GHOST PEPPERS DEBUT SINGLE
ARTIST: Ghost Peppers
TITLE: "Jao Cheray/Waiting for Goodbye"
RADIO ADD DATE: 1/1/25
LABEL: Sugar City Music
CATALOGUE#: SCM2501
UPC#: 198937230444
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A SOUTH ASIAN FUSION STORY
"Jao Cheray/Waiting for Goodbye" is the debut single release from Orlando-based recording artists, Ghost Peppers, on the Sugar City Music label. In live performances, co-founders Amrita Ghosh and Kevin Meehan present a fusion of South Asian music in Bengali, Hindi, Urdu, and English, including covers of classic songs by Indian Nobel laureate, Rabindranath Tagore, and Bollywood blockbuster hits delivered in an unplugged acoustic duo format. While rabindranath sangeet (Tagore Music) and Bollywood songs are all fusion music in their own ways, Ghost Peppers created their own re-mix approach to Tagore Music by adding harmonies and English lyrics to this rich genre. They only intensified this fusion process in their first original composition by drawing on those influences and others ranging from Indian classical music to Americana folk.
THE SONGWRITING PROCESS
Written during a feverish hour of creativity while rehearsing for 2024 Diwali programs in Central Florida, “Jao Cheray” was recorded at Bobby Chan Studios and mixed at Sugar City Studios and the Melrose Center, all in Orlando, FL.
The music grew out of Kevin listening to hours and hours of raga behag music and then responding to those musical lines with melodies and strumming on an acoustic guitar. Raga behag thematizes loss and is typically performed in twilight hours when the day is fading away into night. Though it was not a conscious decision, the lyrics register a wistful look at people lost to sudden death and the hopeful confusion of those left behind who are “standing in the shadows, waiting for a word.” Tragically but prophetically, the song was written at almost the exact moment when a dear friend of the band, Abdul-Karim Mustapha, was passing away and they have dedicated the track to his memory.
Performances on the recording include Amrita Ghosh on Bengali and English lead vocals, with fellow co-founder, Kevin Meehan, on acoustic guitar, bass, drums and vocals in Bengali and English.
LIVE PERFORMANCE AND AUDIENCE RESPONSE
After the public debut of “Jao Cheray/Waiting for Goodbye” at Florida Gulf Coast University in Ft. Meyers, FL, audience members highlighted the song's emotional impact and the smooth flow between languages in a talkback segment with the band. “I don't understand Bengali, so I'm not sure what all the lyrics mean, but the feelings expressed were so strong,” said one listener, who added, “The music took me to an unexpected place emotionally that just felt like home.” Another audience member commented that, “There seemed to be no hierarchy between the different languages, it just flowed organically from Bengali to English and back again, and sometimes we even heard both languages at the same time.”
The group has appeared at numerous venues in the Orlando area, including the Fusionfest 2024 Main Stage, Folk Night at the Barley and Vine Biergarten hosted by Renee Arozqueta, the Orange County Mayor's Diwali, the Audubon Park Community Market, and International Mother Language Day events sponsored by Bengali student groups in Central Florida.
BOOKINGS AND OTHER INFO
For bookings and other information, email the band directly at sugarcitymusic@gmail.com, or direct messages to @sugargcitymusic_ or @_ghostpeppers on Instagram.
THE LYRICS
Harano shei din
Shei shona gaan
Shondhe belar shey akaash
Hear you in the rain
See you in the sky
Feel you in the silver sliver of the moon
Jao cheray tumi
Jao cheray
Shesh alor sathe
Kichu chhilo kotha
Kichu chhilo asha
Bujhini ashbe naa
Wind won't blow
Sun won't shine
You left me wondering why
Standing in the shadows
Waiting for a word
Waiting for your goodbye
Tell me where you been
Tell me what you seen
Are you holding my dearest dreams
Jao cheray tumi
Jao cheray (waiting for a word)
Shesh alor sathe
This song is dedicated to the memory of our dear friend Abdul-Karim Mustapha (1973-2024).