Sombre tune by Laure ft. Sabin Rai on trending

By Mannu Shahi

Born on June 25, 1989, in Pokhara, Ashish Rana, better known by his stage name Laure, is a rapper/singer/songwriter who has also developed as a prominent emcee, actor and judge of the Nepali reality show Himalaya Roadies. The musician escalated to fame after partaking in the iconic rap-oriented Nepali YouTube series Raw Barz; Laure was the most searched Nepali celebrity on Google in the year 2013. 

Discovering an affection for fast-paced rhythmically driven poetry since grade 6, the rapper debuted in the Nepali music industry with his 2012 single ‘Mero Solta’ featuring Gunace. Though he had previously released singles like ‘Case no. 420’ and ‘Haude’, his third publication enticed the audience with its storyline and powerful delivery.

A few singles later, Laure dropped his sophomore album “Chup Laag” in July 2017 under his own record label ‘The Bad Kompany’, consisting of five tracks: ‘Banawati’, ‘Saathi Ho’, ‘Nephop Ko Bato’, ‘Superraga’ and the title track. This was followed by his collaboration with American DJ Diplo, Danish singer MØ and Bipul Chhetri on the single ‘Stay Open’ as a part of a Tuborg Open Sessions series.

Around the same time, the rapper collaborated with prominent music producer Rohit Shakya and emcee Aidray to publish his 2017 banger movie soundtrack ‘Dui Rupaiya’. Subsequent to this Laure was super busy with performances, his association with Himalaya Roadies and other acting projects.  

And, after a break of four years, the rapper released a sarcastic humorous collaboration titled ‘La Hai, La Hai’ ft. Kavi G and Dj AJ in July 2021.  This was followed by his official Himalaya Roadies soundtrack, ‘Feri Ayeum’ released in October 2021. His July 2022 anti-drug monologue ‘Birami’ featuring Rohit Shakya in both audio and video works shows a commendable job of the arrangement enhancing the overall composition.

This was followed by his February 2023 vulnerable low-fi release ‘Tei Kta Ho’ featuring Lil Rock on music production and Rajiv Sherchan on video works, the entire song was written, recorded and shot with a 24-hour time limitation. And the past Tuesday, September 26, the emcee published an official lyric video for his recent single from his collaborative discography featuring none other than the rock legend Sabin Rai on co-vocal duties. 

‘Maun’ currently #14 on Trending for music according to the Nepal-moderated YouTube broadcast, escalated the charts within a couple of days of its release.  A presentation of Bad Kompany, the music is produced/mixed/mastered by Adam Le Sheriff, recorded at Pulse Studios and the visuals are edited by Shusil and Anish KC. 

Laure describes this sombre entry as, “A tune trying to portray the story of this couple facing the tyranny of the society as a consequence of their teenage pregnancy, unmarried status, economic and social differences.” The narrator is a young boy, deeply in love yet entirely drenched in this dilemma persuaded to him by his social conditioning. Thus, the song sheds light on this issue that concerns many individuals and their real-life events, hoping this piece will function as a social message helping spread awareness related to similar circumstances.”

Both Sabin Rai and Laure’s followers have been psyched since the release of this subdued collaboration, so check out the single in case you haven’t already.