Naved Shaikh, also known as Naezy was inspired by Sean Paul’s ‘Temperature’, at the age of 13 and then started his rapping journey with a hip-hop collective - The Schizophrenics - formed with his friends in Khalsa College in Mumbai. He shot to fame with his musical video ‘Aafat’ which was a Do-It-Yourself video. Naezy unleashed his frustration about the existing music scene in the video, which was shot entirely on an iPad. It got more than 4.7 lakh views on YouTube. It made Naezy the subject of the documentary Bombay 70 and got him a deal with Only Much Louder (OML), India's biggest alternative culture promoter and management agency.
His story also served as an inspiration for Zoya Akhtar in her new film Gully Boy, and ahead of its release, we look back at Naezy’s best songs:
1. Raaste Kathin
2. Asal Hustle
3. Haq Hai
4. Tehelka
5. Azaad Hu Mai
6. Mere Gully Mein
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)