Bengali-born, Queens-raised rapper Anik Khan frequently blends worldly influences into his melodic brand of hip-hop, but it's difficult to think of a time he's pulled that off as successfully as he does on new single "Cleopatra."
Co-produced by Beyoncé collaborator Melo-X, the immediately catchy track takes a sample from Bollywood film composer A.R. Rahman (Slumdog Millionaire) and runs with it—finding an irresistible groove that should translate very nicely to sweaty dance floors everywhere.
I hesitated including the Bollywood/hip-hop connection in the headline with the worry it would come across as a gimmick, but the execution here is anything but. Khan and Melo-X clearly took care to blend the worlds in a natural way, and it just works. This one will be in steady rotation for awhile. Listen below.
