A&R Spotlight #04 - Ranbir Kapoor navigating through the growing and diversifying Hip-Hop Scene in India

By Srishti Das and Shashwat Hota

I was fortunate to have an engaging conversation with Ranbir Kapoor from Mass Appeal India, who has been the main man behind some of the top Malayalam Rappers in the Indian Music circuit (we will read more about them below). We delve into his journey from a childhood steeped in diverse musical influences to becoming a Senior A&R (Artist & Repertoire) for a leading Hip-Hop label in the market. With a family background rich in musical tradition and a personal passion for Drums, Kapoor's path has been anything but conventional. From early Metal inclinations to studying at the Berklee College of Music and navigating the complexities of the Music Industry, Kapoor shares his experiences and insights on balancing creativity with Business, the importance of being deeply involved with artists, and his ongoing love for music. Join us as we learn more about Ranbir Kapoor's processes and career.

Srishti Das: How did you get into music? Do you have memories from your childhood that eventually influenced your decision to enter the music industry? 

Ranbir Kapoor: Music has been around my family for a long time. My mother was a trained singer, and my uncle was a bass player back then. He had his own Metal band and my dad was a huge music connoisseur. When I was growing up, we always had a lot of music playing in the house every morning. My mom used to play Devotional music and by the evening, my father would play Jazz, Blues, and Rock. Further, ever since I was a kid, my uncle influenced me with a lot of Metal. My sister made me listen to Iron Maiden for the first time, and I couldn't understand what was happening. It was insane. 

I gravitated naturally towards the Drums. The only drawback is that you can't really move around on stage but I was eventually okay with it; at least you get to sit down and do your job. I then joined the marching band in school. I understood what it was like playing at least one piece of the drum kit which was the Snare drum. When I got my first drum kit, I started practising as much as I possibly could. Metal was actively in my life till the twelfth grade. I was doing a couple of sessions with Sahil Makhija from Demonic Resurrection. I was just 16 at the time and had just graduated from the 10th grade. I was playing with all the prominent guys from the scene back then. I was the youngest kid on the block and everyone was in beards and buttons, while I was barely allowed in the pub.

At the same time, I was also good at Business. I took Economics and Commerce, but I wasn't too keen on pursuing a business degree. When I graduated 12^th grade, I felt quite low even though I scored well. I went to the Narsee Monjee College, but I suffered because, at that time, I was at the peak of playing, with back-to-back rehearsals and gigs. I missed so many classes that subsequently, they threw me out. Soon after, Berklee came to India for a clinic for the first time. I attended it, and that's when I became more clear about music education. After the clinic got over, the faculty called my parents and asked to meet me. For me, having the whole faculty call my parents and say I am fit for Berklee was really amazing. I got word from the faculty about the audition and I started preparing. Eventually, I went to Berklee and I majored in Music Business/Management, because I know that it's difficult being a Musician, no matter how good you are. I was cool with making music when I was in school as I was around musicians and I could play gigs and sessions, but once I left, I wanted to pursue business.  

Srishti: Did you always know that you would be an A&R Representative when you went to Berklee, or was there anything else that interested you? 

Ranbir: No, I had no idea about being an A&R Representative. At Berklee, there was so much to learn from some of the best people in the business, including visiting faculty. It's similar to Law school. You learn all types of music and while interning, you figure out what you want to do. There were a couple of classes that I absolutely hated, which were Sync Licensing and Publishing. However, when I graduated, my first internship was with Atlas Music Publishing, owned by Scooter Braun, where I synced music into some of the biggest projects, such as the NBA, NFL, and Netflix. I enjoyed Licensing, Publishing, and administering royalties. 

My first mentor, Ralph Jaccodine, who made me love the possibility of being deep rooted in the business side of music and taught the class “Music Intermediaries” back at Berklee, introduced me to Ice as well. Simultaneously, I was working with Jeremiah “Ice” Younossi, who was with 50-Cent for a long time as a Tour Manager and he had his company called A-List Talent Management. He was working with artists like Chief Keef, Mobb Deep, Wu-Tang Clan, Busta Rhymes, Tom Ashbrook and some of the biggest guys in the Industry. At that point, I was doing Publishing and Management, although not Artist Management. Unfortunately, I had to come back because of the pandemic and I was depressed for a year because people said I was too overqualified, I had done too many things in Publishing and Royalties, which don’t exist in India on that level. Obviously, there is a lot to do, but it's nowhere close to what it’s like in America. 

