Information About ™Iraj |
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Iraj Weeraratne is Sri Lanka’s maestro of hip-hop and the island’s new generation star. Going where no local star has gone before, for exaples shout on bbc1 radio @ 1st time in srilankanmusic. Iraj has amazed Sri Lanka’s music moguls through his unprecedented climb to the helm of the island’s entertainment industry. His amazing track record of No.1 singles, a consecutive series of top 10 hits, and last year’s No.1 debut album “Iraj” has made him go beyond a local household name, into an internationally recognized and celebrated icon. In modern Sri Lanka, the phenomenal growth of hip hop culture, and the ability of this music to blend into the island’s cultural and social context, have been catapulted by Iraj’s iconic influence in shaping the interests of this tiny nation’s music tastes. What amazes Sri Lanka’s entertainment analysts most is not how his debut album managed to break the island’s record for the ‘All time fastest-selling’ and ‘Fastest – selling debut’ after it surpassed the all important 100,000 mark in just 4 weeks, but how he was able to sell his "gangsta" beats from the urban to the rural, across age, racial and gender barriers, in this country once known for its ethnic strife, and eternal love for "cheesy" Sinhala and Tamil pop and a local blend of Portuguese music known as Baila. The international attention paid to “Roots” meant that Iraj and his music were now being focused on beyond the shores of his tiny island home. Following the success of his singles “Ill Noize” and “Ahankara Nagare” both in Sri Lanka and in European Asian charts, his next smash hit “J Town Story”, about the hopes and despair of a young boy from the war-torn city of Jaffna in northern Sri Lanka, cracked the neighbouring South Indian Tamil market. His increasing popularity in gigantic India meant that his music was to soon go beyond the South Indian market, capturing the attention of India’s HOM Records and getting his No.1 smash hit with Ranidu - “Ahankara Nagare” featured in their Asian Flava Vol: 01 album and video play on both MTV India and Channel V. Never had this tiny island of just 18 million produced such a star that took his phenomenal name beyond its beautiful beaches. Now with his own radio show on Sri Lanka’s biggest Sinhala radio station Sirasa FM( Re-mix Show with Iraj ), a string of sold-out performances, and new collaborations with local artistes, “Iraj” has become an industry to himself. Iraj's 1st album was one big successful album in srilankan history. his 2nd album and video DVD is going to come soon . I WEAR I-nnovation, I-n style, I-raj presents I-Wear.,., For the first time in the history of Sri Lanka’s entertainment and fashion industry, our very own Maestro of HipHop – Iraj Weeraratne, will be launching his own clothes line. Labelled ‘I – Wear’, the line will be a reflection of Iraj’s musical image and a tribute to his fans for their support and commitment. The range has been designed by some of the most fashionable designers in Sri Lanka and is already in the production line getting ready for an extravagant summer launch event. Iraj and his team confirm that the plan for a clothes line has been in the offing since December 2005. Purely not satisfied with the tremendous musical and cultural influence Iraj’s music has had on Sri Lanka, he is now determined to make an impact on the island’s trends and the increasingly fashion conscious youth. The clothes will be mostly targeted at his young fan base, both male and female, and in recognising that it stretches from the Urban to the Rural – the clothes have all been manufactured at high quality but low cost, with cut pricing techniques adopted in order to make it affordable to all his fans and the fashion conscious. Iraj will be collaborating with ODEL for the production of the clothes line. ODEL has given Iraj and his team tremendous support, encouragement and professional advice in making this project a reality. However, out of town fans should not be disappointed. Although ODEL will be selling the I-Wear range in its fashionable outlets in Colombo, the I-Wear range will also be soon available in both urban and rural centres around the island. Iraj confirms that he wants all his fans to be able to access his range of clothes and appreciates the amazing support he has received from his fans everywhere. Today Iraj has become a source of inspiration to not only breakthrough acts in the music industry but more older performers. His innovative and high quality productions have today set for the benchmark for the industry with this latest spin off one of his many contributions to its development. Probably the most exciting part of the I-Wear range will be its Launch Party, which will follow a massive advertising blitz around the country! The only thing that can be revealed to the public so far is that it will be held most likely in June, just in time for the summer festivities. The event will be held on an extravagant scale open to everyone. The more intricate details are still being kept hush as no one wants to ruin the surprise, but Iraj assures us that it’s something just not to be missed! EXTERNAL LINKS |