Arpan Kumar Chandel, simply known as King, is an Indian rapper, singer, and songwriter widely seen as one of the major players in the development of the modern Indian hip-hop music industry. He was born on 10th October 1995, in Uttar Pradesh, which would make him 30 years old as of 2025. In 2019, King gained national attention when he was a finalist on MTV India’s reality television programme “MTV Hustle,” and with a unique ability to blend rap and melody into one cohesive performance, King quickly gained a following. King is now known for producing tracks that have relevant lyrics to the youth, catchy hooks and genre-defying sounds.
King Chandel comes from a supportive middle-class family; his dad (Ashok Chandel) and his mum (Rani Chandel) instilled the values of discipline and hard work from an early age; he also has a brother named Amit Kumar Chandel. Although King has kept much about his family private, he often credits them for keeping him humble, regardless of his level of celebrity. His private life is kept private, and so far, he has not confirmed any relationships, including being unmarried at this time. As a child, he attended Vinay Marg Navyug Secondary School, where, in addition to studying, he was actively participating in sports, which was instrumental in gaining admission to Dyal Singh College in New Delhi to study for a degree of Bachelor of Arts with the help of sports quota. King also developed his passion for music while attending school and college, and now it is his main focus.
In terms of his size, King is 173 cm (5ft 8ins) tall and weighs about 70 kg. He has black hair and black eyes and has an extremely confident presence on stage, which complements his bold musical image. His fashion and performance style have contributed to his success as an artist.
His musical career began in 2012, and he began uploading his music to YouTube (his name at that time was ‘King Rocco’), focusing on the human experience, or as we say, there was much emotion involved, as well as Street rap. As time went on, King evolved with his melodic style. The finale of MTV Hustle was a defining moment for the way people looked at King as an artist, giving him a tremendous amount of success and attention regardless of whether he was the winner of that series. MTV Hustle introduced him to audiences all around the world and allowed him to be recognized as an independent artist.
After gaining such notoriety as an artist, he produced several successful songs, including “Gold Digger”, “Going Bad”, “I Love You” and “Fantasy”. He also produced 2 long-play albums called The Carnival, released in 2020 and Champagne Talk, released in 2022, that demonstrated his versatility as an artist.
Alongside writing and creating music, King also draws inspiration from the joy of listening to music, traveling, and experiencing other cultures. The best social media platforms are Instagram (@ifeelking), YouTube and others where millions of people follow King on them. King shares multiple types of content (music, performances, etc.) on these platforms.
By the end of October 2023, King’s value was ₹12,000,000 (USD $1,500,000), mainly from streaming, live performances, endorsements and other online support.
Due to his rapid growth as an artist, King has also established a devoted following, which will help him have a long-term impact on the Indian Hip Hop community.
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