere else.

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> “Reggae has so many different sub genres and I am drawn to each one of them, because at the end of it, there is a unique energy in this music.”

**Your recent video Mumbai Gyal draws heavily from Hindustani classical music. Tell us more about this collaboration. Would you call your music ‘crossover’?**
Mumbai Gyal is the first song where I have attempted fusing musical genres. The beat is actually made by a Polish producer, Dreadsquad and the Hindustani vocals are by Bawari Basanti. I would describe it as a blend between hip-hop, reggae, bhangra and Hindustani classical. I am not sure if it’s crossover though.

**You have a lot of political references on your track Fyah Too Hot. Do you think it is intrinsic to talk about politics through music? Are you planning on more tracks related to social issues?**
Social issues are important to me. I do not attempt to speak for anybody else nor am I trying to create a facade that I don’t live a comfortable life compared to most in our country. However, if I see something happening that I feel is unjust or unfair, then I do feel the need to speak up and voice my opinion.

**How different is it to perform as an individual and be a part of a group? Is it challenging to keep up with both?**
I think there is an element of comfort when you perform with a group. Knowing that there are other people with you when you take the stage can be quite reassuring, especially for big shows.
However, when you perform alone, the spotlight is entirely on you! Having said that, performing alone also gives you a certain flexibility that a group doesn’t allow.

**What’s in the pipeline for you?**
I am looking forward to releasing a couple of music videos this summer, one of which will be collaboration with a producer from Trinidad. I am working with some Indian producers on a few club-friendly dancehall tracks. Then there is collaboration with a band from the UK that I am excited about, but cannot reveal. It’s going to be a busy year!