“Let's end wage inequality. 'Pay Day 71' is my favourite video to date.”
‘Pay Day 71’ is Shah’s latest release which continues his unique Day of Shah audio-visual series.
Released on October 11, 2016, the song touches on the sensitive issue of the gender wage gap.
‘Pay Day 71’ follows Shah’s 2016 releases of ‘Rookie Card’, ‘Don’t Do It Mandela’, and ‘Riding Shotty With God’.
The music video to ‘Pay Day 71’ also follows on from those of his previous releases. Shah’s latest track is the fourth installment in his exceptional audio-visual series.
Excitingly, though, ‘Pay Day 71’ does not mark the end of Shah’s cinematic series as there are two videos left.
DESIblitz speaks exclusively to Shah and the New York music producer, Eddy Nunez, about the hit song.
Shah – ‘Pay Day 71’
‘Pay Day 71’ refers to how women are being paid just 71% of what men earn for the same work.
In an ever-developing world, it is sad that women are yet to be completely equal with men. However, Shah uses his powerful lyrics and rap to touch upon the sensitive issue.
Shah tells DESIblitz: “For artists like me, that have strong lyrics, the key is to embed a message in the music without preaching.”
The New York-based mixing engineer, Eddy Nunez, who is working closely with Shah, adds more.
Eddy says: “It would have been easy for Shah to write a pop song because the beat [to ‘Pay Day 71’] was so addictive. However, he still managed to embed a really important message in the lyrics. His commitment to using music to speak about important issues, without losing his mainstream appeal, is why he’s so unique.”
But can ‘Pay Day 71’ really help such a major issue?
Shah tells DESIblitz exactly what he’s trying to achieve with the song. He says: “In general, life is harder for a woman than for a man. I touch on this issue because a lot of men don’t recognize this. Just being aware of the problem obviously doesn’t resolve it, but I do think it allows men to better understand the situation that women face.”
You can watch the official music video to ‘Pay Day 71’ here:
What next for Shah?
Shah was recently named as one of the World’s Top 10 Desi rappers. His release of ‘Pay Day 71’ will only boost him further, but what will be next for him?
Speaking exclusively to DESIblitz, Shah says:
“This is a really exciting time because we’re flooded by opportunity. We are an incredible team who can keep doing it ourselves, but we’re not oblivious to this buzz surrounding us. I do want things to go global as soon as possible, so we’re taking a deeper look at the opportunities knocking on the door.”
His unique Day of Shah audio-visual series is due to contain six music videos. With ‘Pay Day 71’ only being the fourth installment, there are excitingly two more to come.
So, be sure to keep a look out for the remaining songs and videos.
Day of Shah Audio-Visual Series
Shah’s manager, Elizabeth Cleveland, says: “Let’s end wage inequality. [‘Pay Day 71’ is] my favourite video to date.” But is it your favourite too?
You can enjoy all of Shah’s audio-visual series so far with the DESIblitz playlist below.
Be sure to appreciate the full cinematic experience of Shah’s four tracks to date, including ‘Pay Day 71’. Also remember that there are excitingly two more songs and videos to come and complete the series.
You can also click here to find out even more about Shah and his debut EP in an exclusive DESIblitz interview with the rapper.