Frappe Ash was born out of his love for Frappe coffee- “You know Frappe is icy and chill, and so am I,” and Ash was his stage name when he initially started rapping and, of course, because of his love for Pokemon. Like his fun take on his name, his music displays a raw, unparalleled take on life. His stage name has now become a trademark for every budding artist to make a name in Hip-Hop.
Frappe takes pride in coming from a small middle-class army family in Dehra Dun because it taught him to remain humble and motivated him to work harder to expand the Hip-Hop culture from the mainstream metropolitan cities to smaller cities and towns. He came to Delhi for a degree in Architecture, but the city molded him into one of the best artists of his time. During this time, he found Yungsta, a fellow rapper with whom Frappe has formed a duo called FULL POWER. Frappe was introduced to the Spit Dope community through Yungsta, and it became like a family to him; seeing school students, college students, and even corporate employees with such a vibrant power dynamic meet on weekends, perform and share the same passion for Hip-Hop gave him a further drive and inspiration to create music.
He had been a part of the Hip-Hop scene for a while and released a collective mainstream Hip-Hop music; but it was his first album, “Bet You Know,” released in 2019, that put him up the charts; not only as a phenomenal artist but also as an experimental artist with a quirky trademark of his individuality.
All his tracks have a different genre blend—
His intro song “SURMA” ft. Diesby and Priyanka Meher has a combination of trap music with neo-soul with a Garwali hook to it, adding a cultural tribute to his roots. His track “Flex Babe” feat. Yungsta is a musical definition of his idea of “the one”; a song dedicated to flexing love; Frappe pours his heart out about his quest to find a girl who supports him and listens to his favorite artists with him. Some of his lyrics, like “Poori shyam sochu tere baare mei, Pyaalo se yaari hai, Sab tere naam pe utaare hai,” make us believe true love exists in the Gen-Z era.
Whereas his track “Wish you Were Here” feat. Rae, an American singer, and Encore ABJ talk about heartbreak and his struggles to pick up pieces of his broken heart; with the soulful touch of R&B, soulful Pop, and Hip-Hop, the song connects to the listeners on a personal level. The track ends with a voice note of his mom telling him to maintain a distance from people and never allow them to break his true self. Finally, his outro “Bet You Know” feat. Yungsta is a message for his listeners that although it is the end of the album, it is not the end of his musical journey; he still has a lot to offer. It is in this album he found his true self, and each song in the album has a beautiful storyline attached to it. Every song in this album is not only different from each other in terms of genre and versatile mix of features, but the album stands out among mainstream Hip-Hop music.
On the other hand, His second album, “Slambook,” released in 2021, is a musical representation of the slambook we used to fill up when we were kids. In his second album, he talks about love, his dreams and aspirations, his passion for music, and one-sided love. For example, his track, “Dumb Ladke,” is a humorous take on boys who easily fall for so-called mixed signals and one-sided love and end up getting hurt, calling love a vicious game of heartbreak. Whereas another track, “Apni Wali,” talks about being unable to find the girl who supports his vision and support his career as an artist.
He sees Mac Miller, Eminem, and Kanye West as a few of his musical inspirations. He also listens to music spread across various genres- from Jazz to Hip-Hop, and it is this diversity that he tries to encapsulate in each song he releases. With his dream collaborations ranging from Lifafa to A.R Rahman, he can be seen as a love child of various music genres exploding into the world of music. Frappe has collaborated with many artists, notably “Aadat” with Shinigxmi, “Legacy” with Alpha’s World, and “Chaahat” with Raghav and Unfuckman. With every feature, he expands his listener’s base and discography.
All of Frappe’s tracks meld fun, relatable, witty, and take on his life and dreams. Both the album creates a relatable emotional experience and musical connect with the listeners, applauding Frappe for reflecting his vulnerable self to the world. His albums are like a mirror reflection of himself to the world, his flaws, his values, and the best and worst of him. His lyrics, instrumentals, and music videos charmingly blend, creating a chronicle in itself. He advises younger artists to keep making music, stay consistent with their dreams and express themselves.
“Hip-Hop is a hustle, a lifestyle; once you become a performer and have a hunger to perform your music, you will not care much about money but more of feeding that hunger inside you and unleashing the rush.” – Frappe Ash.
