The Asian Economist

I love music; I have over 17,000 songs on my iTunes, from Nas to Mozart to Preah Sovath. I went through many phases as you can see. Right now though Khmer rap intrigues me the most. Some of them are so horrible, they make my ears bleed, but surprisingly some are pretty decent. When I say Khmer rap, I’m speaking about Khmer rapping in Khmer (our native language). I have not heard a good Khmer rapper rapping in English as of yet, someone please surprise me. After endless hours of roaming around the internet searching, I finally found a couple Khmer rappers that are worth mentioning, and one Khmer song that is not a rap song but I love it so much I just have to share it with you guys.

I choose these three to share because they are all good songs. The first one is not a Khmer Rap song though, it is by Sovannareach, back when he was with SSB Production, currently he is signed with Rasmey Hang Meas, a much more popular production in Cambodia. I must say that the title “Waiting to dead” does not make much sense in English but in Khmer it does. The English translation should be something such as “I’ve been waiting here so long that I might die”. I like this song particularly because it is not a remake of a Chinese song, which a lot of Khmer songs are nowadays.

The second is a video by a regular Khmer guy who really is amazing at rapping in Khmer. I believe his name is Pou Klaing according to the video. Watch his other video on youTube, he is quite a character.I don’t think he is with any production company in Khmer but if those companies see this, they should give him a call. He is ten times better then all the rappers I’ve seen on the most well known company such as Rasmey Hang Meas.

The third video I really like because it send out a very positive message to the Khmer people. In a nutshell it states that we should be proud of Cambodia, our kingdom, because we have such a vast history. Also, I really enjoy Khmer Rap, although I know that many thinks it is corny. There are a lot of bad ones but these guys aren’t that bad. Plus I love their positive message about our country.

Speaking of music, the Cambodian entertainment industry has come a long way. Most of what they sell are Khmer VCD and DVD karaoke because the people love it. I know that the Cambodian entertainment industry is nothing compares to China or South Korea, but they are crawling their way through the gauntlets. Since they can only be as big as their consumers allow them to be, it is hard for the Cambodian entertainment industry to expand if 75% of the country’s populations are in the agriculture labor force. Because their products have such a small market it is difficult for them to expand. As more people leave the countryside and move to the city, and as the country become more modernize, I can’t wait to see all the creativity that will explode in the entertainment industry in Cambodia. I know that there are a lot of creative Khmer minds out there.