Musicians must invest in music: Singer-composer Srinivas

His quiet, yet resolute manner is what strikes you when you speak with singer and composer Srinivas. The versatile singer, who gave some big hits like Azhagae Sugama from Parthale Paravasam, Yaare Neenu Cheluve from Kushalave Kshemave and Kaise Hai Yeh from Dil Chahta Hai, is excited about his debut album, Timeless Classics, which was released recently.

The album is a unique offering of Mehdi Hassan ghazals. “I have been listening to ghazals for the past 25 years and Mehdi Hassan undoubtedly is one of my favourite singers. He was a huge inspiration and that’s one of the reasons behind this album,” says Srinivas, who took almost a year to complete work on the same.
Speaking about his choice of inspiration, he says, “I was keen on doing Hassansaab’s works. I’ve grown up listening to his songs and every creation of his tells a story. I’ve learnt a lot just by listening to them and this is the only way I can give back to my master.”

Considering the fact that albums are now not doing too well in the market, does it bother him? “Be it any genre — albums aren’t doing too well. Nobody wants to invest in music anymore. The musicians create music and it should be them who invest in producing good music,” Srinivas suggests.

He is also upbeat about his composition for the brand Comfort Cloth world music video. The two animated characters have an interesting music video to its credit. “Though I’ve composed several jingles, working for this was quite a different experience. Since the video will be released in all languages, I had to keep in mind the demographics and tastes of a lot of people,” he informs.

The singer, who works closely with AR Rahman as a vocal supervisor, has loads to share about the legend. “Working with him is the best thing that has ever happened to me. It was he who motivated me into composing. As a matter of fact, I became a better singer after I took charge of vocal supervision,” he states.