I wanted to get my experience from the United States to bring change or work with a certain artist. Funnily, Mass Appeal was with Universal Music Group at that time. Technically, my first job was at Mass Appeal Universal Music Group but then a week later, the joint venture ended and I started working as an A&R for Mass Appeal. I learned a lot about A&R in India, which is quite different. No shade on anybody, but there aren’t many people who know what being an A&R Representative is. People think that it's picking and grooming Artists, but the fact is when you're an A&R Representative, before even helping an Artist, you must have a wide network of Producers and Artists in your arsenal, because you must make sure that your Artist has enough people to work with. Enough people should be around you who, at the least, are technically and musically sound so that you can help.

Srishti: And you have the right people to work with. 

Ranbir: We've had some of the biggest musicians come to Mass Appeal’s roster, and we still work with them on music from scratch because it's about accountability. If I'm your A&R Representative, I'm going to be as accountable as you are. When we make music, I don't want it to be just buying music or choosing music you have in your kit. Even to this day, there'll be music that Dabzee or some other artist will send across and I will still tell them,” it's cool, I like the vocals you've done on this, let's work around this or do something new with this.” If you have an existing idea, I don't mind resuscitating the project, but I'm not going to pick it up unless it's phenomenal. My first intention isn’t to be “Okay, you can do your five songs and already half my work is done”.

Srishti: Are you enjoying it? 

Ranbir: Absolutely. When I went to the South of India, there was absolutely nobody looking into that market. Now, everybody's eyes are there. That goes back to being an A&R Representative. You need to be so in love with putting Music and Artists first and making sure that if you're in a country like India, which is developing, you give everybody a chance to develop. I know North India has had its fair share of development, but what about the South, which is half of the country? 

We're already working on what will be released next, hopefully by the end of the month.

Srishti: Do you feel sitting in Mumbai, it's hard to gauge what’s happening in the country musically? 

Ranbir: 100%! You can find articles online, but I could not find Baby Jean. I already knew who Baby was before I went to Kerala the first time, but I couldn't have had the opportunity of sitting with him, seeing him perform, seeing him make music, even Dabzee for that instance. I went to a show and saw everybody on that bill, and I understood their potential. I stayed with them for almost 20 days, I understood exactly how everybody worked and everybody’s temperaments. It goes back to me saying that we can't just buy music by listening to demos. You will never really know your artists if you know them through a couple of minutes online.  is such an interpersonal, physical relation and with an artist, there is no substitute for that. I'm not an Artist Manager, but I still go to my artist’s gigs because I want to see which of their songs are banging live, what sonic direction think we can take that the audience will recall listening to live. It's constantly curating in a way where you're being true to yourself but also keeping some stuff which your fans appreciate and love. There's no substitute for that. 

Srishti: I've been traveling since April. And the more I travel, the more I realise that I don't know anything because you go and sit with these young Artists who look at music so differently and they cater to an audience that is quite different from any of us. It's even for the sake of your artists that being very aware of what is happening in those areas is very important. 

Ranbir: You have to. You are an A&R Representative as well. I know I’m not going to work with every Artist that I approach or have on my bucket list, but you need to be aware of what’s happening in the industry, domestically and globally. I had this class at Berklee called “Current Affairs in Music Business.” I was 19 at that time and I did not care about what was happening in the world of Music. I was just listening to Music, playing shows and living life.  Every class, we had a new topic related to what was happening in the Music industry. At that time, there was the whole legal issue with Taylor Swift catalogue, amongst other things. Me being a Music Business student, had no idea about half the current affairs that were going on in the industry. I felt like I needed to be in tune with all this stuff. That is how I got my first reality check. Even if you're a Musician or a Music Business Executive, it's pertinent to know everything happening in the industry. 

Srishti: My next question has two aspects. Firstly, how does your Music Education and learning an instrument like the Drums impact how you see yourself as an A&R Representative? Secondly, how do you make sure that you're cutting your biases, as you're not making this music for yourself? 

Ranbir:  For me, being a professional Drummer and a Musician definitely gives me an edge. I know what's happening on a technical level with the music. I can tell my guys they're going off-pitch, or fundamentally if they are going wrong on the track, because most of these guys aren't trained Musicians. Hip-Hop isn't always the most technical form of music. But in terms of it not having ten instruments playing, you're not composing. A lot of it is electronically made. For instance, if a Rapper only made music for a movement and tomorrow if they have to go into the studio and they don't know any studio techniques, or how to pace themselves, then they get nervous instantly.  You have to guide them and tell them to take it easy, that they don’t have to bang it out in a couple of takes. This happened with Nazz the first time he was doing the “KSHMR” album. That was the first time he went into the studio with me, and I had to set the mood. I said, “Yo, I don't know how you were recording music at home, but this is how you enter a studio with professionals. This is how you record here.” At that time he was struggling, but when he left the studio, he told me, “If you weren't busting my chops, there are probably a few things about myself that I could do, I would have never realised.” I work very closely with the producers of artists, and I'll tell them, “Let's add this, let's have that, let's spice it up.” That comes from technical knowledge. . You need technical skills to even approve a Mix or a Master sent in by an Audio Engineer.

