CHENNAI: The seventh edition of Chennai’s own Global Isai Festival is here and it brings funk, pop rock, fusion, hip hop, folk, blues, and jazz, from around the world on one stage. Jack Styles, The Vinyl Records, Rajesh Vaidya, Balabhaskar and The Big Band, and Tanvi Shah from India; Forest Pooky, and Simangavole from Reunion Island (a French department in the Indian Ocean); and Samghata and Plantec from France are all set to rock your world this weekend at Phoenix MarketCity.
Eddie Prithviraj, director of Exodus, the organisers, believes that the festival continues to run due to its popularity alone. “The idea was to bring a free festival that is community-run like those in Europe. The involvement of music lovers there was great to see — volunteers take care of organising, security, hosting artists, everything,” shares the organiser of the festival.
With each edition, the festival has been trying to be more inclusive, and take these artistes’ music to different spaces. “We want to host it in a park or a public space in the future, with permission from the government, of course!” shares Eddie.
There’s a new element in this year’s fest — open mic. You can register and perform for the audience after a review by the organising team. “Freestyle artists, hip-hop dancers, magicians, b-boying dancers, and others have written to us so far,” he adds.
Tanvi Shah
From sharing the World Soundtrack Award with AR Rahman and Gulzar in 2009, to winning the Grammy for Best Song Written for Motion Picture for her Spanish lyrics of Jai Ho (Slumdog Millionaire, 2010), Tanvi Shah is a world famous name in music and all performing arts. At the Global Isai Festival, she is all set to bring Latin and Afro-Cuban music. “The music scene in Chennai is changing; it’s more experimental now. The crowd always starts dancing…so I love performing here!” she says. “My plan is to bring hardcore music. You cannot sit and watch us; you need to be up and moving.”
ITACA
When they began as a musical project in 2008, the ITACA band members were merely testing their sonorous chords. Good response at concerts, and the launch of their album Malas Lenguas, got them touring outside their hometown in Montcada i Reixac to Catalonia, and the rest of Spain.
In these last three years, however, the band’s Regge, Ska, and Latin music became popular for moving out of its comfort zone. ITACA produced Reckless and Explosive, two albums that are about losing the fear of living, and stories of love and war.
Debuting in India, the band will bring to Global Isai Festival, pieces written in Catalan and Spanish. “We don’t know much about Indian music, but music has no nationality. The songs from our last three albums are full of energy. So if we’re having a good time on stage, I’m sure the vibe will resonate with the music lovers of Chennai too.”
Simangavole
Known for touring the world with high-energy performances of the Maloya, folk music of the slaves of Reunion Island, Simangavole is an all-woman band whose journey began in 1998. The last time they performed in Chennai was at the Global Isai Festival in 2015.
“Maloya allows us to express our emotions on subjects that affect us. We talk about sensitive topics like terrorism with Kamikaz song, sexual abuse on children in Aou, adoption with Ti Moun, and more,” shares Katie Toave, band member.
It is this belief in global culture that has brought them to The Global Isai Festival for the second time. “It is possible to live in Reunion Island with a sense of Indian Culture, in the same way that Maloya culture can be brought to Chennai with our gig. We’re bringing our latest album, Pou d’Vré (which means ‘For Real’), to the people of Chennai, because irrespective of language and cultural differences, Simangavole and its audience will just be one, with maloya.”
Head to the Global Isai Festival on Feb 24 and 25 at Phoenix MarketCity, Velachery. For details call: 42121631