Interview
The LiFTED 5: DESI TRILL MUSIC is for the people by the people
Bringing South Asian culture to the mainstream with DESI TRILL MUSIC’s Ty-Ty Smith & Shabz Naqvi
In September of 2023, UMG announced the launch of DESI TRILL MUSIC with the idea to fuse South Asian artists with modern sounds. Run by Ty-Ty Smith, co-founder of Roc Nation, and Shabz Naqvi of the So Solid Crew, DESI TRILL MUSIC has had a year to influence culture with their new sounds. LiFTED got a chance to check in with these music industry heavyweights.
How did the idea for DESI TRILL MUSIC come about?
After years of working in the Hip Hop and R&B space and bringing multicultural music to the forefront, I [Shabz] felt it was finally time to bring South Asian Culture to the mainstream. Being Indian myself but having worked in a diverse musical landscape I knew the fight it would be. Ty-Ty and I had a brief conversation discussing the fact that my daughter Noah [Ty’s niece], has no mainstream representation in today’s world. We want all kids like Noah to live in a future where she can look at artists and see herself. We immediately knew this was our mission and DESI TRILL was born.

How have your previous experiences in music [Ty-Ty with Roc Nation and Shabz with the So Solid Crew] influenced what you are doing with DESI TRILL MUSIC today?
We both know what it feels like NOT to be heard. Our experiences come from a place of frustration, a sound, and culture, all at the same time. We have built movements individually that have been about representation. We are using instinctive approaches in every area to ensure people know this is DESI TRILL, for the people by the people.

Tell the readers at LiFTED a bit about the BROWN IS EVERYWHERE campaign. How did it go? What was the purpose? Was this a one-time thing or will there be sequels?
BROWN IS EVERYWHERE is our global event series which takes place all across the world from India through to Canada, the UK, and many more cities this year. We are on a mission to bring this movement to all corners of the world.
BROWN IS EVERYWHERE is a statement and it’s literal. Indians are the most displaced migrants globally in history. We are screaming that we exist in every corner of the world. Last year, we released our debut EP which introduced songs from all of our signed artists under the umbrella BROWN IS EVERYWHERE, along with music videos for the world to see just how talented they are. There will definitely be sequels coming sooner than you think, as well as an EP.
One artist that LiFTED has featured before is Yung Sammy. What makes him the perfect DESI TRILL MUSIC artist? Who are some other artists you are planning big things for?
At DESI TRILL, we literally epitomize the name. YUNG SAMMY is a perfect example of that. The world is one, and not to sound cliche, but every artist is hand-picked for this exact reason. Everyone we have signed is the future!
What are DESI TRILL MUSIC’s big plans for 2025 and beyond?
DESI TRILL is not a label, it’s a movement, genre, and culture. We will continue to release incredible music, moving into films, animation, fashion, cosmetics, and the rest of the list is a secret! We are not stopping!