Arivu (Rapper) Age, Wife, Children, Family, Biography » StarsUnfolded

Some Lesser Known Facts About Arivu

• Arivu was born and raised in Dalit community in a small town of Tamil Nadu, Arakkonam.

• He was raised in a family of educators, where his father worked as college professor and his mother worked as a class teacher.

• In an interview, Arivu mentioned that his parents introduced him to the ideas of Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, Periyar, and Tamil literature from a young age, which later became an important part of his songs.

• In an interview, Arivu mentioned that as a child he was surrounded by Tamil folk music, Ambedkarite songs, and Arivoli Iyakkam (literacy awareness campaign) songs, which shaped his unique style of music.

• Since his teenage years, Arivu developed a deep understanding of socio-political issues, which is one of the central themes in his music.

•  At the age of 18, Arivu published his poetry book, titled, “Kuninthi Varaverkum Kudisaigal.” In that book, he talked about love, poverty, caste, and social issues.

• Before entering the music industry, Arivu completed an engineering degree from a college in Chennai and later earned an MBA degree from distance education. In an interview, he mentioned that after MBA he also prepared for the Indian Civil Services Examination because he wanted to serve society through public service.

• When he was in college, Arivu started writing poems and performing on stage. At that time, he also discovered rap music.
  

  Arivu, while performing live on the stage

• In 2017, Arivu auditioned for The Casteless Collective, a music group started by filmmaker, Pa. Ranjith. He was selected as a songwriter and rapper.

• Arivu gained recognition as a songwriter and rapper through his work with the group, including “Jaibhim Anthem” and “Quota Song.”

• In 2018, Arivu made his film debut as a lyricist with the song “Urimayai Meetpom” in the film Kaala.

• In the same year, he worked as a singer and lyricist in another Tamil film titled, Vada Chennai.

• In 2019, he released his first independent music album titled, Therukural. The name of the album was inspired by the famous Tamil Book Tirukkural. In this album, Arivu mixed Tamil folk music, gaana, oppari, and hip-hop to create a completely different style of rap.

• An American monthly magazine, Rolling Stone India featured his music album, Therukural as one of the top ten Indian albums in 2019, and described Arivu as top of the list of people who can to “use the power of music to move the public.”

• In 2019, he wrote the lyrics for “Single Pasanga” from the film Natpe Thunai, the song became a major hit of that time and introduced Arivu to a much larger audience.

• In 2020, he wrote and performed “Sanda Seviom,” a rap song about the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens (NRC).

• In the same year, one of his songs Vaathi Raid from the blockbuster film Master, became one of the biggest hits of the year.

• In 2021, Arivu received widespread recognition with Enjoy Enjaami, a Tamil independent song produced by Maajja and performed with singer Dhee. In an interview, Arivu mentioned that he wrote the lyrics based on the life of his grandmother, Valliyamma, who was immigrant tea-plantation labourer from Sri Lanka. He added that her life motivated him to write about forgotten communities and their connection with nature.

• The song became a global hit and received over 500 million YouTube views as of November 2024. The success of the song brought Tamil independent music international recognition and also earned Arivu recognition as a dynamic artist on the international stage.

• Later, on 21 June 2021 on the occasion of World Music Day, DJ Snake remixed “Enjoy for Spotify Singles.

• In the same year, he wrote and performed “Neeye Oli” from the film Sarpatta Parambarai. The song received critical praise and later won him the Filmfare Award for Best Lyricist (Tamil).

• In 2022, Arivu started his own 10-members music group named, Ambassa. In his band he combines rap, beatboxing, gaana, and oppari with modern music.
  

  Logo of Arivu’s music band Ambasaa

• In 2022, he received the Edison Award for Best Tamil Rapper of the Year and was also honoured at the News18 Magudam Awards for his contribution to arts and culture.

• In 2023, he became curator of Coke Studio Tamil Season 1 along with Sean Roldan. He wrote and performed the song Sagavasi abd khatija Rahman, which became the most popular song of the season with over 23 million views on YouTube. Later, his band, Ambassa made its Coke Studio Tamil Season 2 debut with the song Tamizh Vazhthu.

• In 2023, Arivu was recognised as the Top Ten Youth at the Vikatan Nambikkai Awards for inspiring young people through his music and social messages.

• In 2024, again in honour of his grandmother, he released a music album titled, Valliamma Peraandi-Vol. 01.
  

  Arivu’s music album, Valliamma Peraandi-Vol. 01 poster

• In July 2026, Arivu represented India at the AXEAN Festival 2026 in Bali, Indonesia and won the TuneCore India Showcase Contest.

• On 22 July 2026, Arivu came into news after he was detained by police while participating in an anti-NEET protest in Chennai. After Arivu’s detention several political leaders, filmmakers, and supporters spoke in his favor.
  

  Arivu, when he was detained by the Chennai police while participating in an anti-NEET protest

• After his release from Police detention, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, Vijay met with him. Their meeting received significant media attention because Arivu has become one of the key public voices against NEET in Tamil Nadu.
  

  Arivu with Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, Vijay

• Arivu also appealed to young people and the public to support the protests through social media.