MUSIC IS AN EXTENSION OF MY PERSONALITY

INTERVIEW RICKY KEJ, composer

When he was 21, Bengaluru-based Ricky Kej graduated as a dentist. That done, he kept the degree aside, and took to making music. Twenty years later, at 41, he is an internationally acclaimed composer, and the only Indian to win the Grammy thrice. Not just that, Kej is the youngest person of Indian-origin to have ever won the Grammy.

While Kej’s first Grammy was in 2015 for the album Winds of Samsara, seven years later, in 2022, he bagged his second Grammy, along with Scottish American rock legend Stewart Copeland. Recently, Kej won his third Grammy for Divine Tides, which includes nine songs and eight videos featuring artists from around the world.

Edited excerpts from an interview:

Q/ Your third Grammy! Did you expect this?

A/ The nomination itself came as a huge surprise to all of us. It is always very surreal to live through the moment of winning another Grammy. It has been a week now and congratulatory messages are still pouring in from family, friends, and well-wishers. I am extremely grateful for all the love and I am incredibly thankful for having had another opportunity to make my country proud again on the biggest platform in the world for music.

Q/ You were nominated against Christina Aguilera [American singer-songwriter], for a category that cuts across genres. How did that feel?