It’s a long way from India, but King feels right at home in Australia. The singer and rapper, born Arpan Kumar Chandel, appeared at the ARIAS before performing his Sydney and Melbourne shows over the weekend – and he couldn’t have asked for a better welcome for his first time Down Under.
Hundreds of fans queued along the street outside Sydney’s Metro Theatre before his Sunday night show. King admits he was blown away by the dedication of his supporters – dedication we’ve so often seen reserved for some of the biggest Bollywood stars or cricketers in India.
“I saw the video [of the fans], and I was like, ‘No way!’ I couldn’t sleep last night,” he tells Draw Your Box. “For a moment, I feel like Shah Rukh Khan,” he laughs.
Speaking of the award-winning Indian film star, Shah Rukh Khan is indeed someone King is a fan of himself, and he says he’d definitely say yes to collaborating with the actor or singing playback for him if the opportunity ever arose.
“We have talked once on FaceTime. That was the best 10 minutes of my life,” he shares.
King is no stranger to celebrity collaborations in his career, having released the popular remix with Nick Jonas titled ‘Afterlife’, and also working with the likes of Julia Michaels, Gucci Mane, Jason Derulo, Ricky Rich, and Rayvanny. Bruno Mars is next on his dream list of collaborators, but in the meantime he enjoys the incredible success of his most popular track to date, ‘Maan Meri Jaan’. Featured in his third album, ‘Champagne Talk’, the song has attracted over 1 billion streams across all platforms and was crowned as the #1 song by Spotify India in 2023.
“When I was making that track, which is a love ballad, I always kept one thing in my mind – that I had to make a good song regardless of where it was going to go or not,” he explains. “It went really well and it gave me international recognition and Indian recognition. It put me on the map.”
But King also believes it’s important to stay grounded as a musician and not let the thrill of topping the charts or receiving accolades distract you from building on that success by focusing on the art.
“After having these kinds of songs and the album, I can say it safely that for all the upcoming artists, [they] should not focus on this… Just focus on making good music.”
King worked in a government job before appearing on India’s first reality rap show, MTV Hustle in 2019, which opened doorways to a more serious music career. But even in the years leading up to his TV appearance, King was already making waves online, establishing a community of fans on YouTube as he released his own independent tracks. While nowadays he’s topping charts, being named in the Forbes Asia 30 Under 30 list, and known as the first Indian pop star to walk the Cannes red carpet, some of his fondest memories go back to the earlier days of his career.
“I think the biggest highlight for me, to be honest, was the first day I dropped my first song [in 2015],” says King. “I just dropped it, and I’m so thankful that it happened. The rest is history.”
Well aware that his career trajectory is unique and that he’s an inspiration for many, King’s advice for aspiring musicians is to not let your expectations be influenced merely by reality TV or a large social media following.
“All I want to say is, it’s not the TV that’s going to get you fame. I think that’s you who’s going to get you the success,” he says. “There’s a difference between being famous and success. I want artists to stick to the successful side more than the famous side. I think being famous is a byproduct of success.
“I think people nowadays stress too much, that’s why they’re just making short content. Artists are not making full-fledged songs of like, three to four minutes. The music is dying that way. So my suggestions are to just live your life, be an artist, and just love what you do. Don’t do it for the views.”
As he gears up for shows in Europe and the US next year, King is proud that Australia was his first stop on this tour. But before 2024 wraps up, he’s hitting the stage again in Auckland on Wednesday 27 November at The Tuning Fork. Meanwhile, something tells us his Aussie fans are already waiting for him to return.
You can follow King on Instagram here.
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