Nas collaborates with Naezy and Divine for Gully Boy's end credit song

Ranveer Singh in Gully Boy. Pic/YouTube

The musical and cultural influence of American hip-hop legend Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones, aka Nas, reaches far beyond New York City, as detailed in a much-anticipated hip-hop film out Thursday, produced by Excel Entertainment, and an accompanying record released by Artist Originals (AO). 'NY Se Mumbai feat. Nas' (NY to Mumbai), a new track by Indian Hip Hop artistes, Naezy and Divine, is the end credit song for Gully Boy, starring actor Ranveer Singh and directed by Zoya Akhtar. Nas is also an executive producer for Gully Boy.

Set in Mumbai, Gully Boy is a shout-out to India's biggest hip-hop acts and the rise of gully rap in India. Growing up in the slums of Mumbai, Naezy and Divine found a creative outlet and empowerment in hip-hop; they watched legends, like Nas, on YouTube, and chased what would eventually become a thriving music career - and now a mainstream presence with a feature-length film.

As the director of Gully Boy, Zoya Akhtar yet again demonstrates her unique storytelling approach crafted from an international filmmaking career that has, coincidentally, brought her from Mumbai to New York and back again. She says about the music in the film, "This has been a collaborative project from start to finish, and with music playing a crucial role in this story, it was really important to me that the right music partners come on board. It's an absolute honour to have Nas so closely associated with the film."

With Naezy, Divine, and actor Ranveer Singh recording out of Mumbai, the record was developed with AO producers XD Pro in Toronto; iLL Wayno of Mass Appeal Records, who worked alongside the team in New York; and, of course, Nas in Los Angeles.

The multi-platinum rapper and producer was among the few to herald in the Golden Age of hip-hop as a teenager in the early 1990s. His latest studio album, Nasir, was produced by Kanye West in 2018. Today's 'NY Se Mumbai' collaboration and its parent film showcases the depth of Nas' global influence and legacy as an artist and pop culture phenomenon.

Grammy Award-winning producer iLL Wayno said, "Working on 'NY Se Mumbai', for me, was an affirmation of my understanding that hip hop has a global reach and cultures around the world are more similar than they are different. We all share similar experiences and this song was a collaborative effort to showcase that."

'NY Se Mumbai' is available for streaming on JioSaavn today, and on all platforms worldwide on February 19. Gully Boy releases on February 14, 2019, across India.

Also read: Gully Boy elicits loud cheers at Berlinale

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