Rapping for Social Change

Hip-hop artist Deepa Unnikrishnan performs internationally, makes music for Bollywood, and serves as the editor-in-chief for a South Asian hip-hop news source. (Photograph courtesy Deepa Unnikrishnan)

Mumbai-based hip-hop artist Deepa Unnikrishnan, popularly known as Dee MC, has won rap battles and recorded hard-hitting tracks in multiple languages. She has broken ground as a trailblazing woman in a musical style often dominated by men. In April 2024, she explored new territory by traveling to the United States as part of the U.S. Department of State’s International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) on “Hip Hop and Civic Engagement.”

Along with artists and educators from 21 other countries, Unnikrishnan visited Washington, D.C., New York City, Raleigh in North Carolina, and other American communities to learn about the past, present and future of hip-hop. The participants learned about hip-hop’s evolution from an underground music movement, born in the Bronx borough of New York City in the 1970’s, to one of the world’s most popular and powerful genres. They also explored hip-hop’s ability to speak hard truths, empower marginalized communities and inspire social change.

Cross-pollination of talent

Unnikrishnan was born in Kerala and grew up on the outskirts of Mumbai. She first discovered hip-hop as a teenager and was an avid break-dancer before she started rapping.

“I used to write poems in school and had a knack for rhythm due to my training in Bharatanatyam, through which I’ve been on stage since I was 5 years old,” says Unnikrishnan. “I was uploading cover songs of artists like Nicki Minaj, Jay-Z, and Lil Wayne on YouTube in 2011. Soon, someone introduced me to the hip-hop community of India, and that inspired me to write my own raps,” she remembers. “Then there was no turning back.”

Unnikrishnan began penning her own rap lyrics in 2012, and her career has exploded since then. She performs internationally, makes music for Bollywood, and serves as the editor-in-chief for DesiHipHop.com, a South Asian hip-hop news source.

Rap and impact

Unnikrishnan says her music reflects both her personal journey and social issues that impact local and global communities. Some of her songs are serious, while others are “just for fun,” she says. Her music carries messages of female empowerment—”feelings “of being strong, independent, beautiful, quirky and a world leader,” she continues. “Since the pandemic, my music has become heavily introspective and more about mental health. The songs I released before 2020 were more about social empowerment, politics and feminism.”

Unnikrishnan first learned about the IVLP after being nominated by the U.S. Consulate General Mumbai. “It was an honor to be invited by the U.S. State Department to represent my country and learn firsthand about hip-hop culture in its birthplace,” she says. “It’s been an opportunity of a lifetime and I hope to continue contributing to the development of the Indian hip-hop community.”

For Unnikrishnan, the trip to the United States was a new and fascinating experience. She and her fellow IVLP participants got to meet with leaders, educators, music professionals and regular citizens alike, and learn how American politicians used “hip-hop as a tool of communication and civic engagement,” she says. “It was refreshing to see the revolutionary and educational side of hip-hop, as opposed to the regular glitz and glamor we see in showbiz.”

Unnikrishnan has returned from the program with a strong urge to develop her own hip-hop community in India. South Asian communities are too disconnected from the roots of hip-hop culture adopted from African American artists, she says, “hence the focus is more on aspects like the rich and famous lifestyle—as opposed to the grassroots movement that it was meant to be, to empower those who are the most oppressed in the system.”

Unnikrishnan believes it’s crucial to share her insights with others. “I am always very grateful for the opportunity to connect with the global community of artists,” she continues. “I truly believe that art, science and food are the three things humans have gotten right. And if you find yourself working in any of these fields then you should consider yourself really lucky.”

Michael Gallant is a New York City-based writer, musician and entrepreneur.

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