DIVINE Unleashes Introspective, Starry and Playful Third Album ‘Gunehgar’

DIVINE aka Vivian Fernandes continues his walk down philosophies of sin, virtue and morals with his third album Gunehgar. The follow-up to his 2020 album Punya Paap, there’s a marked decision to stick to rapping about human failings, chasing success and happiness and all the demons one may have to face along the way.

With all eyes on DIVINE since he announced Gunehgar earlier this year, the rapper didn’t disappoint on the collaborations front. He goes global in a much bigger way across 12 tracks, inviting stars like Jadakiss, Russ (the two recently met when Russ made his India debut in Mumbai in October), producer Hit-Boy, Albanian rapper Noizy, hip-hop artist Armani White, singer-composer Jonita Gandhi and Punjabi star Wazir Patar.

The scratched out last track on the album track list posted by DIVINE indicated either a hidden or bonus track or perhaps a song that was scrapped from the project. Most fans and hip-hop commentators have speculated that this was likely a collaboration between DIVINE and the late Sidhu Moose Wala. The Punjabi star had previously linked with DIVINE for “Moosedrilla” on the former’s 2021 album Moosetape.

Rather than focus on what didn’t make the cut, Gunehgar still punches well above its weight with DIVINE’s lyrical game still shining bright, finding new ways to talk about his journey so far. Produced by the likes of Hit-Boy (“Gunehgar”), Ill Wayno (“Traffic Jam”), Harry Fraud (“Plush”), Statik Selektah (“Hitman”), DIVINE does also return to Karan Kanchan (“Baazigar,” “Sitara,” “Bornfire,” “Blessings”) and Phenom aka Pinaki Rattan (“Blessings,” “Akela”), Stunnah Beatz and Hrithik Beats (“Bhookh,” “Street Lori”) to give Guneghar a global and local flavor beats wise.

DIVINE said about the album in a statement, “Gunehgar is the start to a revolution. I’m going to take that appetite and passion of mine for desi hip-hop to unimaginable heights and I hope you’re ready! Also there’s so much I’m grateful and happy for and I just wanted to express that. As the year draws to a close, this is my humble gift to my community and my fans who’ve waited so long for a music release!”

The album is crammed with pop culture references which would grab anyone’s attention on first listen. There’s the nostalgic throwback to singer Alka Yagnik’s chorus of “Baazigar O Baazigar” on the rapper’s song “Baazigar” (perhaps in line with his Punya Paap song inspired by Bollywood music, “Satya”). He teams up with Jadakiss to draw inspiration from New York city on “Traffic Jam” and soon escapes to dancefloors and love anthems with “Bornfire” and “Sitara,” respectively.

The rapper references more recent bucket-list achievements like attending the Grammys on “Plush,” while the other solo cut “Bhookh” is a debilitating cut that talks about money, opportunity and rising to the top. The trio of “Hitman,” “Akela” and “Flex Kar” are also songs on which DIVINE keeps the mic to himself, modulating moods and even switching up to English lyrics. Wazir Patar adds a mesmerizing shine on “Street Lori,” while the mood completely shifts by the end of the album on “Blessings.” It’s a smooth and occasionally nostalgic look back at life then and now, injected with a bilingual verse by Noizy.

Traversing genres and blending them with rap, while also never straying too far from writing about just his own experiences and life lessons, Gunehgar does well to meet expectations from DIVINE fans, even as he looks towards making a footing on a worldwide level.