Coke Studio@MTV returns with Season 3

Celebrating diversity by showcasing the rich musical landscape of India, the show will be launched in August

BestMediaInfo Bureau | Delhi | June 19, 2013

The first two seasons of Coke Studio@MTV brought a confluence of diverse musical genres - both vocal & instrumental - from traditional to contemporary, from regional to folk. Coke Studio@MTV is back with the third season and this year, the journey to celebrate India's diversity continues. The unique sound which has become the trademark of Coke Studio@MTV, is a reflection of the cultural nuances of our country. Last year left viewers and listeners asking for more, with songs that have now become mega hits, like Madari, Husna, Saathi Salaam, Chaudhari…Coming soon this August 2013 on MTV.

Speaking about the music property, Wasim Basir, Director – Integrated Marketing Communications, Coca-Cola India, said “Coke Studio is a one of its kind platform that has made an attempt to unite our diverse country's myriad musical disciplines to create exceptional musical confluences. The response to Season 2 was overwhelming and Season 3 will build on the learnings of the previous two seasons. The youth of today want more than the usual and Coke Studio will endeavor to quench their thirst for original music created by India's most popular. Hardly a surprise because Coca-Cola brings together things that usually does not come together!”

EVP & Business Head, MTV India, Aditya Swamy, on the third season of Coke Studio@MTV “We have created over 100 songs and worked with more than 300 artists across every possible genre in the first two seasons. What started out as a cult is now growing into the mainstream. Creating an alternative culture is always exciting and is an integral part of the MTV DNA. With season 3, we are looking to stretch the boundaries on experimentation and collaboration to create songs that will make our listeners proud of our country's rich musical landscape”

Coke Studio@MTV celebrates the glory of incredible musicians who represent the best that the country has to offer. And this time too, all 8 episodes in the season are being produced by different producers. This means, a different sound across every episode! The 8th episode as always is an opportunity for young musicans to take their music to a large audience, so this episode will see 6 young artists who are poised to take off as the next super stars in the Indian music scenario who will produce one song each. This season will also see the winners of the Leap Frog to Coke Studio@MTV winners, WinitTickoo, a Mumbai based band that will feature in the 8^th, multi-producer episode.

The music producers for Season 3 are:

AR Rahman: The God of Music – A man who needs no introduction, AR Rahman is undoubtedly one of India's biggest & best musicians of all time! Composer, singer-songwriter, music producer, musician, multi-instrumentalist, Rahman wears his multiple hats with ease. Described as the World's Most Prominent and Prolific Film Composer by Time, his work is notable for integrating Eastern classical music with electronic music sounds, world music genres and traditional orchestral arrangements. This coupled with his unique ability to spot & hone new talent, makes him the perfect fit for Coke Sudio@MTV.

Amit Trivedi: Amit, unaware of his talent while in college, started off playing the keyboards for local events and festivals until he forayed into music arrangement and composition for ad jingles. His film journey started with Aamir & Dev D. Over the years he's established his unique style through groundbreaking innovations by infusing an indie spirit into film music. His favourite genres include rock and western classical and he is fond of playing the clarinet and harmonica. It wouldn't be wrong to say that after AR Rahman, he is the second music composer to have altered the texture of Bollywood music.

He was part of the very successful season 2 on Coke Studio@MTV with hits like Chaudhary, Nirmohia, Yatra and Bari bari & is all set to showcase a brand new side to his music this season.

Ram Sampath: Ram started out playing keys in a rock band & got interested in the world of professional composing at the age of 17. In the last 13 years, he has composed music for around 4000 ad films, 20 TV shows, 4 pop albums & 7 Bollywood films. Some years back, he took a break from his regular routine to rediscover his classical roots. He travelled & recorded traditional thumri singers & storytellers from across the country. He considers himself a music schizophrenic & is as much in love with Indian folk music as with Stravinsky or Oumou Sangare. His versatility and the wide fusion repertoire make him one of the edgiest mainstream musicians in India today.

