Naamastay took hip-hop to another level, with many artists rocking the stage with their hot, blazing performances and so much more.
Helmed by the coolest team, FourOne6, their second edition of the Naamastay Hip Hop concert that was held last weekend at Sweet Memory Banquet Hall was a double hit from the previous concert.
For more than 11 hours, the concertgoers experience a non-stop, full-fledged salvo of a live performance with tonnes of unexpected surprises. The full-day gig was hosted by Hindra Bose, who didn’t waste a single second and made the most out of entertaining and hyping the crowd.
Here, I’ve listed five reasons why Naamastay Hip Hop 2023 was this year’s best Tamil hip-hop concert.
1. A fantastic space for budding young talents
Before delving more into this, a big kudos to the organizing team for giving this big stage to all the super talented budding performers. It takes a big heart to do this. Back to the main content Yes, last weekend we saw a number of fresh young talents showcasing their ultra-best acts.
Being the opening act of the nearly half-day event, Teddy Rosh kicked off the show with full enthusiasm, which was followed by other performers such as Prhymekid, Yipohboi, RMP Collective, Sia Saara, Elcfer, Ma3stro, Dope’eh, Prayven, Hayrold Jay and AMG. Fearlessly, these home-grown talents bravely took the stage as if it were their own and astounded everyone with their breadth of musicianship.
Apart from them, Dheyrann, Naren Zac, Orga, Dan $hiv, Sicarios, Og Bangerz, West Incarnation and Tharagai became hulks, conquering the banquet with their overflowing energy along with their razor-sharp swag rap verses.
Next, the troop: Aathitiyanz and Jinggi Gang. Their performance that night reminds me of the H1GHR gang’s The Purge lineup. Each of them has an eccentric style and hooky delivery of rap.
From their power-packed stage presence to their wicked verses, these young budding talents have shown their burning hunger with an exploding rage of energy throughout their performances.
Enge Port’s famed Arunboii took the stage and started performing his best tracks, effortlessly spitting lines at a breakneck speed. He also made everyone do his trendy dance move for “Bunga”.
Up next, The INC’s trio of Manneesh, Mavind Blaze, and Vrisnaan also bestowed the hip-hop enthusiast with a fiery tracklist. They ruled the stage with swarming energy and snappy bars.
Good Fellas Entertainment’s squad, Music Kitchen, along with Arvind Raj, charismatically dominated the stage with their appealing set of tracks and presented incredible showmanship. They also emerge with a new army of talent, featuring Big Boss star Asal Kolaar, Sicarios, Mavind Blaze, Dope’eh, and more.
Donning violet, the die-hard Liverpool fan Harvinth Skin came in with euphoric vibes and delivered some of the grooviest tracks, bringing in talents such as Roshan Jamrock, Yung Raja, Jiven Sekar, and Kidd Santhe.
Brickcity’s illest MC Syze, stole the show in style and with an abounding vibes. With his backup vocals chaperoning his act, he presented the coolest performances to the fans.
The thrill and energy intensified inside the banquet hall as the heartthrob of many girls, Yung Raja, took the stage. Clad in a fleek style, he satisfied the crowd by delivering a whopping performance.
“I was stunned and touched to witness how many incredible talents we have in our hands that we fail to recognise. But you know what, after NHH, these talents are surely going to higher places and get recognised for their perseverance and hard work in the musical sphere.”
2. OGs conquering the stage
There is a reason why these people are labelled “OGs.
Marking the biggest comeback, Illaiya Hustlaz, bolstered with Lil’Siriyavan, Rabendrenath, and Raj Young King, performed their old school vibe with full-fledged hip-hop flair goods alongside NtahSape2Ntah’s squad.
Sly Squad hopped and seized the hall with their deluge of energy, performing great hits. And once again, the crowd faltered when they performed the Inni Vendham song. The excited fans then sang along word-for-word to this famous hit track. With fans chanting “we want more”, these amazing performers give Inni Vendham an encore with more oomph, fulfilling the fan’s request.
All the way from Kajang, the trio of K-Town Clan ripped their way through everyone’s heart, performing old-gold songs like Give Em The Ughh!!!, Party Animal, Colour Man, Kawkaw, and more, which made everyone groove and jump to the beat.
Balan Kash was in top form, performing his heart out and also delivering some sincere words to all of the concertgoers. It was heartwarming when he took the opportunity to honour our very own National Karate athlete, Sharmendran Raghonathan, by bringing him up to the stage. Quoting what a minority can achieve in this country, these duos gave us the goosebumps moment when they got the crowd to stand up to NEGARAKU! What a proud moment indeed!
The headliners, Yogi B & Natchatra – Emcee Jesz and Dr Burn, sprung to the stage upon the crowd’s deafening roar and wrecked the banquet with their lauded track from Vallavan album, Hip Hop Era. Followed by Vaa Vaa, Mov’-Dat, Indian Girls, and Happy New Year from Thalapathy’s Kuruvi.
Emcee Jesz performed the songs Enna Sanggathi, Bintang Thanni Kuddi, and Surviva from the Ajith movie. After so long, Dr. Burn bestowed the fans with his famous devotional track, Naduvan, along with Michael Rao.
Three of them wrapped up the show with the legendary Madai Thiranthu song. Everyone was dancing, everyone was singing, and everyone was just enjoying the performance thoroughly until the end.
All of the OGs commanded the main stage with full zest which erupted the crowd for each and every song they performed. The OGs are truly legends.
3. DJ’s were the superheroes of the night
Another set of stars who stood out brightly, supporting the performers, were, of course, our dexterous DJs on the deck. Calling out all the DJs from DJ Reyna, DJ VK Karlin, DJ Drazzy, DJ Karl Kani, DJ Renan, DJ Slick Vick, DJ Akkay, DJ Jay, DJ Pri2, DJ Ruckes and DJ Nexto for giving their best to highlight each and every artist on the stage.
Needless to say, with a variety of heart-palpitating beats and booming spins, these DJs keep everyone in a groove and dancing mood till the end of the gig.
“Superheroes help the world become a better place, and you help all the artists shine on the stage.”
You are the SUPERHEROES of Naamastay Hip Hop.
4. Never ending surprises
What is a show without surprises? Naamastay performers gifted hip-hop fans with numerous surprises, including unexpected collaborations, announcements, and music releases. Many unreleased songs were continuously revealed by the artists during this concert, which is so good that some wanted them to release them immediately.
5. NHH proves Malaysia is “The Hub for Tamil Hip Hop scene”
Namaastay Hip Hop was an unbelievable success on many levels. They have proudly proved that they are undefeated when it comes to bringing all of Tamil hip-hop’s greatest stars to the stage. Naamastay Hip Hop can now be deemed “The Main Hub for the Tamil Hip-Hop scene”. They had the power to bring the best talents to the stage and also pulled off the gig seamlessly.
A special mention goes to all concertgoers who stayed up from 12pm to 12.30am carrying the same level of energy all the way to the end of the concert. You guys were AWESOME!
To sum up, Naamastay was an unforgettable Tamil hip-hop musical feast of 2023, which was also a history-making gig that features all the best Tamil rappers on the big stage with the support of our government.
It was a stupendous show. Bravo and thanks to the FourOne6 team for executing such a wonderful gig. Kudos!
See you in the next edition, bigger and merrier…perhaps more diversity next time.
Varnam Malaysia is the Official Media Partner of Naamastay Hip Hop!
Here are the moments that we captured at Naamastay Hip Hop 2023:
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