Hear Singer-Songwriter Kimberley Rodrigues’ Carefree Debut ‘Aa Jhoom’

New Delhi singer-songwriter Kimberley Rodrigues can tell you about patience and persistence. She worked for over four years to release her debut song “Aa Jhoom,” steadfast in her conviction that this was the perfect debut.

Written in 2014 and recorded at Ferris Wheel Studios with additional guitar and percussive work from acoustic artist Dhruv Visvanath, “Aa Jhoom” took longer to put out not necessarily owing to Rodrigues’ busy schedule as a freelance musician or her master’s degree course in performance studies. “I would feel like this kind of restlessness that I wasn’t doing enough for this needs to be out,” she says.

In order to properly launch her music, Rodrigues was keen on a music video that would do it justice. After a couple of years of ideas coming together and falling through, it was in 2017 when the singer-songwriter was on holiday through Europe that her sister Sarah Sherpa and she were shooting videos as tourists that lit a spark. The phone-shot music video for “Aa Jhoom” features Rodrigues and her sister walking through six cities – Rome, Florence, Copenhagen, Malmo and Prague – with the artist lip syncing her song. “The song is about celebrating life and enjoying the present moment. The challenge was to convey this in the simplest way possible,” she says.

As is evident in the bright and cheery song that celebrates life, Rodrigues says she was “truly enjoying” herself when the footage was shot candidly. It took about three summers to get the footage and a year of editing “over a thousand little videos” to create the final version,which also features animation by editor and motion graphic designer Pawas Aakrsh. She adds, “I’m happy to say the sound, vibe and video of this song has come out just the way I always saw it in my head.”

With stints on stage and in the studio for seasoned Hindi rock and fusion bands such as Euphoria, Bandish Unchained and Antariksh, Rodrigues’ experience in singing and pop sensibilities come out clearly on “Aa Jhoom.” There’s also four-part harmonies, a nod to Rodrigues’ time in A Capella groups and choirs. She says, “I always have harmonies in my head, like it’s there. So I think for me, that always adds flavor.”

With the first song out of the way, Rodrigues has more songs – in Hindi and English – coming up as well as performances. She says, “If everything goes well, in a few months, I should have something out.”

Watch the video for “Aa Jhoom” below.