Salim – Sulaiman: Salim, Sulaiman belong to an Ismaili Muslim family and are inspired by their father Sadruddin Merchant, who used to lead Ismaili Scouts Orchestra in India. Steeped in a family tradition of music as the sons of composer and veteran of the film industry Sadruddin Merchant, Salim mastered the piano at the Trinity College of Music in London while Sulaiman took up tabla training with legends like Taufiq Qureshi and Ustad Zakir Hussain. They have been composing music for over a decade, the duo had also composed for many Indi-pop performers like Aasmaan, Shweta Shetty among others, composed and produced several TV commercials and collaborated with artists such as Ustad Zakir Hussain and Ustad Sultan Khan. Their unique take on Indian Sufi makes their music stand out amongst many others in the Indian music scape. Their work for their independent album Bhoomi in the late 90s was much ahead of its time, and in their own words, they seek to return to their roots and present the musician culture of India in a form the youth of today identifies.

Clinton Cerejo: Clinton's rendezvous with music started with singing ad jingles at the age of 17. Eventually he moved into music arrangement and production. Composer AR Rahman happened to overhear Clinton's vocal arrangements while working in an adjoining studio, and gave him a break. His meticulous music and vocal arrangements give his music a unique edge. Clinton feels that he has always been attracted towards the texture of a song and all the elements that go in producing it. He also gained appreciation as a vocalist, for Kya Karoon from Wake Up Sid, Hey Ya from Karthik Calling Karthik & the most recent Yaaram from Ek Thi Daayan. He was part of the very successful season 2 on Coke Studio@MTV & his composition Madari was the song with the highest Youtube hits last year. This time around, he is set to raise the bar even higher.

Hitesh Sonik: Hitesh is proficient in playing the guitar, flute, tabla and a bit of the keyboard too. He eventually started playing as a rhythm guitarist which led him to meet Vishal Bharadwaj. His first stint in mainstream Hindi cinema came with Vishal Bhardwaj's Maachis in 1996, after which the duo has worked together on several films. Working with Vishal, Sonik discovered the music arranger in him and took to arrangement full time. Although he wasn't attracted towards composing initially, he got enthralled by the creative process and the responsibility it involved. He now works as a successful music arranger and composer who expertly infuses substance and haunting bass patterns into compositions. He was part of the very successful season 2 on Coke Studio@MTV & the song Husna was one of the most popular & transcending melodies of last year that got him rave reviews from across the border as well.In Season 3, he aims to blur musical boundaries to create a new sound that will resonate forever.

Papon: Angaraag Mahanta, known by his nickname Papon is an Indian singer, composer and record producer from Assam. He was born to the Assamese folk singer couple Khagen Mahanta and Archana Mahanta. He spent most of his childhood in Assam and he was introduced to music early on in his childhood. Papon's initial training was in Indian Classical, devotional (Borgeet) and folk music. He learnt vocals primarily but also plays the khol, tabla, guitar, and harmonium. His music covers genres such as ambient electronic, acoustic folk and new age Indian classical music. Although his first language is Assamese he also sings in Hindi and Bengali.He has also tasted success with playback singing in Bollywood.He is also the creator of the hugley popular Roadies anthem, Jajabor. Papon has featuired as a singer on both the earlier seasons of Coke Studio at MTV. His hit single from season 2, Tukaari  left his fans wanting more and this time he will curate an entire episode. Papon manages to straddle his Indie, folk & Bollywood roles with ease & is set to bring some magic into the third season of Coke Studio@MTV!

Over the past two seasons Coke Studio@MTV has got around 70 Million viewers on television, 15 Million views across Youtube – Website – Social Media, 1.9 million fans on Facebook, over 1 lakh 50 thousand tweets with #cokestudio, 15 Million plus downloads, 1 Million plus audio streams, 15 live shows, and sold around 35 thousand CDs! Making it the most successful non film album…Welcome back to Coke Studio@MTV season 3, an exceptional journey through the heart and soul of music where experimentation is key and leads to the creation of something far greater than its parts!

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