MUMBAI: Druv Kent joins the exclusive club of musicians who have quit well paying safe career ventures in the pursuit of what the heart truly seeks.
The Indian-born Singapore-based singer-songwriter released his first single three years ago that orchestrated a series of fortunate and encouraging moments soon to convert into an album, slated to digitally release in 2017.
Kent, however, finds himself in a familiar position with the release of his latest single, titled ‘What It’s All About’, the fourth original of his life. Kent explains his first single of the year ‘What It’s All About’ describes love the way it is, and not how often dreamers and romantic souls write about it. “From the moment I wrote it, I felt a special connection towards it and how it matter-of-factly lays out a truism that we all often take for granted.” Those familiar with Kent’s music and his idea of songwriter would surely be impressed with how the musician continues to remain consistent with the lyrical approach and yet does not manage to create a repetitive sonic or lyrical outcome. The new single, as Kent adds, revolves around the singer’s life, visually executed by Neil Bhoopalam (of NH10 and Shaitan fame) and Anisha Shah, a pioneer interpreter of contemporary dance. The ‘star support’ to Kent’s latest effort extends to the conceptualiser too, as the music video is shot by Ted Fellow and Puneet Rakheja.
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Kent changed his complete approach and effectively his life when he wrote his first composition in 2013. A fan of the classics like The Beatles, Bruce Springsteen, Van Morrison, or in short an era dominated by album releases over singles, Kent acknowledges the changing trends and the necessity for the same. “I think music listeners have lesser attention spans and hence moved on from the album formats to the singles trend. That explains the massive consumption of singles over the traditional album format.” However, Kent continues to be a bit old-school with his approach and having tasted good success with the ‘single’ approach for two years now, the songwriter will release his debut album, aptly titled ‘About Time’ in 2017. “This is for the listeners who invest in listening to an album and find a far deeper connection with the album and the artist,” explains Kent.
Another impressive factor about Kent’s latest effort comes from the personnel involved on the sonic front of the new single. Featuring Ronan Keating’s producer Calum MacColl on guitars (who also produced this track), Portishead and Radiohead’s drummer Clive Deamer, keyboardist Mikey Rowe (who also contributed for Noel Gallagher’s latest album Flying Birds) and Fairground Attraction’s bassist Simon Edwards, the single went through pre-production responsibilities under the experienced hands of Tim Bradshaw before heading for recording at Miloco Studios. Mastered by George Shilling at UK’s Bank Cottage Studio, any doubts concerning the sonic outcome of the single, surely now, goes out the window.
Druv Kent’s (or Dhruv Shrikent) perseverance to find the right musicians for the composition eventually reaped positive results. Adding to that, Kent became the first Asia-based musician, in at least two years, to receive an unprecedented support from BBC Radio 2. These factors, and the fact that Kent has grown from an ambitious songwriter on a wild-goose chasing his ‘break’ to an evolved musician currently in talks with major record labels briefly explains Kent’s journey. Post the release of ‘About Time’, Kent will travel to UK (his other home) for its promotion, further extending his route to India (his birthplace). The lack of interest towards original English music in the Asian markets often deprive songwriters of touring opportunities, however, Kent hopes to break the stereotype with ‘About Time’. “If the music is world class and appealing, that’s all that should matter,” concludes Kent.
