"Ragas to Riches." Vivek Agrawal, from an airplane somewhere between Chicago and San Francisco, U.S.A. 23 June 2017.

"Currently loving everything about voice-controlled music with our Amazon Echo."

V doing his thing on the keys. Photo credit: Alok Deshpande & Tawheed Kader.

It All Started When...

I met Vivek back in 2014, when we worked together at Jawbone on all kinds of consumer technology innovations for audio, both on the hardware and software side of things. There were magic tricks like pairing two bluetooth speakers together for portable surround sound and DROP, easily one of the most fun music-related mobile apps I've ever used (this guy from The Next Web liked it too, RIP).

Vivek has an insanely beautiful voice, with a lovely tenor range. I will never forget the first time I heard him cover Justin Timberlake's "Señorita." Floored.

Vivek is a San-Francisco based artist who is currently working on Bollywood-inspired covers of American pop songs. He previously worked with A.R. Rahman (of Slumdog Millionaire fame) in his studios in India.

Photo credit: Alok Deshpande & Tawheed Kader.

What's your passion/hustle/profession?

By day, I’m working on cool audio products with my friends in San Francisco. By eve, I’m trying my best to be a good husband to my wonderful wife, Sangita. And by night, I’m sitting in front of a piano with my laptop and Apogee One, trying to figure out my next track.

What kind of music helps you focus at work?

It has to have a great beat but not too much melody -- otherwise, I get distracted and start singing. 😊 Luckily, I'm terrible at rap, so hip-hop works really well. Here’s something that’s been in my rotation recently.

When you’re winding down?

I usually find myself enjoying light classical music with strings or flutes. Here’s one of my all-time favorites, "Bombay Theme," featuring a flautist I love, Naveen.

Working out?

I usually play one song on repeat whenever I go on a run -- for some reason it keeps me on pace and allows me to focus on enjoying the outside world. Right now that song is "Unforgettable" by French Montana.

Cooking?

Some sort of acoustic playlist to provide some background while I make a mess in the kitchen -- here’s a Spanish guitarist I discovered while I was in Barcelona last year.

Kickin’ it with friends?

Usually a today’s top hits playlist -- while it seems not-so-special, it actually gives me a great pulse into how people feel about current music trends.

What’s your most memorable musical moment? This could be a live show or festival that really stuck with you, meeting a music icon, etc.

I was helping to organize a South Asian music festival at Stanford, and one of my professors convinced my favorite composer, A.R. Rahman, to attend. After spending months planning a tribute concert for him with my a cappella group, my professor offered to let me pick him up from the airport. Little did I know that this would take me to singing on stage at the Hollywood Bowl and composing alongside him in India…

Favourite love song? Slow jam? Between the sheets track?

I’m a huge fan of "Earned It" by The Weeknd. Sure, the lyrics are a bit intense, but he does an amazing job going high and I love the use of orchestras, as they give the track a really full sound.

You need to hype up the crowd at a house party real quick. What do you put on next?

As of May 21, 2017, "Despacito," with the Biebs, of course.

If you were stranded on a desert island with only one album, which would it be?

Future Sex / Love Sounds by Justin Timberlake -- so much diversity of sound in one album that can inspire me with endless amounts of new music for years.

Best format? Cassette tape, CD, iPod, Vinyl, etc.

Currently loving everything about voice-controlled music with our Amazon Echo.

What’s the most prized album/mixtape/musical memento you own? Your home is on fire and this is the only thing you can grab before it all burns down. (Sorry, that one’s grim.)

Sangita created a wall filled with albums that I’ve worked on both in the US and India, but I’d probably go back to my roots with Raagapella’s "Raags to Riches" since that was the first time I ever recorded my voice -- plus, one of the songs on that album is responsible for me meeting Sangita. 😊

Dinner with any artist, dead or alive. They're paying. Whom do you choose?

Justin Timberlake. He’s managed to evolve his sound so much throughout the years, he knows how to perform in front of the audience, he’s done some of my favorite skits on SNL, and in case you can’t tell, I have a very public man-crush on him. As for where we’d eat, I’d have us spend a few hours at Off the Grid going to town on the food trucks.

What's your go-to karaoke jam?

"Find Your Love" by Drake -- it’s hard for me to mess that up regardless of how late we started karaoke. 😜

Merçi, Vivek!

Listen On Pandora Premium*

*mobile-only.

"Ragas to Riches" Track Listing

Justin Timberlake. "Señorita." Justified, Zomba Recording LLC, 2002.
Luis Fonsi, Daddee Yankee, Justin Bieber. "Despacito (Remix)." Despacito (Remix), Universal Music Latin Entertainment under exclusive license to Republic Records (RBMG/Def Jam Recordings), 2017.
Luis Robisco. "Continuará." Tiempos, Fresh Sound Records, 2004.
Justin Timberlake. "What Goes Around.../...Comes Around (Interlude)." FutureSex/LoveSounds, RCA/JIVE Label Group, a unit of Sony Music Entertainment, 2006.
Ed Sheeran. "Shape Of You." ÷ (Deluxe), Asylum Records UK, a division of Atlantic Records UK, a Warner Music Group company, 2017.
Drake. "Controlla." Views, Cash Money Records, 2016.
Panjabi MC. "Beware (Jay-Z Remix)." Blueprint 2.1, Roc-A-Fella Records, 2003.
R Kelly. "Thoia Thoing." The R. In R&B Collection, RCA/JIVE Label Group, a unit of Sony Music Entertainment, 2003.
M.I.A., Missy Elliott. "Bad Girls (N.A.R.S Remix)." Bad Girls (The Remixes), Maya Arulpragasam under exclusive license to Interscope Records, 2012.
Kanye West. "Fade." The Life Of Pablo, G.O.O.D. MUSIC, Def Jam Recordings, 2016.
Drake. "Find Your Love." Thank Me Later, Young Money Entertainment/Cash Money Records, 2010.
The Weeknd. "Earned It." Fifty Shades of Gray Soundtrack, Universal Studios, under exclusive license to Republic Records, a division of UMG Recordings, Inc., 2014.
AR Rahman. "Bombay Theme." Bombay (OST), Universal Music India Pvt. Ltd., 1994.

For more Vivek, check out his music on Spotify and follow him on Soundcloud, Instagram, and Facebook.