On his left is Jerry Amaldev, the veteran musician who gave Aayiram Kannumai and Mizhiyoram to Malayalam cinema. In front of him is a hall full of audience, with legendary singer K.J. Yesudas and his wife Prabha in the front row. Grady Long apologised in advance as he was about to ‘butcher the beautiful language of Malayalam’ singing Aayiram Kannumai, created by Jerry and sung by Yesudas.
What he didn’t expect is the four rounds of applause he got throughout the song. The video, unsurprisingly, was shared over and over again. At first there was no name of this American who sang a Malayalam song so beautifully. Then someone put it there — Grady Long.
There can be quite a few ways to introduce Grady Long to Kerala. One way could be to start with his childhood days in the US with his family of musicians, another could be his fascination for singing Bollywood songs, and a third, through his wife Suja Long. That last-said is perhaps most suitable to Malayali readers, for Suja is from Kerala, coming from a little town called Payippad just outside of Harippad.
Jerry Amaldev and Grady Long
“She introduced me to Malayalam cinema and subsequently the music from the films. I watched many films and acquainted myself with the major actors and some of the more popular singers and composers. Aayiram Kannumai was one of those songs that the moment I heard I loved it. Then after knowing the meaning and the story behind it I loved it even more.”
He had not known Jerry would be on stage. “I planned on singing Aayiram Kannumai as my song selection well before and only learned that he would be there while I was singing his song the night of the show. It was of course a great thrill and honour to meet the man who created such beautiful music that I had enjoyed for years. I have since visited his home in Kochi and we are good friends now and are currently in talks on a potential project together.”
After his marriage, Grady and Suja had lived in Nashville, Tennessee and worked in the music industry. Initially she told him about Bollywood — the action, the music and dancing. The first Bollywood movie he watched is Hrithik Roshan’s debut film Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai. “To this day I see this movie as the quintessential Bollywood archetype. It has all the elements that compose what we think about when we think Bollywood.”
And then one night at an Indian restaurant opening, people were surprised to see him request to singers performing there, to sing a Hindi song. Obviously, it ended up with him being persuaded to sing. “I’m thankful that they did, had they not been, my life would have been on quite a different path today. I reluctantly agreed to sing part of one song. The music started and people weren’t paying much attention (as this was a restaurant opening and not a concert) but when I sang the first line Kyon Chalte Hai Pavan people began to scream, literally scream! After the second line there came more screaming. By the time I finished, everybody was cheering, screaming, and applauding. That was the first time it ever occurred to me to sing in an Indian language. I’ve been singing and performing professionally for a long time including a stint with a Christian boy band and I had never experienced anything like I did that night.”
Now he only sings in Indian languages, and slowly attempting to speak some Hindi and Malayalam. Who would have thought that the boy growing up in South Dakota, raised on the road with his brothers as his family travelled across the US, would end up a singer in India. He had first sung on stage with his brother Grayson at the age of four.
“I grew up on the road living in a passenger bus that was converted into a motor home. The only room I had to speak of was my bunk bed and all of my belonging had to fit in either the one designated drawer that I had or in a small cubby that acted as a toy bin. Although my family sang exclusively gospel music my brothers also listened to the popular music of the time which gave me exposure to artistes such as Lionel Richie, Michael Jackson, Phil Collins, Andre Crouch, The Winans. I was also blessed to have a father who was a travelling minister, played the bass guitar and appreciated other genres of music and a mother who played piano and guitar.”
He believes those early experiences were very crucial in developing his openness, appreciation and desire to experience other forms of music wherever they came from. In Kerala, he found familiarity in the green landscapes and the laidback ways of life. Grady shares one of his earliest memories in Kerala, when he went for a morning walk in Payippad and to find a landmark to not get lost, chose a Mohanlal movie poster!
On his way back he found nothing but Mohanlal posters for a long while. “The message that I would send out to all newcomers to this most gorgeous of lands is this: Never use Mohanlal or Mammootty movie posters as landmarks in the state of Kerala.”
