AR Rahman: SP Balasubrahmanyam is a component of our culture, victories, devotion and love
AR Rahman said rather than brooding over the loss of SP Balasubrahmanyam, we all should celebrate the gift of his voice, the memories and his life.
AR Rahman on SP Balasubrahmanyam
AR Rahman mentioned how SP Balasubrahmanyam had “a different personality for each hero he would sing for.” (Photo: AR Rahman/YouTube)
AR Rahman shared a moving video on Saturday, remembering the legendary late singer SP Balasubrahmanyam. within the video, Rahman revisited a number of his fondest memories with the singer, who sang over forty-one thousand songs in his career.
The video began with a clip featuring AR Rahman and SP Balasubrahmanyam during a fun conversation at one among the ARR concerts. Later, the Oscar-winning composer recalled how his first big performance was at SP Balasubrahmanyam’s birthday celebrations, organised by Suhasini and Mani Ratnam.
AR Rahman stated, “One of the very first performances I ever did during a big way was celebrating the birthday of SPB. it had been around 1982-83. My life started that way. I played many recordings for other composers as a keyboard player, which he was singing. He would learn a song in quarter-hour , record it in 10 minutes and advance to subsequent . I don’t think I even have ever seen a singer like that. So quick, so professional then humble.”
The maestro narrated another fond memory he has of SP Balasubrahmanyam. “My other memory of him is once I recorded Kaadhal Rojave from Roja. He came into the studio and said, ‘How can a studio like this produce a cinematic song?’ I smiled at him. After the film released, he came back and said, ‘You proved that music are often created anywhere. It’s what you are doing with it.’ He has been a part of my programmes. He travelled with us to the US and lots of other cities. So, all I can do is remember those amazing moments and lessons I even have learned from SPB,” the composer shared.
AR Rahman said he learnt from SPB’s “kindness and therefore the way he was approaching music, the way he would never say no to anything and was able to experiment.” He also mentioned how SPB had “a different personality for each hero he would sing for.”
Rahman added, “I don’t know if the other singer would be as versatile as him. He was loved by everyone. Whether it’s Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, Malayalam or Kannada, he did it all. All I can say is that we should always celebrate his music, we should always celebrate his life and his personality. SPB sir, we miss you.”
Rahman shared how SPB’s voice was “a a part of culture, he’s a part of our victories, love, devotion and joy” while growing up in South India. He said as SPB fans, rather than brooding over the loss, we should always celebrate the gift he shared with us. He asked his and SPB fans to “be kind to every other, respect when people are there. Respect people that offer you unconditionally.”
The video concluded with a slide that read, “Thank you SPB Ji for all the memories. Your music stays with us forever.”
