Jeanne Merchant Feels ‘Lucky Tonight’ with Epr Iyer and Anshuman Sharma

Singer and vocal coach Jeanne Merchant takes to synth-pop on her shimmering new song “Lucky Tonight,” which is produced by Anshuman Sharma and features a guest verse from rapper Epr Iyer.

The song allows Merchant to bring to the front her vocal prowess, in a way practicing what she (perhaps) teaches, by reveling in what sound like tricky yet playful lyrical choices. “Back at the diggins, archaeopteryx turn into bats,” she sings at one point. Fully aware of her approach to the song, Epr Iyer matches up with this rap vocabulary when it’s his turn on the mic. He sings, “jaywalking through polyrhythms” in the song. Merchant’s vocals are also peppered with a few autotune flourishes to give “Lucky Tonight” a modern pop sheen.

A press release for “Lucky Tonight” says, “The song  tells the story of friends enjoying a lavish, carefree night out on the town, driving around, hopping from club to club, and letting loose.” The video for the song, directed and shot by Tushar Mahajan and edited by Alec D’Souza, sees Merchant in several stylish ensembles, meeting the modern pop star aesthetic with glitz all around her.

Anshuman Sharma, who first gained popularity with humorous takes on music and production, mash-ups and covers on Instagram and YouTube, continues to prove himself to be a serious producer as well with releases like “Lucky Tonight.” While he made his debut as an artist with “Aasman Tootega Nahi” in 2020 and leveled up with the song “Saari Raat” in 2022, Sharma has been among the go-to producers for Merchant and Salim-Sulaiman’s Merchant Records releases.

Epr, for his part, has been a mainstay in Indian hip-hop, being part of the jury on hip-hop reality show MTV Hustle, collaborating with fellow judge Dee MC on her song “Beautiful Mind” and joining singer Neeti Mohan for the song “Imtihaan” as part of song and concert series Royal Stag Boombox. While there’s a totally different side of the rapper on “Lucky Tonight,” Epr charged forward with socio-politically conscious rap on “Bol,” the track by Mumbai hip-hop artist Shaikhspeare on the latter’s album D.O.N.L.Y.F.

With Jeanne Merchant, Sharma has also produced prior singles such as “Magic,” “Hello and Goodbye,” “Fake Love” and “Imperfections.” Merchant’s other well-received singles include “Round and Round” and “Christmas Time.”

Her latest, “Lucky Tonight,” is also released via Merchant Records, a record label founded by composer​ Salim-Sulaiman.

Watch the video for “Lucky Tonight” below.