Dr Divine will see you now: Inside the rapper’s new album Walking on Water

If you had to bring AR Rahman RD Burman and the Nightingale of Goa Lorna Cordeiro together on a hiphop album yoursquod need some kind of divine intervention Vivian Fernandes aka Divine does it quite effortlessly on his fifth studio album Walking On WaterThe rapper in Triple OG a dancey track from the new studio albumOn the back of music production by longtime collaborators Karan Kanchan and Phenom among others the 16track album plays out as an ode to the rapperrsquos Goan roots Mumbaikar soul and global reachOne for allCloudious Fernandes 38 avid fanOne moment that stood out from the launch event on December 18 was Divinersquos shoutout to his friends from the East Indian community The rapper is a Goan at heart but grew up around the EI community in JB Nagar AndheriItrsquos great to see he still remembers his dayones As a longtime fan itrsquos great to see an album with minimal featured artists it shows you hersquos still got it in him Tracks like Drama got me emotional while Homicide reminded me of the old Divine who had fire in his belly and aggression on the tip of his tongueWe want moreShafi Shaikh 28 rapperI started my initiative Street Hip Hop which hosts opentoall cyphers across Mumbai after listening to Divine rap in the early 2010s Divine is back in business but you really expect something exceptional from a studio album A few songs like Saucy and Tequila Dance featuring Hanumankind will definitely blow up soon but younger rappers seem to agree that there could have been more experimentation beyond two or three genres We wish he dabbled in genres like Drill and Old School Grime mdash he has the voice for it Right now we have our eyes on the upcoming music videosStudio talkMC Altaf below from Divinersquos rap crew Gully Gang takes us behind the scenes of ABCD from the new albumWe the crew often meet at Vivian bhairsquos home studio in Bandra to catch up and share ideas The atmosphere is such that artistes walk in and out of the studio where they feel completely at home One of those days he played me a new catchy verse he had written As we sat and listened I wrote a few lines on my phonersquos notes app and he put me on the mic Next we got rapper Sammohit from the crew into the studio We would take turns writing and recording on the go Thatrsquos how ABCD naturally came into beingIt is a special track because it marks a reunion of the Gully Gang boys after almost three years We would often discuss how a collaborative authentic track like this was long overdue Irsquom glad it has struck a chord with listenersMy top picks from albumThe album features nods to Lorna Cordeiro PICS COURTESYWIKIMEDIA COMMONS INSTAGRAM1 Homicide Reminds me of the old Divine2 Drama It was the last in line to be produced but it cuts deep with its emotional undertones3 Jungle Juice A fresh relook at the rapperrsquos Goan roots packaged in a Detroitinspired beatDid you hear thatKeep an ear out for these cool Easter Eggs in the new albumAR Rahmangtgt Is that Lorna The track Jungle Juice opens with Goarsquos music icon Lorna Cordeiro singing her Konkani hit Urak At the launch event on December 18 the rapper admitted that getting Lorna on a track has been a longtime dreamgtgt Aarey calling Coinciding with the ongoing leopard menace in the city and its suburbs Divine recalls his escapades in Aarey Colony in the same track The rapper talks of tales of leopards while cruising with his ganggtgt Sounds like Sholay RD Burmanrsquos 1975 hit Mehbooba Mehbooba from Sholay lays the background to track 9 You amp Igtgt Rahman tribute AR Rahmanrsquos popular tune Kehna Hi Kya from Bombay 1990 gets a nod from the rapper in Boom Bonus