Sugam Pokharel was interested towards music from his childhood. He says,’ I strongly believe in heavenly creatures and with the blessing of God, my determination even grew greater to succeed’. A Biratnagar native, Sugam came to Kathmandu to release his first album. But he had his share of obstacles, the biggest being getting people to trust his potential as a singer.

He says, ‘At one point the rejection was too much but I believe so much in God, I know that people would grow to love and appreciate my talent as a singer.

In 2052 B.S, he recorded his first song and from there on, there has been no stopping him. A powerful voice that transferring you to a different world and music that leaves you wanting for more, here is what this Nepali music icon had to say :

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I wanted people to know me not by my original name but with some other name, just to add a little curiosity in their mind. The other reason is, I strongly believe in heavenly creatures and I think I am blessed by God and there are people behind my back who are helping me in every step of my life. So, to give the credit, I introduced myself as 1MB which means 1 man but it’s a band.

FAMILY SUPPORT
My family members are always positive about me. They support me in whatever I do. At first they used to give emphasis to study and then to my music. But when my songs hit the charts, then only they came to know about my singing talent and fully supported me.

RJ + SINGER
Being an RJ has helped me a lot in singing because RJ gets a chance to know the taste of their listeners, thus a singer can create music according to the taste of their listeners. On the other hand, being a singer has also helped me in RJing because being an RJ, I can know the problems of singers, the promotion techniques and many more. So, I am still with these two things. As an RJ and a singer both needs a good voice.

AS A PUBLIC FIGURE
At first, I faced difficulty in handing my fans but slowly and gradually I am used to all these. I am still the same ‘Sugam’. I am simple and I don’t have so-called, ‘celebrity hi-fi style’.

FEEDBACK
I get mixed feedback from my fans. I react with my fans as they like me to. Some fans love me and my music but some don’t. Some give me blessings but some condemns me but all is well that ends well.

MEMORABLE INCIDENT
There are many incidents that I have faced in my singing career but the most memorable one that I would like to mention is of BICC. There was my concert and one of the guy came to me and kissed me.

DIFFERENCE IN THE ALBUM
All my albums are different from one another. I always try not to give emphasis to imagination. I always try to present realism in the songs. Some of my songs are thematic and some are tragic.

ABOUT NEPALI MUSIC INDUSTRY
The artist are not professionally recognized, so, they must develop professionalism in this industry otherwise they can’t sustain for longer. The sales was too good previously but in the middle it declined but now it’s slowly again gaining its sales.

CHARMED WITH NATIONAL OR INTERNATIONAL CONCERTS
I am happy with both because our songs are for our own Nepalese. Normally in Kathmandu , people are used to with us and with our songs but outside the valley or in foreign land, they become more excited to see us performing in the stage for them. We try to create such type of environment in which they feel as if they are in their own country. We try not to make them miss their hometown.

SATISFACTION
Till now, I am not totally satisfied. From my every new album, I get satisfaction but not for a long run. With every album, new concepts emerge in my mind and I become unsatisfied with my previous albums. So, I am never fully satisfied with my work.

MEDIA AND MUSIC FOR YOU
I am involved only with media and music. I know I don’t have scope in other fields. Commercially, I will survive in this field for 5-10 years and after that I may release my albums for my limited fans and friends and for my own satisfaction. Music and media seems like a drug for me because I am addicted to this. Wherever I go or whatever I do, I will never get apart from this field.

VJing
I have only experimented with being a VJ but I am not satisfied with it. I have got proposals form other medias too but I think I won't give continuity for this.

REMIX TREND
Remix’ in some sense, its ok but I am in the favor of ‘Remake’ of the song. I have got offers to sing a remix but, till now I have not done any. If I got a good one which won’t kill the originality of the old version and which provides satisfaction, I will definitely do a remix.

MUSIC VIDEO
Its being a backbone for any musician in today’s phase with the development in media and technology. It’s a demand of time. On the other hand, music should also be powerful. If the music is not melodious then video alone cannot help. We have seen hundreds and thousands of good videos which are not doing well because of its music. So, for a perfect video, music plays an important role.

‘SHE IS THE BOMB’
Originally, this song was recorded in my voice with 'Girish and the Unity' but Girish had to go abroad and I was busy with my album, so, I was unable to give time for the promotion of the song. The company had invested greater amount for this. So, under understanding Kranti Ale sang it. But in my new album, ‘Sugam Yatra’, I have included it by giving additional flavor with the old version.

MESSAGE FOR THE NEW TALENTS
Come up with some extra effort and hard work as competition is getting tougher day by day. Listeners are being choosy these days. So, we have to receive ourself with the time.

 
- By Lizina Bajracharya, Rozina Sthapit & Sunita Gurung