Indian composer Ricky Kej on winning second Grammy, and his wish to collaborate with Hans Zimmer, AR Rahman

Indian music composer Ricky Kej won his second Grammy in the Best New Age Album category, but for him, it was not the only highlight of the star-studded 64th Grammy Awards ceremony.

The Bengaluru-based composer recently bagged the golden gramophone for his album Divine Tides, with Stewart Copeland, popular as the drummer of one of the biggest bands, The Police.

“I think the best part about this year’s ceremony was just sitting down with Copeland. We worked together on this album for one year during the pandemic, but we never got to meet each other physically. We were interacting via hundreds of emails, and Zoom and WhatsApp calls. We did remote recording sessions,” he recalls.

In fact, it was just a few days before the Grammy ceremony that he got to meet the star, who along with other members of The Police, delivered many hits like ‘Every Breath You Take,’ ‘Walking on the Moon,’ and ‘Message in a Bottle.’

“We spent some time in Nashville, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas, so at the award ceremony, just sitting with Copeland was quite a blessing,” Kej tells Firstpost.

Kej was back on the Grammy stage to pick up the coveted trophy after his 2015 victory for his album Winds of Samsara. “Back then also, I was nominated in the same category, and won the Best New Age Album award. This time, it was different because this album was in collaboration with Copeland,” he says.

Like most kids of the 1980s, Kej also had posters of Copeland stuck on the walls of his room. “He has been my childhood idol. I grew up listening to his music, and it was a very surreal experience collaborating with him on this album. Also, being on the same stage with him, and winning the Grammy with him, it was absolutely amazing,” says the Indian artist with a smile.

On putting together Divine Tides, Kej shares, “I had always wanted to do a follow-up to Winds of Samsara.

“I’d been putting together my ideas and thoughts, but then I had a relentless touring schedule, like in 2019, I did over 70 concerts in 13 countries, so there was no time for me to actually record an album.”

Then the coronavirus pandemic struck in early 2020, and people were forced to stay indoors. “I was forced to be in my studio so that presented itself as an opportunity to create a brand new album. I started recording music and I strongly felt that I really needed somebody like Copeland to join me, and I have been a huge fan of his. His drumming for The Police and his soundtracks have shaped my entire musical career,” tells Kej.

He reached out to Copeland and shared his music with him. “I asked him if he would like to join me on this journey, and to my surprise, he said yes,” he shares with the excitement of a kid in a toy store.

The Indian musician was so keen on working with Copeland that he even changed his sleep timings. “Since he lives in Los Angeles, timings are different. I synced my sleeping timings to his so that we could work together, and we could interact more easily. It was the greatest musical experience of my life,” he recalls.

“Copeland has played more than 20 percussion instruments in this album. He grew up in the Middle East so he understands Asian music really well. Also, while he was travelling all over the world performing his music, he’s collected so many beautiful and exotic instruments from different parts of the globe. This album was an opportunity for him to actually pull out those instruments, and professionally record them for the album,” he says about the nine-song album.

Divine Tides also features other musicians from across the globe. “We have more than 150 artists, including Salim-Sulaiman, on this album. Salim-Sulaiman are my favourite composers in India. I absolutely love them. They are extremely humble people and super talented. They are constantly reinventing themselves,” he says about his collaborators on ‘I Am Change.’

With so many collaborations, one would think he would have a short list of people he would like to team up with, but that is not the case. “There are many artists I would like to collaborate with. In the West, I would like to work with Hans Zimmer. I think he is one of the greatest music producers of our time. In India, I would love to collaborate with AR Rahman. I have met him a few times. In fact, he emailed and congratulated me on winning the Grammy,” says Kej.

While the congratulatory messages are still pouring in, he emphasises on the importance of winning awards. “All of my music is about the environment, sustainability, and positive social impact around those areas. So every platform given to me and every award given to me is very useful for me. I always make music with a purpose, and awards like the Grammys enable that purpose and enable me to reach out to more and more people and spread my message,” says the environmentalist, who is now looking forward to his concert on the occasion of Earth Day on 22 April.

Natalia Ningthoujam is a Manipur-based journalist. She knows how to smoothly switch from being a fan to a writer whenever needed. She tweets at @nattynick.  

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