MUMBAI: Universal Music India, has acquired rights for the official song of the ICC World Twenty20 tournament to be held in Sri Lanka later this month.
‘VissaiVissay’ is an inspirational melody that literally means ‘Twenty Twenty’ in Sinhalese. The song encompassing `cricketing’ lingo is composed by duo Bathiya and Santhush (BNS), the leading pop/rap artists of the Sri Lankan music industry, in collaboration with Phoenix Ogilvy. It is composed in the music style `Papare’, which is a popular Sri Lankan genre that is largely associated with cricket. The English version of the song features UK rap artist Arjun.
The video for the song will feature the musical duo along with their crew, event ambassadors Lasith Malinga and Shashikala Siriwardena and also cricketing fans who uploaded their video to take part in the event video contest cheering and singing the song.
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Universal Music will release ‘VissaiVissay’ album in two versions – one for the Indian audiences and another for the Sri Lankan audiences and will be available in both physical and digital formats on 10 September. ICC World Twenty20 2012 will take place from 18 September -7 October in Sri Lanka.
Speaking on acquiring the rights for the song, Universal Music India and SAARC MD Devraj Sanyal said, “Bathiya & Santush are my friends and musicians who are literally the kings of pop in Sri Lanka. ‘VissaiVissay’ is no exception and in my mind has the ability to cross borders and become a song that is huge for cricket! It has the quintessential BNS elements but more importantly it has all the makings of a global cricket anthem. We are very excited to see this become exactly that.”
BNS said, “When there’s a lot of cricket and a plethora of songs related to the game, the challenge was to do something different that stands out and captures the spirit of the T20 game and essence of the host nation, Sri Lanka. The essence of the game is reflected in the pace of the track and the local flavour is brought out by the unique Sri Lankan `papare’ music. The track is bound to get anyone anywhere in the world dancing and moving in a frenzy.”
