Hanumankind’s “Big Dawgs” is the Breakout Hit of 2024; Now He’s in a State of Chaos

The origins of “Big Dawgs,” one of the most successful rap songs of the year, stemmed from a Zoom call. Earlier this year, Hanumankind was on the line with producer Kalmi, conducting an exercise where the 32-year-old rapper listened to beats and tried to figure out the direction he wanted to go. One of the beats presented was the eclectic, revved-up sounds that would eventually become “Big Dawgs.” The intro immediately sparked a burst of creativity—uncommon for Hanumankind, who likes to take his time with songs.

“I think there are some songs that take longer, but this one was an amalgamation of ideas that came together quickly,” Hanumankind told Complex. “When I first heard the beat, I just wrote how I felt. Then we fit in bits and pieces to make it cohesive. It came together way quicker than others, but that’s not typically how I approach my work.”

Since its release in July, “Big Dawgs” has become one of the surprise hits of the year, cracking the top 10 on the global charts back in August. The song is infused with sweat and energy, featuring braggadocious lyrics that are heightened by Hanumankind’s use of Project Pat’s iconic “Patta flow.” The song and its rollout also exemplify the power of a well-executed video; the visceral video, directed by Bijoy Shetty, elevates the song to another level. The video was shot in Ponnani, Kerala, India, and pays homage to a traveling carnival show called the Well of Death, where stuntmen drive along the walls of a vertical pit. Hanumankind himself participates in the stunts, hanging outside of a car.

“Motion sickness hit me so hard in the beginning, man. I was doing everything to keep my stomach in place,” Hanumankind said. “But eventually we figured out that when you sit outside and lean, you have a different perspective. It was way easier on my stomach and my mind.”

Speaking with Hanumankind in New York, you get the sense he’s still trying to grapple with it all. In just a couple of years, he went from being an indie artist to signing a deal with Def Jam, to having a genuine global hit, taking calls with rap idols—like Bun B and ASAP Rocky—and not being able to leave his home in India without being mobbed. (He was born in Kerala and now lives in Bangalore.)

“Back home in India, it’s a bit difficult to walk outside,” Hanumankind said. “I like my peace, but I’m getting a little less of it as of late. But it’s cool, I think.”

We spoke to Hanumankind about his breakout hit, the influence of Project Pat, and the lessons that having success as a rapper has taught him.

How do you pronounce your name? And is this a question that you get often?

I mean, it used to be what does the name mean? But pronunciation is now becoming something more of a common occurrence. It’s “​​Hanumankind.” I think it’s pretty straightforward. Do you want to know what it means?

It’s a combination of words, like the “mankind” (represents the) rest of the world. I’m a well traveled person. I’ve been blessed to be able to see a lot of the world and perspectives from different cultures and languages and environments. ​​Hanuman is a deity that kind of represents strength and courage and perseverance, and I think I kind of brought that together—a little bit of us, a little bit of the rest of the world.

Do you get frustrated when people mispronounce your name?

I don’t get frustrated. I mean, it’s different. I feel like it’s easier for us to pronounce it where I’m from, but I don’t expect that from other places. That’s OK. If people ask, I’ll tell them. If not, we figure it out.

So you put out “Big Dawgs” in July. What was your life like before the song’s release?

We were just trying to make music, trying to create art and do things that we find cool. I think that’s been the game plan from the beginning—and to maintain the integrity of what it is that we do. “Big Dawgs” was a byproduct of that. We were just making music, we were having fun. We thought of the idea together, me and my boys. So we kind of just put that together because it was an emotion that we felt at the moment and it came to be what it is.

When did you realize this song was different?

Honestly, man, we did not think it was different before we released it. We were like, “It’s a cool song.” And then within the first or second day that we released it, we’re like, “OK, it’s making its rounds.” It was nice to see. I think it’s cool to see how everyone brought it together like that and people responded to it in that way.

Can you talk a little bit about the video? Put me in the picture a little bit. What did your body feel doing those stunts?

When you go in, the first time you’re doing it is probably the most overwhelming time. Because you’re just like, “How could this go?” You have no idea. Initially when I was sitting inside the car, I sat in the back, I have friends and family that have motion sickness and I used to pride myself of someone being like, man, “fuck that. I don’t get motion sickness.”

Motion sickness hit me so hard in the beginning, man. I was doing everything to keep my stomach in place. But eventually we figured out that when you sit out and you lean and you have a different perspective when you’re sitting out and your head is out and your body’s leaning out. It was way easier on my stomach and it was way easier on my mind. And once you’re able to figure it out, once you realize that, “OK, this is the kind of weight, this is the momentum, this is the force you feel.” You pick it up by the second or third time. By the 10th and 11th or 12th time, everything was coming out of me, so I wasn’t able to hold it in that long.

I was about to ask how many takes.

About 12, yeah. By that time I was fucking projectile vomiting, man. I didn’t know I shouldn’t drink water. I was offering water to the people that were doing it. It was really hot when we were shooting and I was like, “Would you like to drink?” And they were like, “No, we’re good.” They kept telling me no. And honestly I thought it was something wrong with me. I was like, “Do they not want water from me? Am I saying it wrong? Am I offending them?” And then I realized once I got into the car, I was like, “Oh, that’s why they’re not drinking water.” Because everything is moving to the side. Everything is shifted and the water and the food and everything is just rotating around.

You spent a good amount of time in Houston. Can you talk to me a little bit about your relationship with the city?

I moved to Houston in the fourth grade and I left after doing a year of university. And I think that those are pretty formative years. And I think that the city is a very powerful city in terms of culture, in terms of lifestyle, in terms of everything, man. They just do it different. They do it big, the state and the city in specific. So I think the music and everything that surrounded me, whether it’s on a musical front, whether it’s a taste front, it all came to me at a time where I was just wide-eyed and finding my way. It did a great job in instilling certain values and head spaces for me that I otherwise wouldn’t have gotten. I’ve been moving around so much. This is the one place that I was able to stay for as long, long as I did.

I mean, it’s just like a famous city of spitters.

At first I had no idea what I was into, but I think hip-hop came to me just because when I was in the seventh, eighth grade, I think it really hit me. And the city had a big part to do with that. We had Chamillionaire and Paul Wall. We had mixtapes that were flying around. We had Slim Thug, we had Z-Ro, we had UGK, we had so many things that were circulating. And I was blessed to be able to see the mixtape era where people were handing out mixtapes as well. And then how it slowly also transformed into digital methods. So I think it was really cool, man. The city is full of spitters. I love the music and the sound that it had.

What’s the song or artist that turned you out?

I feel like Chamillionaire had a big part to play just because he was the Mixtape Messiah. He’d be taking beats from everywhere and just destroying them. And I think any one of his mixtapes—especially (Mixtape Messiah 2 and 3)—that’s when I got into it. I was just like, “Dude, you can do these things? You can take popular songs and fucking put beat on?” He had bars for days and it was just baller rap. (He was) so charismatic, man—and so many variations on how he does it. And he sang too. It is beautiful, man.

On the song you obviously use Project Pat’s “Patta flow.” And then I saw you later did an Instagram Live with him. When did your relationship with Three 6 Mafia start?

Three 6 Mafia was inevitable. You can’t not be influenced by it or introduced to it because the 2000s was just their time. And I think they set the precedent for a lot of sound, a lot of style, and that wave of that Memphis sound, which is so real. You can feel it in all the songs now. There’s so many elements. I think that Three 6 Mafia brought a lot of these sounds and styles into the forefront. So having a conversation with Project Pat was just, it was amazing, man. Because when I stepped into the booth to do this song, that first half came at the end, the break, and then the wait a minute section and then going into the Patta flow came in after. Because we were like, how are we going to start this tune?

I pieced it together in a very weird way, and this was the first thing that came to my mind just because it just felt right. I feel like I couldn’t change it to anything else. So I think that’s a testament to how impactful Three 6 Mafia has been in regards to sound, because I didn’t hear it any other way. I couldn’t perceive it any other way, which is really fun. That’s why I had to shout ’em out, man. This is very important.

What’s the biggest indication that your life has changed since the song’s success?

I mean, back home in India, it’s a bit difficult to walk outside. I like my peace, but I’m getting a little less of it as of late. But it’s cool, I think.

What does that mean?

It’s not just a typical Indian song that came out. This is a rap song that is from an Indian rapper over here. It was a chance for us to show the rest of the world that we’re not just this way that you think we are. We can be so much more. Everyone’s got their own problems. Everyone lives in their own spaces, their own bubbles. And so when you see things or you make judgments or you understand things, you don’t have the time to dive in deeper and find out their shit, right?

There’s been these preconceived notions and these settings that have been done for us through being immigrants and just being who we are that have been set over time. There’s so many layers and so much depth within the nation and the people. And when we were able to have a song that showed that there’s more to it. It brought a lot of people together, man. It was cool. It was very cool. So I think right now, I’m grateful to be able to see that there’s kids that don’t even understand English that way—who’s like there’s someone who’s making songs like this and they’re just listening. Whether it’s the video, whether you see kids in the slums that are actually listening to it, which was surprising to me because specifically when you make music in English, you don’t expect those kids to also be able to be like, “Yo, I am really listening to this.” But we were doing that.

What’s the next couple months look like for you? What are you looking forward to, and then what’s something that has you kind of nervous?

I’m looking forward to creating and really pushing myself on a daily basis, mentally, physically, spiritually. I think it’s important. I think that’s why I got into this. I like making music, but I also like the answers that come along with it, and I think that that’s something I look forward to. They might not always be good answers, but they’re answers and there’s a lot of questions that are always constantly going on within, whether it’s my own or around me. So I look forward to having that kind of journey where I can maybe find some semblance of an answer. But when it comes to what (I’m nervous about)… I know my values and what I stand for and for people that know me, I think that that’s not something that is under question. But I think that while we maintain the integrity of what it is that we do, we have to be—there’s always going to be things that come our way that we don’t know how to navigate.

I’m only human, and I feel like that’s important for me to come to terms with sometimes. I find peace. I do my meditations in the morning, so it helps a little bit, but I do sometimes have my doubts and questions about all this. But I’ll figure it out, man. I hope I do.

Has having a global hit given you an answer to something?

No. Far from it, brother. It’s throwing me into chaos. No, but it’s cool, bro. I think that’s an answer in itself, right? Right. When you think you know something, you don’t know shit. Who are we to say that we know? But you don’t know. I don’t have all the fucking answers and nobody does. But I think it’s good to come to terms with that and be like, “We just figure it out as we go.”