The sprawling 14-track release – that features just as many collaborators – showcases the artist’s authentic, unfettered style and ducks and weaves across genres and sounds
Listen to ‘Chehre’ here: Chehre – Album by Karun | Spotify
The Delhi-based rapper-singer Karun’s penchant for great hooks, brutal honesty and poetic detachment, polished production, and singular baritone power his emotionally-charged third album Chehre.
A prolific artist who shot to fame as a name to watch in Delhi’s underground rap scene, Karun has viral hits like ‘Maharani’ and millions of streams to his name, but his upcoming album – scheduled to release on June 16 – unmasks the person behind the artist’s persona. Three singles from the album, ‘Partein’, ‘Anjaane’ and ‘Assa Te’ have been released so far.
Clocking in at 14 tracks, Chehre feels like a confessional diary and a sonic experiment, where Karun often embraces chaos, grief, jealousy, love, and radical self-reflection, often within the same verse.
The poetically-experimental album – that features up to 15 collaborators, including singers and producers – is derived from a genuine lived experience that is central to Karun’s process. Known for his emotionally charged soundscapes that blur the lines between alt hip-hop, ambient soul, and Indian textures, Karun now steps deeper into the core of who he is. In Chehre, he redefines what vulnerability and pain can sound like, often ‘breaking the fourth wall’.
At once genre-fluid and intentional, this project stretches R&B into unexpected corners: trap, lo-fi, and even acoustic indie pop. The boundary-pushing artist returns with a collection of deeply personal songs that explore the emotional masks we wear to move through life.
“I went through different emotions while writing it, making the music,” he says, adding, “I travelled a lot for this project, found some new musicians, and tried making music I would want to hear.”
Chehre is a richly textured collage, and Karun wears his influences on his sleeve. His love for Indian instrumentation and Bollywood melodies is clear as is his devotion to music directors like AR Rahman, and pop stars like Atif Aslam, Jal and Strings.
“Chehre is a milawat of all the things and styles I love but above everything, it is an Indian sounds-focused album,” he states.
The production unfolds like a kaleidoscope in motion, constantly shifting, reshaping itself into new forms with each track. Lush R&B arrangements melt seamlessly into sometimes energetic, sometimes distorted, oftentimes melancholic strings and pipes. The layering of instruments is cinematic, with both Indian and Western classical instruments finding their places in the ensemble. Just like a film soundtrack, instruments lead the opening, instruments signal the end.
The album’s emotional core is enriched by masterful vocal layering, with backing vocals woven intricately throughout like threads in a layered symphony. The influence of Indian musical traditions pulses unmistakably beneath the surface.
Echoes of Hindustani classical styles surface with reverence, while ‘Zubaan’ channels the spirit of AR Rahman’s ‘Satrangi Re’ through its rhythm and tonal choices. ‘Tere Hothon Pe’ surprises with a qawwali-inspired hook layered atop an otherwise smooth R&B track, fusing genres with effortless grace. On ‘Kaisi’, Shantanu Pandey revisits a timeless couplet ‘kaaga re’ attributed to Sufi mystic, Baba Farid – last heard resonating through Irshad Kamil’s words and Mohit Chauhan’s voice in Rockstar’s ‘Nadaan Parindey’.
Holding all the strings together is Karun’s singular vocal presence, the throughline in this mosaic of sounds. His voice is remarkably fluid, bending to the emotional needs of each moment. At times, it’s a soft whisper, delicate and intimate, as if he’s singing directly into your ear. Other times, it breaks open raw, unfiltered, and aching with raw honesty.
This emotional arc is anchored by three tonal pillars that outline the mood of the album. On ‘Darta Hu’, he captures the internal friction of indecision, when the heart yearns forward but the mind pulls back, paralyzed by fear. ‘Tere Hothon Pe’ dives headfirst into obsession and surrender, a devotional longing so complete it becomes cosmic, a union of rhythm and madness. And on ‘Stressed Out’, Karun delivers the album’s emotional climax: a raw, unfiltered reckoning with years of pressure, grief, and the weight of expectation.
“This album is a record of my personal history, and I just don’t want to hide anymore,” he says of the creative process behind Chehre.
The release of the album will be followed by listening sessions for fans in Pune and Mumbai on June 28 and June 29 respectively. Tickets are available here: https://linktr.ee/chehre?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaf8U6qygKTwYGGHeOf5O2WIU59jEaBq9EQPNAK3alc9G2ZdvfuIu6p09uR7pg_aem_sEP2ZbADnRAN_VrvoES04Q
Chehre is now available across all streaming platforms.
