Anoushka Shankar to perform at 63rd Grammy awards premiere ceremony

Seven-time Grammy award-nominated sitarist, composer and producer Anoushka Shankar will join an illustrious line-up of artists including Gregory Porter and Kamasi Washington at the 63rd Grammy awards premiere ceremony on March 14, kicking off the global live-streamed event with a tribute performance, celebrating the 50th anniversary of the classic Marvin Gaye track ‘Mercy, Mercy Me (The Ecology)’.
To mark International Women’s Day, which was on March 8, Anoushka also announced her new track featuring her on sitar and spoken word, reciting a ‘checklist’ of requirements from the perspective of an unidentified man to his romantic partner.
Anoushka explains, “Over the course of the last year, it’s been impossible to ignore the shadow pandemic happening alongside the pandemic itself. Hearing of the suffering of so many women, I have once again been startled by how common the experiences of abuse can be. This is a song I’ve toyed with for some time and the current situation, alongside people’s visceral reactions to our rare live performances of the song, prompted me to revisit and release it. Drawing from the experiences of our loved ones, Alev (Lenz), Nikita (Gill) and I have made an offering of this song in hope of change and healing.” Alongside Anoushka, Grammy-nominated composer Alev Lenz has co-written the song’s music and lyrics, and poet Nikita Gill has contributed the spoken word poem, marking her first foray into music.