Who is Ryan Singh?
Ryan is second generation born and raised Scottish Sikh. His musical path started when
he was just eight, playing tabla and dholki alongside his farther at the Gurdawara. Ryan’s
mamaji’s from Manchester also played dhol and taught at music workshops at the
Gurdawara. A group of Ryan’s mamaji’s formed a group called ‘Betaab Sangeet’ they
performed at many functions up and down the country and releasing a number of
albums.
With the influence of his family and his skill and talent, at the age of 12 during school
holidays, Ryan organised his own music workshops at the Gurdawara, passing on his
knowledge to other young aspiring musicians. The classes became so popular that the
numbers had to be restricted.
A group was formed from members of his workshops calling them selves the ‘Dhol
Crusaders’. They were asked to perform at the prestigious opening of the Scottish
Parliament. The group were dressed to suit the occasion, wearing kilts made from the
first Sikh tartan using colours from India and Kalsa. The tartan was designed by Ryan’s
farther to celebrate the new millennium.
The look is totally original and unique to Ryan, following the Parliament opening his
group renamed themselves ‘The Tartan Dholies’. The look of the Tartan Dholes brilliantly
reflects the cultural diversity of Scotland and the integration of a new generation of
British Asians.
By making ‘Dholicious’ Ryan is bringing his music to a bigger audience. He has worked with the famous Tigerstyle at The Dera
Production Suite. His album proves Ryan is a serious artist; he has played percussion on all the tracks. “Dil kokay vich” which was
featured on VIP’s previously released compilation album “Pure Desi Vol.1” proved to be a public favourite. The song, and Ryan
himself also appeared in the video medley shown on TV screens nationwide.
The Dholicious video medley featuring three tracks from the album; ‘Nasha Jawani Dha’, ‘Margaye Kuriye’ and ‘Kuriye’ were shot
in early December . Ryan and his crew put on brave faces fighting the bitter cold dancing and singing on the Edinburgh hills.

Gtown Desi has been created by an enthusiastic team of talented individuals each having raw musical talent and a passion for entertainment, fused with their years of experience in the industry.

Following in the successful footsteps of Gtown Urban, an influential concept which set out to capture the urban market and provide entertainment throughout various major events, Gtown Desi has been introduced as the freshest new entertainment concept to hit the Asian market.

The team behind this new concept continue to dedicate their time, effort and skills bringing to you a new and stylish events management company with the tools to produce the most exclusive parties, with entertainment from the most exclusive and talented DJs around...

Every member of Gtown Desi derives from a differing background musically, which in turn allows us to combine and create new forms of music. With influences ranging from eastern traditional sounds to contemporary western-based urban themes, our overall collection of DJs allows us an opportunity to simply fuse sounds unlike any other musical unit presently out there.

‘1134’, the debut album from the collective, looks to be the final piece of the puzzle in establishing the brand UK and worldwide. With all their individual influences combined on the one record, the album represents the true sound of Urban Asian and may even be the benchmark for future projects from other artists also. The first single, ‘Peer’, embraces break beat sounds with Asian elements and delivers and fast tempo driven track worth being played on any dance floor. As the days tick down, the launch is imminent. Having created ‘Secrets’ and re-invented the Asian nightlife scene, the album is set to redefine British Urban Asian music.

Jon Sterckx is a percussionist and tabla player based in Stroud, South West UK.

Jon plays a range of percussion instruments and has worked across a wide range of musical styles, from Indian classical music and other traditional musical forms to contemporary experimental & 'fusion' styles, theatre & dance collaborations, and solo multi-percussion live sampling performances 'Drumscapes'.

Jon studied tabla in the UK with Harjinder Singh Matharu and in India with Shivanand Bhandari ( Karnataka) and Kailash Nishad ( Benares).



Harminder Berman is following