The famous rapper L-FRESH THE LION, who otherwise goes by the name Sukheep Singh grew up oscillating between languages much like many kids born to migrant parents. While speaking Punjabi at home, he quickly shifted to English in the outside world. Sharing his experience, L-FRESH said,
“Growing up as a kid in southwest Sydney ... if you spoke another language, or had an accent, that wasn't cool. That was something that was made fun of, not celebrated.”
Pressure to cloak up in the ‘other’ language
The pressure to fit in, to "be cool," had an effect on L-FRESH. He avoided using his mother tongue, Punjabi, and progressively lost his fluency in it. As he says, losing the connection with Punjabi was quite painful for him. Further adding that language is an essential aspect of Sikhism, he says, "As a Sikh, language is very important to us. It's how we connect to our music; it's how we connect to our faith."
On one hand, the loss of language affected L-FRESH personally, it also impacted his relationship with his grandmother. He shared that she would always laugh whenever he spoke in Punjabi. It was not as if she was making fun of him, but rather an adorable gesture. He said that whenever he mispronounced or spoke broken Punjabi, she always knew what he was trying to say. Each time, she lovingly corrected him. For L-FRESH, these moments were both bitter and sweet. The joy he experienced from having his grandmother laugh was tainted by the shame he felt for himself.
Colonialism, partition, and the loss of language
L-FRESH’s detachment from his ancestral vernacular was caused by several factors, not the least of which was the influence of his peers. He claims that previous generations of Sikhs had experienced the same loss of language that he is now experiencing. When the British colonized India as a region, one of their goals was unquestionably to disassociate the local population from their native tongue, culture, and religious tenets.
Following colonial rule, the area of Punjab, which is considered to be the cradle of Sikhism, was divided between India and Pakistan in 1947 due to the partition of British India. According to L-FRESH, this divide prompted many Sikhs to lose contact with cultural customs, especially the tradition of raag (or raga) music, which is essential to the practice of religious devotion.
L-FRESH is a firm believer in the proverbial adage that "the Guru is found within the music." Amrit is something that can only be attained by going through this particular trial. It is through this practice that we can experience happiness, calmness, and the purest form of connection to a higher force.
Rap as a 'savior'
Interestingly, it was music tradition and culture from the opposite side of the planet that brought L-FRESH back to his Sikh and Punjabi roots. When he was a teenager, he felt like his life was falling apart, and he turned to hip-hop music for solace. It doesn't matter who you are or where you come from; music has the capacity to raise you and give you power.
L-FRESH listened to a lot of music, the majority of it was created by young African American men from underprivileged homes who were either living in hardship or climbing out of poverty but were still strong about who they were and what they stood for. He found that he had a connection with the artist Tupac Shakur and when he dug deeper into the rapper's catalogue and personal background, he learned about the rapper's family history. He learned about Tupac's mother, Afeni Shakur, who was a member of the Black Panther party, and then he learned about the Civil Rights movement and the rallies that were going on.
L-FRESH says. "All of that stuff made me realize, 'Well hang on, this battle against oppression is not too dissimilar from the stories my dad told me about our people. We must stand on the side of the oppressed,”
Sikh upbringing intertwined with L-FRESH’s music
Egalitarianism has been an essential component of Sikhism since its origins in Punjab in the late 1400s. Guru Nanak, the faith's founder, was a vocal opponent of the caste system that existed in the region. He taught that all individuals, regardless of race or gender, were on equal footing. L-FRESH reports that ever since that time, Sikhs have been fighting against violations of human rights. Sikhs, as a community, have ingrained within themselves the idea that they must not be silent and that they must use their lives to do good in the world.
L-FRESH says, “ We must always stand on the side of those who are being oppressed and marginalized. And so, hip hop music ... gave me permission to feel proud about that.”
L-FRESH, who is now in his early 30s, intends to inspire a new generation of Australians, especially those from migrant and First Nations origins, who may be battling with the same identity issues he faced.
His album South West is named after the neighborhood in Sydney's South West that he grew up in. According to L-FRESH, this is a region in which diversity isn't simply a slogan; rather, "it's just our every day." He sees the album as a dialogue with his 15-year-old self, the adolescent who "wanted to be the best rapper." The conversation is about embracing one's uniqueness and finding a purpose in life.
L-FRESH is shown in SOUTH WEST to be at his most honest, composing stories of his experience as a second-generation migrant kid existing between two cultures and the continued impacts of Australia's innately racist culture. It is an experience that focuses on listening as well as politics, and it offers a human perspective on the decolonization process. Sharing his views on the same, he said that it's such an Australian story.
“I want to create interesting stuff that kids ... can listen to and feel inspired by their own culture, and want to learn more about their heritage and where they're from."