Hear Bengaluru R&B Artist Tushar Mathur’s Breezy Collab with Shayan Roy on ‘Stepping About’

On his third single, Bengaluru-based multi-instrumentalist and singer Tushar Mathur gets a little help from hip-hop artist Shayan Roy for the laidback “Stepping About.”

Following songs like “Groove Pool” and “Mend,” Mathur stitches together a smooth R&B track with “Stepping About.” Featuring silken guitar lines, Mathur’s earthy vocals and a guest verse from Roy all packed into three and a half minutes, the song recalls the likes of present-day R&B stars such as FKJ, Tom Misch and Daniel Caesar.

Mathur says about the creation of the song, “I always felt this song and this vibe could use a nice chill rapper so I was on the lookout for quite a while and luckily I came across Shayan.” An email with the track and timestamps for his verse once sent across, Roy – who released his own debut solo single “Bubbles” last month – agreed to be a part of “Stepping About.” Mathur adds, “I’ve never met the guy but we connected over the music and yeah, it worked out great cause he brought exactly what I wanted to the table.”

The song details important lessons in battling between self-care and “hustle culture” to remain productive, something that’s especially relevant in the wake of global lockdowns, work from home and more. Mathur says, “There’s just so much we think we have to be jumping at to make it in this world where productivity is our measure of self-worth; and this glorification of the hustle is burning us out.”

Nevertheless, the artist will persist when it comes to hustling, as he preps for an EP release “sometime later this year.” He adds, “If things get better, I’d love to get up on stage and start performing.”

Listen to “Stepping About” below. Stream on more platforms here.