A big stepper with underground methods, HanuMankind has taken the world by storm with his 2024 single ‘Big Dawgs’ in collaboration with Kalmi. The song blew up all over social media and started trending on reels, resulting in the rapper climbing the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Let’s dive deeper into the other songs by HanuMankind.
The credit for the song’s success also goes to its unique music video directed by Bijoy Shetty, which features HanuMankind performing in a carnival attraction known as the ‘Wall of Death’.
Furthermore, the track even surpassed Kendrick Lamar’s hit Drake diss track ‘Not Like Us’ on Spotify’s Global Chart.
And you’re probably living under a rock… or shall we say hip-hop (get it?!), if you haven’t heard the song.
Who is HanuMankind?
Born in Kerala, Sooraj Cherukat spent his early childhood in Texas as his father worked for an oil company. In 2012, he returned to India and found a passion for hip-hop. Despite being surrounded by the Americanisation of the genre in his early years, Cherukat, whilst rapping in English, makes sure to maintain references to Indian culture, ethnicity etc., in his music. It is one of the many reasons he is popular with the youth.
HanuMankind’s career started in 2019 when he performed at the NH7 Weekender and released his debut EP Kalari, which is probably one of the most original bodies of music you would come across in the Indian hip-hop scene. But we’ll explore those songs later. Before that let’s learn a bit about his style of music.
But first, let’s settle a quick debate.
Is it ‘Hanumankind’ or ‘HanuMankind’?
Cherukat created his stage name by merging the Hindi word ‘Hanuman’ with the English word ‘kind,’ playing on the concept of ‘humankind.’
In an interview with Rolling Stone, Cherukat expanded on the term when asked about how people pronounce his stage name in different ways, ‘I mean, it’s cool, bro. Hanuman is a powerful entity in itself. And I think Hanuman symbolizes a lot of stuff that people can agree to. They symbolize something that people would strive to also have within their lives, like honour and loyalty and power and courage. So these things, when they say Hanuman-kind, it’s absolutely fine with me. It’s one and the same. (sic)’
With that out of the way, let’s talk more about his music.
His themes, influence, music style and more
As mentioned above, while living in America, HanuMankind was deeply entrenched with Southern hip-hop and artists like DJ Screw, UGK and more.
Additionally, his lyrical style and themes, in a very quintessential hip-hop fashion, grapple with social commentary and political expression with a touch of existentialism and introspective vulnerabilities. But most importantly, his lyricism is deeply focused on the struggles, hopes and dreams of the marginalised communities.
When it comes to influence, HanuMankind’s style is reminiscent of Kendrick Lamar, Drake and Logic. But what makes him different is his experimental yet catchy tunes and relevant lyrics.
So, now that we can put a face on the enigma HanuMankind has been, let’s look at some other songs by the “Big Dawgs” rapper that you can listen to.
Best HanuMankind songs, besides ‘Big Dawgs’, you should add to your playlist
1. The Last Dance
In collaboration with Sushin Shyam, this HanuMankind song marked the artist’s debut in films. Just 1:23 minutes long, the song features fast-paced anticipatory music that fits like jig-jaw with its quick lyrical rhymes.
The song was featured in the 2024 Malayalam film Aavesham and is one of the most popular HanuMankind songs.
2. DAMNSON
Produced by Parimal Shais, this 2021 HanuMankind song, with a length of 2:30 minutes, gives a deeper insight into the rapper’s lyricism. Playing with intertextuality, HanuMankind refers to the popular title Les Misérables, a novel by Victor Hugo, which was also adapted as a musical in 2012 starring Hugh Jackman.
Additionally, the rapper highlights his ‘brown’ identity in this song and how it can be interpreted by his immigrant experience in America. With all the racist chatter around Kamala Harris’ race right now, we believe this song has never been timelier.
3. No Hook
The first song in his 2020 EP Surface Level ft. Kalmi, “No Hook” is another one of HanuMankind’s songs that sets him apart as a rapper in India. The 1:54 minutes-long song features lazy, laid-back stoner music vibes with some pretty good harmonies.
4. Genghis
A typical song of the hip-hop genre, Genghis is HanuMankind’s 2021 single with a length of 3 minutes. On the first listen it gives the impression of what you’d consider music from the streets. The listening experience makes this HanuMankind song feel real and gritty.
5. Wildshit
Saving the best for last, “Wildshit” and the remaining two HanuMankind songs are from his debut 2019 EP Kalari. This is a particularly rich part of his discography with unique, experimental music. Each song has a running theme, which is enjoyable as it immerses you in the lyrics and not just the music.
For “Wildshit” in particular, the intro and outro were the highlights along with the overall tune.
6. Bottle of MH
An artist’s best work often tends to be their debut, maybe because they try hard to get everything right as opposed to having fun with their subsequent works. For this HanuMankind song featuring Soorya, the intro resembles church choir music which seems an odd choice for the hip-hop genre but surprisingly works well.
“Bottle of MH” is one of those HanuMankind songs that is deeply introspective, vulnerable and existential concluding at a length of 5:40 minutes.
7. Southside
“Southside” is one of the most popular songs by HanuMankind, and rightly so because it’s a banger through and through.
Sick beats, coupled with intense rapping, make this one of the best HanuMankind songs you can listen to. In fact, it is quite similar to the background music used in the 2021 Tamil film Maanaadu. This is because the BGM in the movie uses the same sample the artist has used for “Southside”.
Which are your favourite HanuMankind songs other than “Big Dawgs”?
Hero and feature image: Courtesy hanumankind/Instagram
This story first appeared here.
The information in this article is accurate as of the date of publication.
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Publish date : 2024-08-24 19:00:00
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