DJ and producer Niles Hollowell-Dhar, known as KSHMR who had made his name as one half of the production duo The Cataracs, emerged as a solo EDM star whose music nods to his Indian roots. As he gears up for Road To Ultra-India tour, the 34-year-old opens up on his excitement to perform and also took a trip down memory lane to share about his music journey, maintaining individuality and all things in between.
You will are returning to India for the Ultra stage. Are you looking forward to it?
Every time I come to India, it always feels special because of how close India is to my heart and also as a part of my heritage. It’s my favourite place to come and perform. I was actually in India for the Feeding India Benefit Concert With Post Malone at the beginning of this year where I got to debut some of the new songs from my upcoming album. Hence, at Ultra it’s going to be a whole different experience because this is like a proper dance music show. I’m going to be taking the songs from my new album and of course, combining them with the dance songs that I’m known for as KSHMR.
What is your take on the EDM music scenario in India?
Well, it’s been changing a lot. People have really fallen in love with hip hop and you still have some classic EDM artists like Lost Stories. Chetas, and Nucleya have been killing it for years now. Ritviz has grown up so much with his music. I think, people have started recognising EDM, and electro-pop music here and it looks good.
Do you still get jitters on stage after all these years?
Honestly, after all these years, I don’t get too many jitters, but sometimes when I’m playing a show that’s really a big deal–Ultra India definitely going to be one of those shows, I am quite nervous. I absolutely want to knock out of the park. I’m playing a lot of new music, a lot of special edits and mashups. There’s a lot of nervousness and I am quite anxious too. I’m so excited to share this music with the crowd. One song I really enjoy playing is Wild Card.
Coming from Indian descent, does your culture and background ever influence the music that you make?
Yes, Definitely. I would say one of the hallmarks of me as an artist is utilising Indian sounds and incorporating them in a way that makes people dance and bring them closer from all over the world into this world of music.
Growing up, who was your biggest influence when it came to creating music also what was the first music or notes that you had created what was it about ?
I was really into hip-hop music while growing up. The first CD that I ever bought was by American rapper Coolio. Actually, my Dadaji was visiting from India, and I tricked him into buying it because my parents would never let me have an album that had profanity. I got to spend two hours listening to it before my parents came and took it away.
The first note that I ever created was not very musical at all. I combined different loops that I had acquired on my computer, and then put a drum beat together with music.
Being a significant artist in the EDM pop industry, how do you decide which musicians you want to work with?
As a fan of music, first and foremost I am always looking around for people that are doing interesting things musically. I wanted to collaborate with Armaan Malik for a long time. He is one of the most incredible singers in the country. When the right song came in, I presented it to him, and hence Echo turned out to be so so special for both of us.
How challenging is it to maintain your individuality today?
I think what every artist struggles with is keeping up with the new genre, the new styles, and the music while not losing oneself. From the beginning of my career, I wanted the music to not be about a certain genre but to be about a world where all musical instruments collide. KSHMR is something deeper, it’s more about the instruments, the type of melodies, and the emotions, so you’d notice my music doesn’t particularly belong to one specific genre.
Is there anything that you’d want to say to your younger self when you started recording your first song?
There’s a lot I would love to say to my younger self. But most importantly, I just want to remind him that there’s no need to worry about how other people look at or perceive your creativity. Music is one of the purest ways of expressing yourself. And when you are true to yourself that way, fame, fan, and money come in.
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