My journey has been like a highway ride, sometimes bumpy but mostly smooth: Mellow

Lyricist-rapper and music composer Mellow started his musical journey in Mumbai in 2015 but he really came into his own with a singing reality show in 2017. And since then, Mellow has written the lyrics to hit songs such as Morni Banke (Badhaai Ho; 2018) and Laal Bindi, etc. The musician says that his journey so far has been quite pleasant.

“Kehte hai manzil se zyada safar suhana hota hai. For me, too, the journey has been like a highway ride, sometimes bumpy but mostly smooth. I haven’t yet arrived to my final destination, but I am sure the view from there will be breathtaking,” says Mellow, who has recently released a new track titled Dil Kissko Du in collaboration with Akull. He says, “This song is about my journey of finding the love of my life . It revolves around my four exes and how they left me. Now, I realise that it is a heartbreak song but with my humorous storytelling it doesn’t feel like it . Personally, I have always looked at the bright side even when my relationships ended.”

Mellow says that after a break up, he “steps inside the studio” to recover from it. “It always helps to make music when inspired from real events, because it always manages to breakthrough your audiences and touch their hearts. Otherwise, my homies and my fam has got my back and a little bit of shopping always helps,” he says.

Adding that this song is not entirely inspired from his real life events, Mellow says, “You can call me a heartbroken boy, not a heartless boy. Gaane mai toh har ladki mujhe chod ke chali gayi, but real life mein itne breakups bhi nai hue mere (laughs).”

Mellow has worked on Bollywood music as well as his independent music. And he says that this has only helped him. “Working on both extremes have nurtured me in a way that my underground music now has a little commercial touch to it and my Bollywood music has that underground spark in it. I get my inspiration mostly from a beat or a chord progression. Rappers flow on a beat, so if you give me a nice beat and I’ll give u a hit,” he says.

The Koka hitmaker has been working on his music since he was 15 years old. And he says that when he finally came to Mumbai, he was prepared for it. “I have been writing and recording songs since my school days. When I arrived in Mumbai, I was ready to take on the challenges. Tony Kakkar and Meet Bros were the first few people whom I met in Bombay and they guided me in the right direction. I started performing with Neha Kakkar back in 2015 and later on I started assisting Meet Bros in 2016 . When the reality show, Dil hai Hindustani happened in 2017, all the live show experiences helped me a lot and I became Badshah’s and India’s favourite. The challenges polished my art, writing and style of composing. The real challenge was to improve with every song I created,” says Mellow.

As far as the debates around nepotism and favouritism are concerned, Mellow says, “The music industry has been kind enough to me so far. I feel more than nepotism and favouritism, the music industry suffers from the mentality of a rat race or that of copying what is trending or what has become a hit. Every one wants something like that. Legends follow their own path and do what their heart says. I am also following my gut and not following any reference tracks. If you are true to your hustle, and have a tunnel vision, plus you have your Karma right, I guess God blesses you with an opportunity. Secondly, I feel people with backup plan end up following the backup plan only. One should only have plan A, no plan B. Go all in and keep your eyes on your prize,” he says.