Mumbai: Warner Music India has struck an exclusive distribution agreement with Sky Digital India, the country’s fastest-growing Punjabi music content consortium and aggregator. Distribution of Sky Digital’s repertoire outside India will be handled by ADA, Warner’s independent artist and label services division, while Warner Music India will handle distribution within the country.
Sky Digital India is home to some of the country’s biggest Punjabi music stars including Jaani, B Praak, Mankirt Aulakh, Gippy Grewal, Sunanda Sharma, Sidhu Moosewala and Happy Raikoti to name a few. Sky Digital also manages premium Punjabi content-based YouTube channels with more than 15 million subscribers, making it the third largest Punjabi YouTube channel collective, with top videos on the site racking up more than 500 million views.
The company currently aggregates releases from more than 42 Punjabi labels, two leading mainstream independent Hindi labels, and some top regional labels specialising in Haryanvi and Bhojpuri music – two of the fastest-growing regional languages in India after Punjabi.
The deal will see Warner Music India help to grow Sky Digital’s market share in India, currently estimated at around one per cent nationally, by establishing a presence for its artists and distributed label content on additional digital music services.
Jay Mehta, Managing Director, Warner Music India, says: “The Punjabi music scene is absolutely exploding at the moment and Sky Digital’s artists already have a huge fanbase in India. We’re in a great position to help connect them with even more music fans both here and around the world. This deal is a key milestone in the development of Warner Music’s presence in India.”
Gurkaran Dhaliwal, Managing Director, Sky Digital India, adds: “It is highly exhilarating for Sky Digital to be in partnership with Warner Music. We’re excited about the possibilities for our entire region of North India to engage in the worldwide music industry. Through this deal with Warner Music, and the indomitable strength and scale that this region carries, we can expand together and achieve great success.”
Eliah Seton, President, Independent Music and Creator Services, Warner Music, concludes: “There’s increasing interest in Punjabi music globally, ignited by diaspora communities in countries such as the US and Canada who’ve helped introduce it to a wider audience. ADA is proud to represent Sky Digital India’s amazing catalogue to a worldwide audience.”
Modern Punjabi music has its roots in the 1980s, as artists switched from playing folk instruments to harnessing modern production techniques. The Bhangra sound was also heavily used in Bollywood movies, spreading its popularity across India. Artists in the Punjabi diaspora in countries such as Canada, the UK and US started to blend in other influences from hip-hop, R&B and reggae with Bhangra beats.
