At some point in our lives, all of us have sung our hearts out to an imaginary audience on a stage which exists only in our heads. But today, musicians don't need a stage, not even a make-believe one. Because they have YouTube. And leveraging this video-sharing giant's potential is 3am Scripts, a fun music channel for the youth, by the youth.
A group of students from Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Ettimadai, started 3am Scripts because they were brought together by their love for music even though they belonged to different departments. Before you ask, the name came about because that's exactly what they do — write scripts and lyrics at 3 am, or thereabouts. Prasanna informs with a smile, "We ideate and come up with our compositions late in the night and hence we thought there couldn't be a better name."
Over the course of their college lives the group sort of found themselves and their music, "I always had an interest in music right from my school days and was really looking forward to meeting like-minded people in college. And when I bumped into Deepak and others who are part of this channel now, I knew that together, we could make a social impact through music," says Prasanna Kumar, Co-founder of 3am Scripts. Started in the year 2016, 3am Scripts includes five permanent members and three guest singers. "I usually sing a version of the song first. Prasanna and I listen to it and will either finalise it or invite our guest singers. We usually invite them if there are any Carnatic elements required. Depending on the theme, we set out to work. Not everyone is involved in each video," says Deepak Raja PS, Co-founder of 3am Scripts.
Two of their original numbers, Dhooram Sella Parakkirom and Vaanavil Naan Tharava have been received well by their YouTube fanbase. Deepak gets enthusiastic while explaining the idea behind Dhooram Sella Parakkirom. "It is a love-cum-travel song. The song traces the journey of a bird as a metaphor for love. We had Carnatic vocals incorporated in the song which were delivered beautifully by our guest singers Naresh Madhur and Sriram Muralidharan. This was their first studio experience and we were delighted to be the reason for their happiness that day," gushes Deepak.
So which group member comes up with the best ideas? "Deepak and I work together on the lyrics and music composition. Mukul Anand (another core member) helps in translating them from Tamil to English, keeping the authenticity of the original version intact. Most of our work is in Tamil as we want to connect with our audience. We are also trying to make content in Telugu and Malayalam," shares Prasanna. In more good news, their songs were even played on a popular radio station recently.
We were pleasantly surprised when the group informed us that except for their latest videos, most of their songs were recorded in their home studio! "In 2017, I finally told my dad that I wanted a home studio, as getting every single song recorded in professional studios would literally burn a hole in our pockets! And that's how the idea of having a home studio came about. Today, it is a complete musical workspace with acoustics and all that jazz. Recently we started working in a professional studio to record better quality audio. Also, we have an active producer (who is also a dear friend) Karthik S, who handles our accounts," Deepak points out.
In addition to creating magical, foot-tapping music that appeals to millennials, they also try to promote relevant social messages through their work. "For example, we try to emphasise on the importance of growing trees and conserving the environment. It is just a way of reminding our audience that every small step matters," explains Prasanna. As students in their early 20s, they aspire to unite youngsters together through music and art. "We have recently launched a campaign 'Let's Move Forward Together' through which we are trying to feature youngsters who are capable enough to inspire others in some way or the other," concludes Deepak.
