Singaporean Rapper Yung Raja Talks Fashion, Identity And Growing Up In Little India
The rising star partners with IHG Hotels & Resorts for a specially curated experience at Holiday Inn Singapore Little India
Hip-hop stars often come up from nothing and out of nowhere; their unexpected arrival is what makes them feel like a breath of fresh air in an often one-dimensional music industry. But for Singapore's hottest hip-hop hitmaker Yung Raja, everything he's achieved in his career thus far he owes to his upbringing and his hometown. The globe-trotting artist was recently named to Forbes' 30 Under 30 Asia list and is now partnering with IHG Hotels & Resorts to create a new, Singapore-specific experience at Holiday Inn Singapore Little India available to guests from 21 November 2022 to 31 January 2023.
First launched in the U.S. with GRAMMY award-winning artist Jazmine Sullivan and former world number one tennis champ Andy Roddick, Yung Raja is the latest addition to IHG Hotels & Resorts' global marketing campaign 'Guest How You Guest.' It's since launched worldwide, with actor Golf Pichaya representing Thailand at Hotel Indigo Bangkok Wireless Road, and actress-model Ninh Duong Lan Ngọc representing Vietnam at InterContinental Hanoi Westlake. For his rendition of 'Guest How You Guest,' Yung Raja has curated a hotel stay full of the things he likes best, and which reflect the unique blend of cultural influences in his music. From savouring the artist's go-to traditional snacks to wearing his favourite flowers, guests will be able to live like Yung Raja does for a day, with rooms starting at S$388.
Read ahead as we catch up with the artist on what else he's up to these days, as well as more information on this special partnership.
Hip-hop has been a part of my life since I was 10. I’ll never forget the first time I heard rap music. In 2017, the stars aligned and I met Fariz Jabba for the first time; the rest was history! We met at his house in 2017 and that very first encounter sparked us to make music together and brought us to where we are today.
Most definitely. Being a hip-hop artist helped with this process because culturally, hip-hop is all about authentic storytelling in your own voice. Music is a medium that connects me to people who listen to my music. It is a never-ending journey because you’re learning, evolving and growing constantly. I’ve always been a proud Singaporean so I take great pride in letting everyone I cross paths with know about my city and heritage. Little India is my hood and so rich in culture - there is no doubt that it plays a big contributing factor to both my identity and music. My affinity to the locale was also one of my main reasons for collaborating with IHG Hotels & Resorts for its Guest How You Guest campaign.
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My mom always told me “Aal paathi, aadai paathi” which directly translates to "the human being is half, the outfit is the other half." I come from a family of mostly women that love fabric, colours, and jewellery. When I was a kid, my sisters would play dress-up with me. Growing up in a household like that made me enjoy rocking different looks and experimenting with different unconventional styles. As an artist, I feel that fashion goes hand in hand with my artistry in the form of aesthetics and self-representation. Fashion, Film, Music and Art have always worked hand in hand and are all aspects I take into consideration to portray my unique self to the world. I’m all for experiential and fluid interpretations of fashion and that openness has allowed me great opportunities to work with several different brands with a very different style. These exploratory experiences inspire me!
I’m so proud of my neighbourhood that it almost feels like I’m the unofficial ambassador of Little India - so this collaboration with IHG Hotels & Resorts and Holiday Inn Singapore Little India is truly close to my heart. In curating this unique experience together with my friends at IHG, I was able to inject a bit of me and show how I personally like to guest too. It’s a nice bonus that people can book this experience too, but ultimately it just makes me really happy to contribute to a campaign that I feel true to and I really align with IHG’s belief that we should celebrate all our individuality - even in how we travel - and that when people are cared for, they feel free to be themselves and gain the most from their travel experience.
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