All posts filed under: MUSIC

Explore Local Musicians and their Music

Rootsandleisure_Jaremdi

This Talented Pianist Wants to Enlighten Us on Naga Folk Music and Ethnomusicology | Meet Jaremdi from Nagaland

Published by Tiarenla

Music is food for the soul, so they say – and the Nagas are no doubt among the lucky ones who are blessed and with an innate and exceptional talent in this field. There’s a musician in almost every household in this part of the country but talent alone does not guarantee success; it needs to be backed sufficiently with persistence and a strong entrepreneurial drive to create a successful music career. Today we chat with one such lady who has all qualities that can potentially carve an enthralling musical career. Say hi to Jaremdi Wati Longchar from Nagaland, a seasoned pianist, who is working passionately towards a career in ethnomusicology. Hi Jaremdi, tell us something about yourself- your background and your musical journey Hi, I am 29 years old and I am currently based in Dimapur. However, I’ve lived half of my life in Kohima as well, so, I consider myself both a Dimapur and a Kohima girl.I am currently working towards building a career in ethnomusicology, which is basically the study of music in …

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Another Musical Talent from Northeast India You Need to Follow – Meet Vocal Artist Thunglamo Ngullie from Nagaland

Published by Tiarenla

Music and Musicians, you will find aplenty in Northeast India; it’s a huge part of their lives, and most of the artists are genuinely talented and passionate – which is the reason why we just can’t stop writing (or talking!) about them! Trust us, we have merely scratched the surface of what is a goldmine of creative talents in this part of the world. Today, we introduce you guys to Thunglamo Ngullie, a 27 year old dynamic and versatile solo artist from Nagaland. A hardcore music lover, trained musician, Naga Idol Runner Up and now a Vocal Trainer. Here’s a chat with the talented young man to talk about his musical journey in this remote part of the country, and how he got to perform in several parts of the world – including China and South Korea! Hi Thungla, tell us about yourself and your musical journey so far. I’m originally from Wokha district, and now I am based in Dimapur. I graduated from Unity College Dimapur; I’m now a full time musician, and also work as …

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Top 5 Indie Artists From Nagaland – by Owen Jungio

Published by Ovung Jungio

We stumbled upon an interesting Quora post by Ovung Jungio, a young student hailing from Nagaland, in which he shared his personal list of the “Top 5 Indie Artists from Nagaland.” We loved his list which featured some of our own favorites as well. So we reached out to him and he graciously re-edited his original write-up to be shared with our R&L readers.  So here it is—an exclusive account by Ovung Jungio, revealing his favorite indie artists from his homestate of #Nagaland. *Note by contributor: “This is a personal list and in no way meant to disregard the sheer musical talents of all the other artists not included in the list. The list is in no particular order.” ~ Ovung Jungio ARTIST #1 – Jonathan Yhome With glorious introspective acoustic songs like ‘Send Me Away’, ‘Before We Knew’ and ‘Something New’, this young man from the capital is a songwriting force to be reckoned with. Personally, his sonic timber draws a strong parallel with that of Gregory Alan Isakov. He also has a sister Pelenuo Yhome who is …

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A Chat with Pelenuo Yhome – The Architect from Nagaland with a Musical Soul

Published by Roots & Leisure

  “Will you go with me to the ends of the earth.Where we will build a story, a story that will last” ~ An excerpt from Pelenuo’s song You feel a certain kind of ease and calm when listening to Pelenuo’s song ‘Build A Story’, her first single. We catch up with this architect from Srishti Institute of Art, Design & Technology, Bangalore to talk about her foray into music and how she got started. Hi Pelenuo, say something about yourself 🙂 My name is Pelenuo, and I am from Nagaland. I am an architect graduate from Srishti Institute of Art, Design & Technology, Bangalore. So I am home now in Nagaland working as an architect/interior designer in Dimapur. Besides my work, I also love food, sneakers ( I like walking and sneakers are the best shoes ever!)  and of course music! I’m a fan of singer, Taya Smith and my favourite genre is country music. Those that follow the north-east music scene on Instagram, would most probably  have heard of Jonathan Yhome. He’s my younger brother and he plays …

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Celebrating Hornbill International Rock Festival 2017 | Dimapur, Nagaland

Published by Kumti

  Hornbill Festival, 2017 has officially wrapped up but the memories of the events, music festival, local food, folks songs and dances etc. still remains fresh! The Hornbill International Music Festival (HIMF) took place at Agri Expo, 4th Mile, Dimapur from 3rd December till 10th December, witnessing one of the most exciting shows organised this year. The rock contest was held from 5th to 8th December amongst a buzzing and bustling crowd. The crowd’s favorite and much deserved Avora Records won the contest and our very own Yellow Beacon from Nagaland won the best band of HIMF, 2017. The 8-day event winded down with an EDM night. Here’s an overview of some of the best moments from the show! The bustling and enthusiastic crowd at the Hornbill International Rock Festival Finale, 2017, Dimapur One of Northeast’s best blues guitarists, Rudy Wallang of  Soulmate band, performing for the crowd at the Blues Night concert on 9th Dec, 2017. Rudy Wallang(left) with his daughters, Andrea(center) and Elaine Wallang(right) enthralling the crowd at the Blues Night concert. Ranchi-based rock band, Highway 69 was one of the crowd’s favourite …