With respect to my biases coming in, I know the artists that I work with well, and hence, I will never suggest anything that is out of the realm of their artistry. I'm not going to tell them to do something entirely opposite to what they have been doing. For instance, for KSHMR, he let me pick the beats that I liked from the ones he sent over to me. The one that we chose was the one that ended up on the album. In the end, it is always the artist’s opinion that takes priority. I’m working with them to help advance their career, not just for myself.

Srishti: How often does that make you feel like you want to make music again? 

Ranbir: Every day! It's a double-edged sword. I'm so involved in making music with all of my artists, I’m so involved in the production process, in the mix process, that I don't feel like I'm away from making music. But I get it that I’m going away from it. I stopped playing Drums because I sold my kit. But I have my drum rack now and I'm getting back to playing them. I'll probably be playing a lot more sessions for people. But that's one thing I think about when I go to bed, that I'm seeing guys I'm working with, doing what I originally wanted to do and I still want to play as there's no place like the stage.

Srishti: How do you manage to balance your emotional and analytical parts of the job and maintain a healthy relationship with the music that comes out? 

 Ranbir: I go the extra mile of really getting invested in finding my talent and working with them. I am emotionally invested in those Artists. So when we're working on a project and it comes out, what we do is we work to the best of our capabilities to make sure that the mixes are on point, that we've done the best we can in terms of producing a song and so on. Once it's out, it's no longer ours butfor people en masse to assimilate and make it their own. Sometimes it goes your way, sometimes it doesn't. At the end of the day, you want to see good music. 

Srishti: The thing about A&R Representatives is that they are the person between the audience and the Artists who make sure that the feedback loop is working. But the A&R Representatives are also the people between a Record Label and an Artist as well, where one is highly creative and the other is highly Business and Capital oriented. How do you manage to keep these aspects parallel from each other? 

Ranbir: By nature, I'm emotional. Once I get behind somebody, I just get behind them. And for most parts of it, it's creative. There are a couple of Artists who are tough to work with, in terms of the Business side of things, such as getting things done on time, deliverables, etc., but it's a pill you have to swallow. There are times when I get really frustrated. Some artists are more easy-going and easier to work with than others. You just have to find that sweet spot between creativity, professionalism and business—an ongoing tussle. 

Srishti: What is your true genre, artist, or music to A&R Representative? Do you feel like representing a metal band? 

Ranbir: I haven't really heard any Metal A&R Representative’s myself to be honest. I know Metal Scouts from Metal Labels and have heard of people in the metal scene who scout a band; I think what I'm doing right now would be more of a producer role in Metal because it is my genre. 

Srishti: This is my last question. Tell me more about your love for One Tree Hill! I had to include this in the interview because I love it, too! 

Ranbir: At that time, there weren’t any streaming platforms like Netflix. There was only Tata Sky, and I was probably in my teens when it started playing on the Indian TV Channel Star World. Time, there was a surge of American sitcoms coming to India with Comedy Central, and my family obviously has been very close to its roots in India, but it has also had its Western influences. One Tree Hill used to play at Eight o'clock every day without fail. 

Srishti: Once at eight and then at 11 o'clock.  

Ranbir: Yeah! And we used to watch it at both the time it was programmed! 

Srishti:  If I didn't go to school, I would watch it in the afternoon, too. 

Ranbir: So, eight o'clock is when we sat together, sometimes had dinner, and watched TV with the whole family as everyone liked the show. But I think at that point, it was so relevant to me! Lucas is not sure if he wants to be with Brooke or with Payton after being with Brooke. I related to that guy! Do you remember that scene where Brooke made up all of Lucas’ room according to feng shui? That was unbelievable. 

Nathan was a basketball player in the show, too, and many sports were involved in it. I’m also a Professional Athlete, so there were so many similarities for me at the time. I love that show.  

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Hivewire is an independent music industry publication launched in June 2023 by Srishti Das. This dynamic newsletter offers a unique perspective on the music industry, focusing on emerging markets and the rapidly growing music cultures gradually making their mark globally.