CHENNAI: Shifting away from the intense beats and glitzy costumes, two young hip-hop artists are in India to spread the word about embracing sustainability and inclusivity. Manmeet Kaur aka MC Kaur and French native Flavien aka Mister Colfer recently held their high-octane show at Alliance Française de Trivandrum as part of their national tour, Let’s Go Local.
The duo has already released eight songs since their collaboration began in 2017. Packed with live performances and workshops, the duo indulged the audience with poetic rap, beautifully describing their sustainable thinking. TNIE caught up with the artists on the sidelines of the event.
The duo’s entity is named Citopir short for tongue in cheek title ‘Condom Is The Only Plastic I Respect’. “It is a wordplay to entice discussions around conflicting parallels of human urges,” says Flavien, a multi-disciplinary artiste. “Also, it is the fruit of two seeds (me and Manmeet). We are a hopeful duo who wants to compose music, write lyrics, capture visuals and field recordings to become a medium of healing for others,” he passionately describes their work.
Citopir came into being when Manmeet met Flavien during her debut Europe tour in France in 2017. The rappers aim to meet people from across the country to make them understand carbon-neutral actions and spread awareness of the need for native flora and fauna — all with the help of music and games. However, Citiopir is much more than these, adds Manmeet, one of the first woman underground hip-hop performers in the country. Citiopir’s performance evolves as per to the surroundings and the subjects that catch their eye. “The inspiration varies. Through poetry and beats, we sing about our society, which may be satire but sometimes serious statements too,” she adds.
Flavien, the visual expressionist, chimes in. “In this digital era, we have all drifted away from harmony, humanity, joy and sharing. We want to bring them back through collective art.” That said, art is not just entertainment, it is a medium for giving ideas to people and inspiring them to think deeply, he adds. The duo recently released their debut EP ‘Wabi Sabi’ with songs in French and English. One of the songs titled Consumah is a reflection on the consumerist culture.
“Consumah is a message for society desperately engaged in consumption. The lyrics are dark, intellectual and conclusive,” says Manmeet. While embracing sustainability, the duo’s music creation involves upcycled objects such as musical instruments. Their concept is ‘music by all and for all’, Flavien explains.
“Music can be made within ourselves. There is no law that it should be created using highly sophisticated instruments only. In Let’s Go Local, we have made viewers create music using upcycle objects, including vegetables and fruit seeds, loofahs, fruit shells, and even by thumping on our bodies. A way to find joy in ourselves and nature,” he says.