Qoini’s ‘Sone Ki Khaan’ EP Distills the Good, Bad and Ugly of Delhi

When hip-hop artist Qoini aka Aditya Guglani wrote and released “Ye Dilli Hai,” a love letter of sorts to the capital in 2022, he kickstarted his EP project Sone Ki Khaan. The six-track EP wasn’t all praise for his home, because it drew from real life experiences – like when he got mugged as a teenager.

It’s captured in the song “Delhi State of Mind,” as a chilling experience from 2007 on his way back from tuition classes. Qoini adds, “I also wanted to write a song to serve as an introductory track to the city, Delhi (‘Thand Rakh’). I also wanted to share that phase in my life where I was braggadocious, which I think every Delhi boy goes through (‘Gin & Tonic’). ‘Blueprint’ talks about the hustlers and somewhat rebellious mentality. So every song presents a piece of the puzzle, when combined makes a perfect picture.”

From the hustle to the struggles to resolute, breezy times, Qoini travels through it all on Sone Ki Khaan. With previous releases like “Ghissey Jootey” and the romantic tune “Kehti Rehti,” Qoini’s strong suit with songs including “Ye Dilli Hai” was the relatability in his rap. However, the artist says he used to strive towards that as a goal, to the point that it became a “black cloud I was obsessed with.” He adds, “But as my creative process is maturing, that black cloud is fading away. The reason is that I believe the art should come from an honest place. By honest I mean your heart should be in it. That is what the audience wants and deserves to see and that is what I bring in.” Beyond getting 15 minutes of fame, Qoini is more tuned into the idea of writing music “till I physically can.”

Among the prominent motifs on Sone Ki Khaan is Qoini positioning himself as an outlier in the Delhi hip-hop scene. Although there are collaborations with Rebel 7 and Shai on a remix of “Thand Rakh,” it was an outcome of just admiring and befriending talents along the way in Qoini’s career. He says he doesn’t see himself as part of the local hip-hop circuit, but it was an exclusion he thought about, but now the artist’s “non-conformity” defines his music. Inspired by everyone from Kishore Kumar to Metallica, Qoini adds that he’s not just influenced by rappers. “It [not being part of the local scene] really doesn’t bother me now because it means that I have a unique voice and approach to music.”

There’s also a vocal sample on “Gin & Tonic” taken from Scarface, the cult gangster movie starring Al Pacino as Tony Montana. Qoini calls Scarface one of his all-time favorite movies and invokes it’s tagline (“He lived the American dream with a vengeance”). He adds, “I think the character has an unsatisfied hunger, greed and overconfidence that is needed to move ahead. Tony is in no way my role model but his intensity is what I admire the most. Funny thing, Tony’s suit that he was wearing in the final scene (blue with white stripes) is what I wanted to wear on my wedding day. But since it was difficult to convince everyone, I ended up wearing the sherwani.”

With Sone Ki Khaan out in full now, Qoini is lining up collaborations and different concepts and plans to experiment with his sound in 2024. His next single “Kagaz Ke Jahaz” is slated to release later this month. “Sonically it can be defined as funk meets hip-hop. I feel 2024 looks promising,” he adds.