MC Couper is a familiar name to rap lovers in South India, especially Kerala. His unmatched diction, remarkable flow and the way he effortlessly tames a language as hard as Malayalam to craft it into verses that make you think and groove at the same time — are qualities only a rare few artists can claim. One of his first tracks I came across was Nerchappattu, a vigorous number that lashes out at caste and class-based oppression, in 2019. It was, and still is, one of the most rated tracks from the album Kumari Kandam Traps, Vol. I, produced by Kochi’s own beat wizard Parimal Shais. Later, in December 2020, I saw MC Couper once again — at Kochi Music Foundation’s Para hip-hop music festival where he was literally the talk of the town.
Fast forward to 2022. In these last two months, Shambhu Ajith aka MC Couper has proven his mettle — from underground to the big screen. End of February, he released his first EP, Rap Bhooshanam Cochin Brothers Pvt Ltd., once again with Parimal Shais. A week later came his debut on the silver screen, with Tovino Thomas-starrer Naradan. Neeyetha, his track from the movie produced by DJ Shekhar, which he rendered alongside Minnal Murali-fame rapper Marthyan, is, interestingly, part of his old stock made a couple of years ago. And that is why, the more you dig into what makes Couper rap, you will find he is one of the most talented homegrown writers Kerala’s rap scene has produced.
“I have this very lucid memory of my brother playing Eminem’s Way I Am at home when I was in middle school. It starts with an impressive alliteration, which I was obsessed with. Since then, I would look up the lyrics for every rap song I came across and sing along. I was equally in love with the syllable-stacked songs in Malayalam movies. You’d find me with one of those thin lyrical books that have Yesudas’s pictures on the cover most of the time, trying to sing along every time one of the songs in it came on TV. Now that I think back, part of me knew I could rap because of how well I managed to reiterate lyrics. It just took me a while to realise I could rap my own verses,” says the Thiruvananthapuram native.
Though he works as a sports journalist now, Shambhu is a law graduate. Makes you think, if he hadn’t been a rapper, he could have easily been impressing the jury with tortuous pleas for justice in the courtroom. “In school, Malayalam was one subject in which I always scored good marks. The poems they teach you in school were kind of a maze to me. At first glance, they don’t make sense at all. But when your teacher breaks them down, suddenly they’re a whole story. I think this fascination has made me want to be more knowledgeable in the language,” says Shambhu, who claims his early inspirations came from these poems, and of course, his father who has a beautiful way with words.
Shambhu’s versatility is one of the most impressive qualities he possesses as a musician. While Neeyetha and Nerchappattu are commentaries on the ugly side of our society, his other tracks like Vaevu and Off Season are all about hanging with friends and being stuck in his house in Thykoodam, Kochi, during the pandemic and lockdown. “I just try to tap into the moment. Whatever is festering under the surface, I channel that into a verse. I sort of bank on that ability of mine,” quips the artist.
And this is why he believes hip-hop, which is being widely politicised and polarised now, should be more than that.
“I feel there is a tendency to club rap music with politics and dismiss non-political rap. Sure, since its origin, rap has been a tool for social change. But I think If you’re an artist, you should talk about what matters to you. When I listen to rappers, I’m trying to see the world through their eyes. If everything becomes an exercise in virtue signaling and pandering to the masses, then you lose out on individuality. The artform in itself starts assuming an aspirational tone,” adds Shambhu. Signing off, Shambhu is positive 2022 is going to be a year with many changes and challenges.
“I’ve got a couple more EPs lined up and a lot more singles in Malayalam and English just waiting to be released. I have realised that I produce my best work when I talk my truth,” he concludes.
Trendsetting
Rap Bhooshanam Cochin Brothers Pvt Ltd. is right up MC Couper’s alley. The four track EP was released along with a music video for the song Therapara shot in Kochi. Other tracks — Venjarippu, Saadhanam Kaiyyil Undo?.