Through the years, we've seen Thailand's hip-hop scene grow and expand, with a constant flow of new artists emerging from the scene. But even after two decades, no one proves to be as influential and iconic as THAITANIUM. 

Formed in 2000, the group—which comprises KHAN, Day, DABOYWAY, DJAYBUDDAH, and BIG CALO—paved the way for Thai hip-hop in the international scene. Since their early days, THAITANIUM have been releasing highly acclaimed albums, with each one leading them to new heights and great milestones. 

From collaborating with Snoop Dogg to touring all around the world, the hitmakers undoubtedly put Thai hip-hop on the map. 

After five years, THAITANIUM are finally back together with their new single 'POR MEUNG', a playful track to remind everyone who started it all. 

Following the release, Bandwagon caught up with THAITANIUM's BIG CALO to talk about their long-awaited reunion, the growth of Thai hip-hop, and what's next for the prolific group. 

Congratulations on the release of ‘POR MEUNG’! Could you walk us through the message of the song?

Por Meung basically means “Your Dad” in Thai. We have been in the game for over 22 years and the work we put in has sculpted hip hop culture in Thailand. We haven’t released any music in over 5 years so this track is a sarcastic way to remind people who innovated this. 

This comes as your first release as a group in five years, what prompted the decision to get back together?

Besides the music, we're family! Like any family, we go through ups and downs but at the end of the day, the love is still there. We have all grown as artists over the past 5 years so being back in the studio creating brings a whole new energy but also has the same familiar vibe that connected us in the past. We THAITANIUM, we unbreakable!

What was it like recording ‘POR MEUNG’?

Way had the hook laid down already and was playing it for everyone at his birthday party. The track was hitting so KHAN jumped on it and eventually me and Day.

I don’t speak Thai so the majority of my lyrics are in English so I’m always finding unique ways to fit in the track. I decided to make my verse melodic and extra bouncy to give the track a different vibe.

กูน่ะรุ่นพ่อ !

👉 : https://t.co/3RnsNtw7Va#THAITANIUMSTRONG #THAITANIUM #พ่อมึง pic.twitter.com/LayVSB8Elm

— THAITANIUM (@Thaitay) May 9, 2022

What was it like working and recording a song together again?

When we started out we lived and recorded together, basically the studio was the crib, so it doesn’t matter how long we haven’t been in the studio as a unit once we all there it just feel natural.

As you mention, THAITANIUM is regarded as one of Thailand’s most influential hip-hop acts. What role do you think you play for Thai music in the regional scene?

We've been building bridges for years. We’ve toured throughout the region and have extended family all over Asia, I feel like a lot of people around the region have been introduced to Thai music through THAITANIUM.

We've been blessed to be able to connect and work with incredible artists, perform at multiple MTV Asia Awards, even released multiple albums in Japan working with some of the top artists out there. So many talented people we have love for that made it possible for us to be able to spread our sound and to introduce Thai music, specifically Thai hip-hop around the region.

How do you think the scene has evolved over the last two decades? Who are some Thai artists we should be watching out for?

I really saw it from the beginning when there was only a handful of artists and literally just a few hip hop clubs around the city. The roots that we laid really bloomed into something special that we all proud of.

Hip-hop culture in Thailand has exploded and there are so many talented artists. A lot of artists are more woke about different styles of hip hop around the world and are molding those sounds into their own. Look out for these two artists, Autta and Saran—they both mean with the bars!

🙏🏻🙏🏻 pic.twitter.com/Pj4odtZns5

— THAITANIUM (@Thaitay) May 18, 2022

Since the group’s formation in 2000, how would you say you’ve all grown as artists and friends?

We started from the bottom in a small crib in Queens, New York manifesting our dreams of making it in rap music. We lived together, ate together, partied together (did a lot of partying lol), we were carefree making music, working towards our ultimate goal which we eventually reached.

Now we grown, some of us have wives and kids, we branched off and done solo projects so it’s natural that we’ve grown as artists and relationships evolve but the love stay the same.

You’ve worked with many Asian artists in the past like Joe Flizzow, AK-69, and M Flow. Do you have any plans on collaborating with any other Asian artists in the future?

Right now we just locked in focusing on just making the best music we can so we haven’t planned any collabs yet but no doubt we’d love to work with some Asian artists in the future.

What’s been the most memorable moment from your career thus far?

There been so many highlights along the way but for me it has to be doing that track with Snoop Dogg, 'Wake Up Bangkok City'. He is such a legend and to be able to do a song with him, we truly blessed.

I remember being in the booth recording the hook, I had to drop my vocals right after Snoop, and just thinking to myself: 'WTF that’s really Snoop in my headphones'. It was surreal.

What can we expect from THAITANIUM moving forward, both as a group and as individuals?

We just started our joint venture with Def Jam Thailand so we in the studio working on our upcoming releases. We also have something big planned for 2023. I can’t reveal much because it’s still in the works but stay locked cause it’s gonna be something epic!

Listen to THAITANIUM's 'POR MEUNG' here.