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Coke Studio India debuts on MTV at 7pm tonight, and according to Leslie Lewis, the man putting it all together, ‘It’s a sound India has never heard before’. Best known for his fusion work with Hariharan as part of the Colonial Cousins duo, Lewis’ latest project has been to put together a series of 50 performances using well known Bollywood artistes, folk musicians and as yet unheard of talent for season 1 of ‘Coke studio @ MTV’. The full list of singers is available at the MTV India Coke studio webpage, but includes heavy weights like Khailash Kher, Colonial Cousins and the Wadali brothers. Speaking to Peter Griffin for Firstpost, Lewis explained what he had tried to do with the show: ”I have interspersed people – like Shankar Mahadevan and Khagen Gogoi who is a well known folk singer from Assam. So when I mix the Assamese stuff with Mahadevan’s Marathi angle, that mixes it all up. So it’s two separate cultural tunes. But you can’t make it happen unless there’s a proper groove behind it – I have to string everything together”
What also makes Coke Studio different is the format of the show. “This show has no judge, no jury, no SMS and no votes – people play their music and if people like it, great and if not, ok” says Lewis. But he assures us that there will be something in there for everyone. “I am sure it will be enjoyable for India at large”, he says.
Listen to Leslie Lewis talk in more detail about Coke Studio:
Click here for a special preview of one of the Coke Studio songs:
Watch a promotional video:
