Kul Prasad Pokhrel (Nepali:कुल पोखरेल; September 21, 1981 – October 4, 2004) was a Nepalese singer-songwriter. He was popularly known by his stage name Cool Pokhrel and he was well known as a pop and folk music singer. He died in 2004, possibly of drug overdose.[1][2][3][4][5][6]
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King of Nepali Pop/नेपाली पप राजा Cool Pokharel कुल पोखरेल | |
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कुल पोखरेल | |
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| Born | September 21, 1981 Sunwal City, Nepal |
| Died | October 4, 2004 (aged 23) Patan Hospital, Nepal |
| Body discovered | October 4, 2004 |
| Other names | Cool Pokharel, King of the Nepalese pop, Abhimanyu |
| Education | New Horizon Institute |
| Occupation | Singer |
| Years active | 1995–2004 |
| Musical career | |
| Genres | Pop |
| Instruments |
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| Labels |
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Pokhrel was born in Sunwal City, Nepal. He was raised by his parents and he mostly preferred living with his relatives. He started singing at 11. While singing to his relatives they thought he would become one of the biggest singers of Nepal.[citation needed] Then he recorded a song called "Sun Meri Mayalu" which became a blockbuster song. This led to him joining popular Nepali hip-hop group The Unity, building his career in the Nepali music industry.[7][8][9]
He is known as (Nepali: नेपाली पप राजा, English: King of Nepali Pop) or simply "King of Pop" by Nepali and international audiences. Cool Pokhrel had many hit songs in Nepal such as "Sun meri mayalu", "Bolauda kheri boldinou", "Yespali dashin ma" and "Mritu ko chyan". Cool has been remembered in other Nepalese pop songs by other popular singers such as Unity Band, Jhilkey Badal, Sugam Pokharel, and Girish Khatiwada; he has been recognized as a revolutionary singer in the history of pop music.[10][11][12]
Personal life
Pokhrel was born on September 21, 1981, at Sunwal City, Nepal. After he moved to Pokhara to get SLC he studied at Gyanu Babu Boarding School, Pokhara. After successfully achieving his School Leaving Certificate he moved back to Sunwal City. In an interview he described his favourite place as Pokhara. Later he moved to London to get a diploma in Business Administration. When he was about to move to the United States to get higher education, he came back to Nepal to start a music career. His favourite singers were Bob Dylan, Kurt Cobain and Jhalak Man Gandarbha and his favorite hobby was watching Nepalese films.[13]
Career
Early 2000s
Cool Pokhrel started his career in 1999 with his first song ("Sun Meri Mayalu") which became an instant hit in Nepal. His next album, called Suna Meri Mayalu, was a success. His next album was called AAMA—its songs became a blockbuster in the Nepali music industry. Cool started collaborating with other artists such as Girish Khatiwada; their song appeared in Girish's Greatest Hits compilation album.[14][15]
Death impact
After his death at Patan hospital, which was confirmed by doctors to be a drug overdose, his fans were shocked. His last song project was "Suun Ko Bala", which is now performed by Avinash Ghising. Fifteen years later, a pop artist remixed his song "Yespali Dashin", making a number of fans angry at Jhilkey Badal or Badal Parasi; however, it started Jhilkey Badal's career.[16][17]
Musical style
Cool mostly sang pop music throughout his musical career and recorded a few hip hop songs with his band, Girish Khatiwada, which were mostly hit songs. Topics mainly included personal issues and his family being role models. Several songs were dedicated to his family, such as "Ama", meaning "Mother", and he also released an album for his family called Ama, which became one of his most successful albums.[18]
Discography
| Title | Year |
|---|---|
| Sun Meri Maya | 1999 |
| Aama | 2000 |
| Hunna Ra | 2002 |
Sun Meri Maya means Listen My Love. This song refers to his love life and school love life. Songs included on this album are "Jadi Chu Ma" and "School". After the success of the solo song and album, he started working on his second album called Aama meaning "Mother", which was recorded for his mother and family. The popularity of his songs such as "Aama" led to his music being enjoyed by teenagers. Huna Ra was recorded together with other artists and produced by Music Nepal. The title song "Huna Ra" became widely known. He finished recording his last album in 2004 but it has not yet been released due to his death.[19][non-primary source needed]
Death and legacy
Songs for Cool
- "Tribute" – Unity Band
- "Yespali Dashin" – Jhilkey Badal (original by Cool Pokharel)
- "Miss you Cool"
Songs
- "Yespali Dashain Ma"
- "Aama"
- "Janucha Malai"
- "Yo Ye Yo Yo"
- "Suna Meri Mayalu"
- "Hunna Ra"
- "Bhantheu Bhanaula"
- "Kina Udas"
- "Nepali Jeevan"
References
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