10 Things We Love About: Pritt

Entering the new year as a Spotify chart-topper, South London’s Pritt is set on changing the game in 2023. With a style that blends R&B with her Carnatic training, Pritt’s artistry is not only a form of self-expression, it is also how she educates and makes an impact. We recently caught up with Pritt to learn a little bit more about who she is and her musical journey.

Photography by Abynaya Kousikan

We love how distinctive your sound is.

Why do you think the Carnatic elements of your music intrigue people so much?

I guess people are intrigued because it’s South Indian classical training, which uses a different scale. Also, it’s so unique and underrepresented that it makes you stand out and it makes people genuinely want to know more about it when they do hear it.

I actually hated those lessons growing up because my mum would force me to go. But as I got older, I really started to appreciate it a lot more because this sound carries a real sense of nostalgia for me and it’s just beautiful.

We love how unapologetic you are about being Tamil.

Why is representing your Tamil heritage though your artistry so important to you?

It’s so important because when I started out in the music industry, I noticed the whole ‘being ethnically ambiguous’ thing and that didn’t sit well with me. I know who I am and who my parents taught me to be, so for someone to turn around and give me an identity that isn’t mine didn't feel right to me. I’m Eelam Tamil and given that our community has already been ostracised within Sri Lanka, the last thing that I'd want to do is to be ethnically ambiguous in the Western world. I can actually make a mark and make a change with my platform, so why not use it to educate people about who I am and support creatives with similar backgrounds to mine?

We love that you’re a proud South London babe.

Is singing with your accent a conscious decision?

I actually don’t know. I think that I sing in an American accent by accident sometimes, but when it comes to songwriting, I am very much South London—I write how I speak and then tweak it later. And if it’s not in the song itself, then it definitely comes out through my demeanour, video aesthetics and my online presence because that is a huge part of me and I wouldn't want to change that for the world. I don’t think I could even if I wanted to.

We love your cover of ‘Unakkul Naane’.

How did you react to kicking off the year with your first Tamil cover topping Spotify's Global Viral Charts?

It felt surreal because as soon as the new year started, I got a call from my manager and a few texts came through asking me, “Have you seen this?” I was so confused about what was going on, but then I looked on Spotify and saw that the song was a new entry and at #1. dilushselva (the producer) and I were on the phone asking each other, “What are we supposed to even do with this information? What happens now?” I know the next step is to create more Tamil music in the future, but I need to think about things a bit tactically because I don’t want to box myself in. I don’t want to be known as just ‘Pritt, the cover artist’, there is so much more to me than that. And most importantly, I only want to release music that I like.

This has definitely been a huge milestone in my career. I didn't even prepare myself for it. It wasn't on my vision board or anything. The song was just supposed to be a wholesome gift for my parents. But I guess since this has happened, the sky’s the limit.

We love that you aim to empower women through your music.

How did music empower you growing up?

Music has been therapy for me. Music allowed me to express what was on my mind without having to confront people or certain situations. When I was writing songs, I felt like I could get a lot off my chest without hurting people’s feelings or saying too much and I could just sort through my issues in a different way.

We love that you embrace being human.

When did you recognise that there’s power in your vulnerability?

When you appear to be a strong independent woman, people just act like that comes with no flaws, just perfection. However, the reality is that life comes in waves and one thing or person could change your entire perspective on life. So when I started to really look at my life and my own mental health during COVID, I realised that being vulnerable was the way forward. I am far from perfect and I want that to be clear to everyone who looks up to me. With ‘C U Win’, I wanted to take a positive approach to vulnerability by highlighting the importance of having that one person or a small circle around you that genuinely supports you and keeps you afloat. I wanted to show gratitude to those people since we are all human and we all have or will struggle in some way.

We love your artwork and visuals.

Tell us about the behind-the-scenes of the creative process as an independent artist.

Although I hate hustle culture, I can't help but get caught up in it sometimes. I used to think that I could do anything and everything, so I'd be my own graphic designer, my own videographer and everything else. But over time, I’ve realised that while you can have many hats, you'll also burn out very quickly. That’s when I started collaborating with people and sharing ideas with my friends. For example, one of my really close friends Ophelia dos Santos created the artwork for my 2nd EP Transparency by hand. I just sent her a bunch of photos from when I was younger and of my family and she embroidered them. She even embroidered the Tamil writing, which is insane because just writing in Tamil is really hard. So I guess it’s just about utilising who and what is around you. I am also a huge fan of my close circle’s work and I can’t imagine anything better than working with a team of my own people.

We love that you host your own radio show on BBC Asian Network alongside being an artist.

What’s been your favourite moment so far?

I think it’s probably just getting the job. I didn’t even apply for it. It just happened. When I was speaking to the people at the time and I told them that I had never done a radio show in my life and I don't like talking that much, but I wouldn’t mind putting people onto good music and they said that was fine. But I’d say that my most flex-worthy moment was interviewing Dhanush. He’s actually one of my favourite Tamil actors so being able to have a conversation with him on Zoom was really cool and no-one can take that away from me.

We love that you enjoy doing collaborations.

Since Frank Ocean is your dream collaboration, which song of his would you have loved to have been a part of making?

I really love ‘Strawberry Swing’ on Nostalgia Ultra. I had it on repeat so much that I knew exactly when all the instruments came in. It was so simple, but so effective, So that’s the song that I would have wanted to be on. I really like ‘Chanel’ too.

We love that you value introspection.

How do you envision yourself evolving this year?

I’m looking forward to some big changes. I’m not sure about what they’ll be yet, but I’d like to do a headline show or have a listening party for example. I know it’s going to be a lot of work and I'm the biggest perfectionist, but it should be interesting. My manager and I really have to sit down and map this all out.

I’d also like to create more short films and show more of the process of how I create music because people are actually really curious about that. I guess I'd like to work on more collaborations and connect with some new people too. I just want to take things to a new level.

Listen to Pritt below!