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A Blossoming Crowd at the International Cherry Blossom Festival Shillong,2017

Published by Badal Nyalang

  Not long after the first International Cherry Blossom Festival pulled in almost 30,000 tourists from the nearing states to Shillong last year, Meghalaya yet again geared up for the second international cherry blossom festival. It was held at different locations across Shillong from the 8th November – 11th November 2017 to commemorate the cherry blossom spread through out the state. A quick look back!  The Himalayan cherry blossom grown wild in Meghalaya has long been associated with Japan. This annual festival is a reminiscent of the local heritage with its white and pink blooms all over the hills of Shillong. With around 5,000 trees planted along the Umiam Shillong road, Mawphlang and Ward’s Lake, the government of Meghalaya further targets to plant 20,000 trees by the festivals’ 50th anniversary. Day One of this years’ event kicked off at the 5th Ground, Polo Grounds, Shillong hosted by the Meghalaya Minister for Forests & Environment, Clement Marak. The opening day was marked by a pleasant painting and drawing competition followed by story telling, local folklore and fashion show accompanied by a great display of lights at …

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On Following Your Dreams And Becoming a Full-Time Musician : Jonathan Yhome

Published by Shweta Rao

They say dreamers can be dangerous men. The world fears them for they, more often than not, act on their dreams with an intention to succeed at all costs. Jonathan Yhome followed his dream  and became a full-time musician. At Nagaland’s business town, Dimapur, Yhome strives everyday to reach his goal of becoming a successful musician. This is his story. Will you be releasing an EP anytime soon? I have not released an album or an EP yet, but I have officially written songs that have been featured as OSTs for movies, for example, ”Something New” was featured in the movie ”Nana – A Tale of Us” by Dreamz Unlimited. A song I wrote for my parents called‘‘Send Me Away’‘ was featured on The The REC.urrent.  I’ve also released a single called ‘‘Before We Know” and Sofar Sounds featured another single of mine called ”Go Tell Your Mother”. What sparked your interest in this field initially? I started my musical journey when I first joined the Nagaland Conservatory of Music in 2013. Ever since I was a kid I …

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Catching up with Pop/Rock Indie Band : Avora Records from Mizoram

Published by Lisa

With successful singles like “Sides” and “We Happy Few”, Aizawl-based pop/rock band, Avora Records has come a long way since they were just a couple of friends jamming together in 2013.  An all-boy band creating quite the rave with their fun, upbeat J-Pop/rock and Indie music, this local-gig-favorite band from Aizawl, Mizoram, has shown the crowd that they are here to stay.  Avora Records was one of the many artists that performed at the Bacardi NH7 Weekender this year in Meghalaya. Here is an excerpt from their interview with our R&L member, Lisa. Tell us how you guys got together? How did you come up with the band name? It started off as just a couple of friends hanging out recording songs in a studio back in 2013. Our first live gig was in 2016. The name of the band, Avora, is in honor of our producer and founder of the band, Mamaa. What’s your inspiration behind your music? What kind of music do you make? We try to make our music sound clean and honest. We …

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In Conversation With the Reggae Band from the East- Dewdrops

Published by Lisa

Dewdrops is a roots reggae/ska/dub/rockers/rocksteady band, hailing from Rymbai Village in the Jaintia Hills of Meghalaya. The band came together with one common interest to share- music and to promote the message of love, peace and brotherhood through their music. The band comprises of Rowynk Dkhar as the lead vocalist, Leonard Dkhar as the guitarist and vocalist, Eglancis Dkhar as the lead guitarist, Daioh Lyngdoh on the electric bass, Manavon Massar on keys and Doni Ksih on drums. R&L’s Lisa, caught up with the band members for a quick chat during one of their sessions, to talk about the band, their musical style, inspiration behind their music and thoughts on the music scene in the northeast. Tell us how you got together to form the band? We are from Rymbai Village and are hugely influenced by the legendary artist, Bob Marley. In the beginning, we would get together for  jam sessions and play mostly Bob Marley’s reggae songs. Then later, we formed our band in 2007. In fact, our band name, Dewdrops is inspired by one of his songs. The name ‘Dewdrops’ came …

RootsandLeisure_RudyWallangGuitarJAmboree

Exclusive Interview with Rudy Wallang and his Guitar Jamboree Group

Published by Lisa

“The Rudy Wallang Guitar Jamboree” is a group of 8 guitarists from Northeast, India curated by SOULMATE‘s guitarist and song writer, Rudy Wallang. He shared the stage this year at the NH7 Weekender, Meghalaya along with 8 talented guitarists from Northeast- Cornelius Kharsyntiew , Aribam Uttam Sharma, Arenlong Longkumer , Gyt Artha , Ztpa Rokhum, Sonam Lachungpa and Takar Nabam R&L ‘s Lisa recently sat down for an interview with the members to talk about their act, how The Rudy Wallang Guitar Jamboree came together, their music, and the music scene in the Northeast. So, tell us how you guys got together for “The Rudy Wallang Guitar Jamboree”? Rudy: This whole idea behind the Guitar Jamboree started when OML contacted my brother, Keith about 3-4 months ago, to curate a guitar gig. They wanted a series of guitar acts leading up to the main act- Steve Vai, one of the headliners this year.  So I got in touch with a few guitarists from the Northeast and eventually, this crew came together to form the “The Rudy Wallang Guitar Jamboree”. …