Rising artist and multi-instrumentalist Dhruv has released a new single, "Blur." While he has become known for penning R&B-leaning tracks, with "Blur" his love of pop music shines through as an influence on the earworm of a track.
He recorded the song in Los Angeles with producer/writer Dan Farber. Dhruv shares, "to be honest, I never imagined I'd make a song someone could dance to. Sonically, I wanted to push myself outside of my comfort zone and play around with a different palette of sounds. My first EP was made very intimately and is quite lo-fi. Working on something as grand and lush as 'Blur' was a challenge, but really rewarding." Dhruv continues, "'Blur' is about the initial high of falling for someone new and those surreal moments where life begins to feel like a dream."
Last week Dhruv played to a sold-out room in London, marking his first ever show in the UK. He now returns to this side of the Atlantic for a sold-out show in New York City on July 16 at Mercury Lounge followed by another sell-out at Moroccan Lounge in Los Angeles on July 19. Dhruv is also happy to confirm his first North American tour as the support for Joji. Those dates kick off on October 5 in Minneapolis, MN and conclude in Atlanta, GA on October 20. Along the way the tour also hits Chicago, IL, Toronto, ON, and Boston, MA. Tickets are on sale here and all dates are listed below.
Today's single is the follow up to Dhruv's debut project rapunzel which tells a deeply personal coming-of-age story over the course of eight expertly crafted songs, including his break-out hit "double take," which has amassed over 290 million streams to date. The EP drew the attention of, among others, Paper Magazine, Billboard and NME.
Looking ahead Dhruv says, "before I dive seriously into making an album, I want to be able to have fun in the studio and not feel confined to working within any genres or bounds."
Music has always been a constant for Dhruv. Born in London to Indian parents, Dhruv grew up in conservative Singapore where the now 23-year-old crooner found his voice - and sense of self- through songwriting. A self-admitted introvert, he spent countless hours penning songs on his bedroom piano before starting to share them online at the age of 16.
"Things I struggled to say out loud, I was able to articulate easily in my writing," he explains. Turning this passion into a career didn't seem a possibility until Dhruv moved to the U.S. in his late teens and began to make friends with other like-minded artists. The world suddenly opened up for him.
By then he had already amassed dozens of demos including "double take" which was recorded and produced in his second ever studio session in April 2019. The R&B-leaning tune, a song about falling in love with his best friend, exploded on TikTok in 2021 and has since become a global queer anthem. The success of "double take" was followed up by the release of the rapunzel EP in January of 2022, which Dhruv describes as a "scrapbook from the most formative years of my [his] life."
Listen to the new single here:
Dhruv tour dates
7/16 - Mercury Lounge - New York, NY SOLD OUT
7/19 - Moroccan Lounge - Los Angeles, CA SOLD OUT
10/5 - The Armory - Minneapolis, MN *
10/7 - Aragon Ballroom - Chicago, IL *
10/9 - HISTORY - Toronto, ON *
10/11 - MTELUS - Montreal, QC *
10/14 - Roadrunner - Boston, MA *
10/15 - The Anthem - Washington, DC *
10/18 - The Fillmore - Charlotte, NC *
10/20 - Coca-Cola Roxy - Atlanta, GA *
* = support for Joji
Comments
Videos