No Skip is Billboard India’s weekly roundup of the best new Indian music. Every Monday, we sift through last week’s crop of releases to put out the ultimate playlist – handpicked by the Billboard India team. Tracks from Indian artists across any genre (including the diaspora), released on any major streaming platform until Friday night are considered for editorial curation.
This week’s No Skip selections feature industry veterans like Yo Yo Honey Singh and Sonu Nigam returning to form, and newer artists like Dhanji and Rashmeet Kaur experimenting with fresh sounds. Here’s the list.
- “MOONLIGHT” by Yo Yo Honey Singh, Priceless
Honey Singh’s latest single plays out like the missing track from Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak’s 2021 album An Evening with Silk Sonic. Singh moves toe-to-toe with his young collaborator, experimenting with funky, pitched-up vocals for the first time in years. His production, as always, remains rock-solid with a smooth, neo-funk track punctuated with horns and snare drums.
- “Jogi Naal” by Rashmeet Kaur
Slated to be the first song on her upcoming album Parinda, this track features Rashmeet Kaur at her simplest, most confident. The Punjabi singer-songwriter backs up her strong vocals with a sensible, bass-heavy trap beat that aptly underscores her singing without overpowering it.
- “Funk You, Pay Me” for Red Bull 64 Bars by Dhanji, Karan Kanchan, R.D. Burman
Despite his well-known affinity for modern funk/jazz, Dhanji finds a way to sound fresh and unhinged in a way very few vocalists of his generation can. The Ahmedabad rapper’s latest collaboration with Karan Kanchan features him laying his signature crass-yet-controlled vocals on a smooth-as-silk R.D. Burman beat. The result— a messy, enjoyable funk track built for late-night listening.
- “Jaadugari” by AMAN
Singer-songwriter AMAN carries forward the longstanding I-pop tradition of pairing sweet, heartfelt vocals with a masterful acoustic backtrack with his latest single. Armed with light harmonies, finger picked-guitar and a climactic drum solo, the song borrows heavily from some of the genre’s established masters like Darshan Raval.
- “Ammo” by Aditya Sreeram, Seerav Tammara
Singer Aditya Sreeram collaborates with young producer Seerav Tammara on this bright, buoyant track built around crisp hi-hats and fun bursts of brass. The Telugu-language track exudes a rom-com-esque quality that makes it feel tailored (or at least, destined) for a mainstream Kollywood film.
- “Chunni” by Sonu Nigam, Renuka Panwar
Sonu Nigam sounds right at home on his first Haryanvi-language song. “Chunni” keeps things simple with warm guitar and understated beats giving the singer plenty of room to settle into that unmistakable, vintage Sonu ease.
