Apache Indian

Biography

Steven Kapur (born 11 May 1967), known by the stage name Apache Indian, is a British singer-songwriter and reggae DJ, who had a series of hits during the 1990s. He is best known for the 1993 song "Boom Shack-A-Lak×Boom Shack-A-Lak1992 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 4 tracksA1Boom Shack-A-Lak (edit)3:48A2Boom Shack-A-Lak (instrumental)3:48B1Boom Shack-A-Lak4:31B2Warning4:39".

Life and career

Born into a family of Punjabi Indians, Kapur was raised in Handsworth, Birmingham, a racially mixed area with large Black and Asian communities, and home of reggae bands such as Steel Pulse. By the early 1980s, he was working with local sound systems and grew dreadlocks. By the mid-1980s, he had begun to make a name for himself as a dancehall deejay. Kapur recorded his first single in 1990, "Movie Over India", under the moniker Apache Indian, and it was picked up by the reggae distributor Jet Star. The track mixed ragga and bhangra sounds and was popular among audiences of both genres. Two further singles followed in a similar vein, "Chok There×Chok There1993 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 4 tracks1Chok There3:402Chok There (Bombay Mix)7:253Movin' On4:034Chok There (Miromix)7:01" and "Don Raja", bringing him to the attention of major labels, and in 1992, he signed with Island Records.
With the collaboration of his cousins Simon & Diamond, Kapur introduced a new hybrid sound of bhangra called bhangragga, or bhangramuffin, with his 1993 debut album, No Reservations×No Reservations4 May 1993 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 15 tracks1Don Raja (Prelude)0:242Chok There4:253Fe Real5:044Fix Up4:265Aids Warning4:236Guru3:507Wan' Know Me4:098Come Follow Me4:439Don't Touch4:0610Arranged Marriage4:3311Drink Problems4:2712Move Over India4:1513Magic Carpet4:0114Badd Indian4:3315Don Raja4:22, recorded in Jamaica and produced by Simon & Diamond, Phil Chill, Robert Livingston, Bobby Digital, and Sly Dunbar. This was followed by Make Way for the Indian (produced by Sly & Robbie, the Press, Mafia & Fluxy, Pandit Dineysh, and Chris Lane), which featured rapper Tim Dog and spawned the hit "Boom Shack-A-Lak×Boom Shack-A-Lak1992 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 4 tracksA1Boom Shack-A-Lak (edit)3:48A2Boom Shack-A-Lak (instrumental)3:48B1Boom Shack-A-Lak4:31B2Warning4:39". By 1997, Kapur had parted ways with Island, and his next album, Real People×Real People1997 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 13 tracks1Independent Girl4:592Lovin'5:273Real People5:064Jump Up4:485About Life3:516India (A.I.F.)6:087Raag Ragga7:338Rajah3:369Lovin' (Bhangra Flava)5:3810Independent Girl (Vichola mix)7:3311Lovin' (Master of Sound club mix)6:3112Real People (John '00' Fleming club mix)5:4813Jump Up (Tony de Vit Trade mix)7:05, was released by Warner Bros. Sweden.
His single "Om Namaha Shivaya" is included on the 2004 Putumayo World Music compilation album World Reggae, a collection of reggae tracks performed by artists from around the world.
In 2013, he sang a song on the soundtrack of the Indian film Iddarammayilatho. That year, he released the album It Is What It Is×It Is What It Is5 September 2013 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 12 tracks1Girls Dem Fiyah3:112If I Can't Have You (Charlie Hype remix)3:053Loye Loye3:214One Night3:435Forever Gyal4:036Birds & Bees4:137Celebrate3:058Champion Sound3:419In da Morning3:4110Hands Up3:3711Birds & Bees (The Placementz remix)3:2412If I Can't Have You3:34 through Universal India. Its first single, "Celebrate", was a collaboration with Canadian pop singer Raghav and producer Jim Beanz.
In 2018, Kapur co-hosted the Brit Asia TV Music Awards with Preeya Kalidas.
Kapur performed during the closing ceremony for the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.

Apache Indian Music Academy

In November 2013, Kapur opened the Apache Indian Music Academy at South and City College, in his hometown of Handsworth.