| Yung Raja | |||||||||
| Birth Name: | Rajid Ahamed | ||||||||
| Birth Date: | 14 December 1995 | ||||||||
| Birth Place: | Singapore | ||||||||
| Education: | Ngee Ann Polytechnic | ||||||||
| Nationality: | Singaporean | ||||||||
| Years Active: | 2018–present | ||||||||
| Module: |
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Rajid Ahamed (born 14 December 1995[1]), known by his stage name Yung Raja, is a Singaporean-Tamil rapper and songwriter.[2] He is known for his use of Tanglish, a mix of Tamil and English, in his raps.[3]
Rajid Ahamed was born in 1995, in Singapore, to Tamil-Muslim parents from Thanjavur Tamil Nadu. Ahamed has three elder sisters, which led to him being given the nickname "chinna thambi" (Tamil meaning: younger brother), and subsequently inspiring the first half of his stage name. The second half of his stage name, Raja, pays tribute to the Indian composer, Ilaiyaraaja.[4]
Rajid Ahamed attended Ngee Ann Polytechnic and graduated with a diploma in mass communications.
Before becoming a singer-songwriter, Ahamed was a child actor acting in local dramas and having cameos in films including and Joker Game.
Released in early 2018, Yung Raja's debut single was a remix of "Gucci Gang" by Lil Pump, titled "Poori Gang".[5] Yung Raja came to prominence after being featured in an episode of the Malaysia hip hop web-series, 16 Baris, in 2018.[6] The same year, he rose to prominence with the single "Mustafa", which was followed by "Mad Blessings". A sequel to "Mad Blessings", titled "The Dance Song", was released in October 2020.[7]
In 2019, Ahamed hosted the Asian reboot of YO! MTV Raps alongside Kim Lee.[8] Yung Raja was one of six inaugural signees of Def Jam Southeast Asia (alongside Joe Flizzow, Daboyway, Fariz Jabba and A.Nayaka) in September 2019.[9] After becoming the first Asian artist signed to Alamo Records,[10] he released the single "Mami" in March 2021.[11] Yung Raja gained international attention after "Mami" was featured in a The Tonight Show segment when Jimmy Fallon roasted the song's repetitive hook.[12] [13]
Yung Raja was influenced by musicians including A.R. Rahman,[14] FlightSch, Alyph, Sid Sriram, and Drake.[15]
| Year | Album | |
|---|---|---|
| "Poori Gang" | 2018 | rowspan="5" |
| "Mustafa" | ||
| "Mad Blessings" | 2019 | |
| "Amazing" (with ALYPH and Trifect) | 2020 | |
| "The Dance Song" | ||
| "Muneru Valiba" | One 65 | |
| "Mami" | 2021 | rowspan="2" |
| "Spice Boy" | ||
| "Mike" | Mike | |
| "And Then" (with Fariz Jabba) |
| Year | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| "PrettyGirlBop" (SYA featuring Yuna Raja) | 2020 | ||
| "No Shade" (Kayan featuring Yuna Raja) | 2022 |
| Year | Other artist(s) | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Qualified" | 2021 | Snoop Dogg, Larry June, October London | Snoop Dogg Presents Algorithm (Global Edition) |