Clinton Charles created history with Diljit Dosanjh, Rahul Hariharan and other musicians by representing India at one of the biggest music festivals of the world Coachella 2023. The Computer Engineer turned pianist who boasts of an extensive portfolio under his belt had previously played with prominent singers and performers like Atif Aslam, Neha Kakkar, Adnan Sami to name a few.
In an exclusive interview with News18 Showsha, Clinton called his musical journey a ‘rollercoaster ride’. He also recalled the legendary performance of Diljit Dosanjh at Coachella 2023 Sahara tent, the atmosphere of the music festival, playing with Adnan Sami, Atif Aslam and Neha Kakkar and more.
Here are the excerpts of the interview:
Tell us about the whole Coachella experience, how were you roped in to play with Diljit? And what was your initial reaction when you got to know that you’ll be performing at Coachella?
It was fantastic. I have been working with Diljit for close to almost two years now and I got to know early this year that we are gonna do Coachella. So initially, I was in disbelief because it’s one of the biggest festivals in the world and I was totally ecstatic that we were chosen to perform and represent India most importantly. We are the first group from India to be performing in such a festival that is Coachella. So we were really, really excited and at the same time, we had the whole burden on our shoulders of carrying the responsibility of representing the whole nation on this platform.
So describe the atmosphere there in the Sahara Tent? During the concert, what kind of energy and vibe were you getting out of the audience from that stage?
We were performing at the Sahara tent and initially when we went to set up, I realised that this stage is one of the biggest stages we’ve been to begin with. And also alongside us, we had several other artists who were there setting up. So the environment was really busy. You’ll get to see a lot of different kinds of audiences as well. People from all over the world were there. And it’s a really great feeling because you really never know what to expect because each time you get to see a whole different crowd and different reaction and people were just going crazy throughout the entire show. I mean the 40 minutes of our set just went by really quickly.
So prior to going on stage, what kind of rehearsals or preparations went behind the scenes with Diljit and how was your rapport with the rest of the band?
So we had a couple of rehearsals in California because we were based in LA. So we met up with Diljit and we decided that the set was very special to us so it had to be a little different from what we’ve done before. Because it’s a shorter duration of the set and we wanted to put out the biggest hits in front of the crowd and do our new versions of each of them. So we planned the entire set as to which songs should be selected, what would be the best songs to play on this platform. And we did a couple of rehearsals and we were already ready. Because we already were a well-oiled machine. Because we’ve been toured the US, Canada and the UK in 2022. So we were already quite prepared for this and it just needed a certain amount of planning to execute this and it was executed beautifully.
What was the reception of the audience there?
So right after the show got done and we walked off, we were greeted by applauses, there were standing ovations. Because the style of music was very unique to Coachella. We had all the other bands, artists from different countries appreciating our music. Infact, a lot of them came and watched our entire show because they were enthralled by the whole style of our music, the dancers, the kind of stage attire we had, the music as a whole was very unique on this platform for everyone. So people absolutely loved it and it shows really well from the kind of reviews we got online. And the number of people that kept sharing the videos and tagging us on all social media platforms be it on Instagram, Facebook. And extensive media coverage we received, it was an absolutely phenomenal and surreal experience.
So singer and performers have a way of throwing a curveball at the audience in the sense that they’ll sing or perform something totally unexpected or out of the box? So did something of that happen with Diljit Dosanjh’s live performance?
Yeah. Quite a lot of the set was all his biggest hits so people were singing along throughout the show. I think a lot of the Indian crowd and the guys who knew his songs were already singing along in every song. And we had a lot of segments in certain songs where we had the crowd sing along with us specifically. It was just then singing and they were really loud. They knew the material. Even those who were new to their music and were experiencing this for the first time, joined them, it was really nice.
Did you get a chance to showcase your solo skills?
There were no solo piano parts in these kinds of sets. It’s a lot of teamwork. But I run the main playback from the stage. So I was particular in the execution portion of the entire segment and ensuring that everything is executed smoothly as for the plan we had made. It was really great and a lot of my technical peers who knew what I was doing applauded what happened and they were really pleased to see that.
So what were some of your major takeaways from this experience? What according to you was the most memorable thing that happened during the concert?
The most memorable thing was, I saw
foreigners who were really enjoying the music and one of them was DJ Diplo. I could see him right in front of me and he was dancing, grooving to Diljit’s music throughout the set. And it was a great experience because you got to see an audience you’ve never seen before. People from all over the world, cheering for you and everyone was just going wild. For me, the key takeaway was that music really unites and I actually saw it in front of my eyes that these people are all united by music. Not all of them can speak Punjabi, not all of them can understand Punjabi. But they could connect to the music and Diljit did a phenomenal job by uniting everyone on that stage on that day.
Coachella also must have given you an opportunity to interact with other talented musicians from around the country? So what can you tell us about that experience? Who did you meet and speak to and how was that experience?
Yes. The great thing about Coachella is everyone gets to socialize, you get to see a lot of different bands, different musicians, all performing on different stages. So I got to meet Robert Glasper who is a great piano player. I also got to see Kid Laroi who was performing on the same stage as us. Apart from that, I got to see a couple of other acts. It was really great watching different people share their whole music to Coachella. And it was streamed all over the world so people all over the world were watching.
Apart from Diljit Dosanjh, you have performed with several leading singers and artists like Atif Aslam. Can you recall some of the best collaborations of your career?
I have worked with lots of singers. To name a few, Neha Kakkar, Atif Aslam, Jonita Gandhi, Adnan Sami to name a few. My favourite collaborations in my opinion would be the US and Canada tour that we did in 2018. That was with Neha Kakkar and Atif Aslam together.
That was one of the best tour I had where I had the opportunity to work with Atif Aslam for the first time and also I’ve been touring a lot with Adnan Sami. We’ve done UK, South Africa and again this year we gonna hit another UK and US tour. So it’s been really great for me to be exposed to such variety of artists, different styles, different genres and I am really glad I’ve been chosen to do this.
Do you think musicians compared to singers are under appreciated in this country? And that they don’t get their due credits or recognition comapred with other parts of the country?
It’s a double edged sword. On one side, we are hired guns. We are hired to execute a certain job. So people know what we are doing but we are never in the limelight. But it’s quite fair to be honest because many times when the show is announced, people know they are coming to see a particular artist. And the team and the technical crew keeps changing all the time so it’s really not right to expect to be in the limelight all the time. But in the musicians circle, everyone knows who are the actual backbones running the entire show. So we are quite popular in our respective fields. We are some of the best who’ve been chosen to represent Diljit and Coachella.
Tell us something about your journey with piano? How did it start and how your love for music shaped you over the years?
So my dad is a piano player and a singer as well. So it started by my father teaching me how to play the piano and how to sing as well. And that shaped me over the years, all through my school years he continued to teach me music and I also continued learning it through him and several other teachers whom he exposed me to. I decided to take up music as a career after I graduated. I am a Computer Engineer. After my graduation, I wanted to give my passion a shot. That’s when I met Jonita Gandhi. And she was the first person whom I started working with in Bollywood. We began our journey together and it’s been a rollercoaster ride ever since.
Who’s next in your collaborative wishlist of singers and musicians?
I’ve been a huge fan of Salim-Sulaiman so I’ve always been looking forward to getting an opportunity to work with them, since I’ve been a huge fan of them. And I am also hoping that one day I will get the chance to work with the ultimate AR Rahman so that’s definitely one of my goals in music.
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