The multitalented Balan Kash has been a household name in the Malaysian music scene for more than a decade and counting. He is a multilingual award-winning rap musician, singer, songwriter, and performer. Balan has amassed over 20 million listens on digital platforms thus far in his musical career after collaborating with artists like Joe Flizzow, Reshmonu, Anirudh Ravichander, Santesh, and more.
Having successfully tapped into the Kollywood and Tamil entertainment scene, Balan decided to set his sights on releasing ‘Terima Kasih’, his first Malay single for 2022. The upcoming single, which is a Cendana and My Creative grant-produced project, sees Balan collaborating with local Malaysian rocker, Hazama.
Balan’s first Malay single was written together with award-winning songwriting duo, Mambang and Navin ‘Navigator’ Kumar during the height of the Covid pandemic. The chorus to the song came from Balan trying to put his 2 year-old daughter to sleep one night, and the rest they say, is history.
‘’Terima Kasih’ is a raw, honest reflection of my life,” explains Balan. “It means more than just ‘Thank You’ to me. It’s that simple feeling of being able to wake up every day and still get to embrace it all – the good, the bad, the highs and the lows. It’s the sense of peace you get from just being grateful for it all.”
“I’ve seen the amazing work Balan has released over the years,” said Hazama. “I was definitely excited to work together with such a big name in the Tamil music scene. There are so many talented local names that don’t get their fair share of the limelight, just because they don’t sing and perform in Malay – but at the end of the day, we’re all Malaysians, and I hope to see even more cross-language collaborations like this in future.”
The music video for ‘Terima Kasih’ is based on key moments that shaped Balan’s life – from being a struggling indie artiste, to having a whole stadium singing along to his song, ‘Start That Thiruvizha’ at Anirudh’s concert. “It was through my love and passion for music, that I managed to meet and work with my idols and many other talented individuals,” adds Balan. “It was also through years of hustling and working hard for what I love, that I managed to bring food to the table for my family. ‘Terima Kasih’ represents who I am today, and how I know I have done my best not only as an artiste, but as a son, a father, a husband and a friend.”
‘Terima Kasih’ will be released by Believe Music on all major streaming platforms on December 16th. The music video will be released on December 20th on Balan’s music label, Third Eye Music’s YouTube page.
