"I realised how much that song meant to South Asians"
Rapper Sliime hopes to be an inspiration for the UK’s Bengali population.
He burst onto the scene in 2023 with ‘Lehenga’, which was streamed millions of times on TikTok.
His new track, ‘Bengali’, builds on his first hit with lyrics referencing his identity and heritage.
It has been playlisted by Radio 1Xtra, featuring alongside the likes of Kendrick Lamar and Skepta.
Sliime stated that it is a huge moment.
He told BBC Asian Network News: “I would’ve never expected to actually be acknowledged, as a South Asian, by the wider audience.
“But it just shows that it’s possible.”
Sheffield native Sliime, who is never pictured without his signature face covering, said the success of ‘Lehenga’ was initially “really overwhelming”.
But performing the song at big events and hearing from fans about it showed that ‘Lehenga’ was resonating with people.
The success has made Sliime want to celebrate his heritage in his follow-up track ‘Bengali’.
He said: “Before that, I wasn’t really catering my music to the South Asian audience.
“But then once I realised how much that song meant to South Asians, I realised what I needed to do.”
Sliime admitted that he “didn’t really grow up around a lot of South Asians” and only started to explore his background more recently.
According to government data, just under 650,000 people in the UK identified as Bangladeshi, which is about 1% of the whole population.
The rapper said: “We’ve been here for like half a century. I just feel like it’s not in the spotlight.
“But that’s what I’m here for.”
‘Bengali’ references the stigma associated with South Asian people moving to the UK.
Sliime said: “The stereotype people say is that we take jobs. But really and truly we’re making jobs.
“We’re looked at as the complete opposite. I just really felt like people need to know that.”
He hopes his feature on the 1Xtra playlist will introduce new audiences to Bengali culture and that he’ll inspire up-and-coming rappers.
Sliime added: “I’m stuck in between showing the rest of the world what we’re about but also representing people that are growing up just like me, making sure they’re not feeling left out.
“Because it’s common with South Asians – we all grew up feeling like we had to fit in.
“I’m trying to make sure our kids, our grandkids, don’t have to do that.
“When they see people that look like them, grew up the same, it just means so much to people.”
Listen to ‘Lehenga’
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