Bohemia (born Roger David)
Pakistani (Punjabi)-American
Rapper + Music Producer
Website: thepunjabirapper.com
Instagram: @iambohemia
Known as the creator and ‘King of Punjabi Rap’, Bohemia was born in Karachi, Pakistan, and lived in Lahore and Peshawar, Pakistan prior to settling in San Francisco, California at age 14. And just a year after the family moved to the states, Bohemia’s mother passed away from cancer. This unfortunate turn of events led to a dark period in time; not only did Bohemia’s relationship with his father deteriorate, he also dropped out of high school and ran away to Sacramento around 16 years old.
Overcoming trying times could have been impossible, but Bohemia proved otherwise. He leaned on the musical knowledge he gained as a child from his father, and mixed it with his ability to write songs and poetry, to become a full-time musician in Sacramento. As a keyboard player, Bohemia toured and played gigs at cultural and religious events with a local group of musicians, who he also lived with. It was during this time period that Bohemia began experimenting with electronic beat machines and sequencers, and taught his band mates new ways that could enrich their music. This strategy was intended to persuade them to go in a different direction, but Bohemia soon realized that his outlook on music was simply different than theirs.
Another sudden blow struck Bohemia when his closest band mate was murdered, and another deported to India for an unrelated incident. But once again, Bohemia bounced back and continued to play the circuit before moving to Pinole, California in 2001. At this point, Bohemia was about to throw in the towel on his music career, but he made the decision to return to beat making. And then the magic happened – Bohemia started making beats influenced by his love for Tupac and hardcore rap. In addition, he knew that his new style of music and lyrics would speak to other immigrant children who were trying to adapt to life in the United States. But this would be no small feat…writing poetry was one thing, but learning how to enunciate and construct the lyrics in Punjabi was extremely difficult for Bohemia in the beginning. He kept at it with passion, and would go on to debut his first album titled Vich Pardesan de (meaning ‘in the foreign land’) in 2002, which landed in the ‘top 10’ on BBC radio UK. From this exposure, Bohemia was discovered by and signed with universal music group from 2006-2009; and made history by releasing Pesa Nasha Pyar (meaning ‘money, intoxication, love’) – the first full-length Punjabi rap album under a major record label.
With a total of six albums, including: Da Rap Star (2009), Gulabi (2012), Thousand Thought (2012) and skull & bones (2016), Bohemia has been nominated for several awards, including ‘Best International Album’ at the UK Asian Music Awards (2010). He also won ‘Best International Album’ at the PTC Punjabi Music Awards (2013), and has performed on popular Bollywood soundtracks, including Chandni Chowk in China (2009), Desk Boyz (2011) and Faraar (2015), to name a few. Stateside, he has appeared in XXL Magazine and has worked with notable artists, including Snoop Dogg and Jamaican-American Sean Kingston. As of today, Bohemia is independent under his own music label, Kali Denali Music.
In the words of Bohemia: “a Bohemian person doesn’t follow anyone’s path, they find their own way.” Through his journey as an immigrant, and pioneering 'Punjabi Rap' to mainstream recognition, Bohemia’s words are nothing short of his own reality. We look forward to seeing what 2017 has in store!
Interesting fact: in addition to Tupac, Bohemia pulls inspiration from the following celebrated poets: Faiz Ahmed Faiz, Mirza Ghalib and Allama Iqbal.
Sources: Sactown Magazine and The Punjabi Rapper