Prateek Kuhad

For just over a decade, Prateek Kuhad has been quietly carving out a unique role for himself as a globally recognized pop musician from India. Originally from the northern city of Jaipur, Kuhad, who sings in Hindi and English, easily connects with fans of all ages and backgrounds. Praised by Rolling Stone India as "one of the country's leading singer-songwriters," Kuhad found a new wave of global recognition in 2019 when former President Barack Obama added the heartfelt breakup ballad "cold/mess" to his annual list of favorite songs. Following his acclaimed 2021 Hindi EP, Shehron Ke Raaz, Kuhad now arrives with his third studio album, The Way That Lovers Do, via Elektra Records.

Kuhad, who cites Elliott Smith as a major influence, did not necessarily set out to shatter conceptions of popular Indian music, which is generally embedded in Bollywood film culture. Growing up in Jaipur, Kuhad began playing guitar as a teenager and listened to his parents' Cliff Richard and Harry Belafonte CDs. Through his older sister, he found contemporary pop tapes and CDs of the Backstreet Boys and other '90s Top 40 radio fare, but it wasn't until he moved to New York to attend college where he really began to blossom as a musician, playing local shows around the city in the early '10s.

In the years since, Kuhad moved back to India but has continuously spent time playing and recording in numerous US cities. To that end, The Way That Lovers Do features 11 brand-new tracks about human love, friendship, and connectivity, recorded at Seattle's secluded Bear Creek Studio with Ryan Hadlock (The Lumineers, Vance Joy). Each song, written over the last three years, is elegant and intricately layered, highlighting Kuhad's whisper-soft tenor.

Earning comparisons to indie balladeers like Sufjan Stevens and Jose Gonzalez, Kuhad has generated universal praise for his pop and folk-driven songs about love and desire in all its forms. The Way That Lovers Do continues this journey, looking at deep affection through the lens of romance and friendship. Initially, after being dubbed "Heartbreak Kid" in a magazine, Kuhad wasn't sure he wanted to keep writing love songs. But when the pandemic set in in 2020, "that kind of forced me to slow down," he says. "I realized I should just do what I want to do. There are no rules here."