Droptop by AP Dhillon Explained

We ride around in droptop cars
Russian handgun in our holsters, it’ll blow right through you
The crème de la crème of this town bow down to us
Don’t speak too much or your place we’ll show you

Typical gangsta stuff. The imagery in the song is that of AP and Gurinder talking directly at someone who has tried to cross them.

Vocabulary:
• Thhall (ठल्ल) – stoppage ↩︎

We’ve made a scene here, we walk our own paths
Our songs slyly climb to the top of the charts
How will you ever compete? We never repeat the beat
We cannot be suppressed, we are loud and confident

This is where they show off their musical prowess. Their songs have hit #1 on the charts across countries. They are confident of their music and they have no intention to back down from the top.

Vocabulary:
• Gaah (गाह): a messy scene ↩︎

Don’t come near me, don’t show up in my town
I am guarded by shooters, you can’t escape them
You’ll quit your music, ill luck will befall on you
The good times will seem so distant, and you won’t get them back

Moving back to threatening the competition, AP pumps his crew and sings about how they’ve got his back. Any attempt to cross him will invite dire consequences.

Vocabulary:
• Maarhe samay (माड़े समय): bad times ↩︎

We never copied anyone, we brought a new wave in the industry
Watch how AP Dhillon’s name echoes around your town

Switching back to boasting about their musical prowess. Interesting to note here is the usage of the word ‘wave’ because it connotes a new trend and hints at the synthwave genre. A bunch of AP Dhillon’s songs have synthwave sounds in them.

Vocabulary:
• Chadhai (चढ़ाई): success; literally - ascend ↩︎

Oh they say don’t mess with the Jatts
We roll together, a little high, 5-7 of us
A single ride through your town is enough to send a message
Those who are against us, cannot touch us

My guy, Gurinder Gill, steps in and the lyrics switch back to threatening the competition. Gurinder uses a couple of phrases endemic to Punjabi to send his message, such as ‘jatt di garari’ and ‘akkh hundi chaadhi’. Another word he uses, ‘anti’, has become a recent favourite in Punjabi music, along with the word ‘chobar’. Anti simply denotes people who are against you.

Vocabulary:
• Bathera (बथेरा): enough ↩︎

Don’t think I am lying, this is an old diet
These groups of idiots will stare down the barrel of our guns
And when the bullet goes piercing through their chests
They won’t even ask for water, cuz they’d be dead

Getting a bit more threatening now, Gurinder reiterates that his words shouldn’t be taken lightly. That he will genuinely mow down anyone who tries to mess with him or his crew.

Vocabulary:
• Hikk (हिक्क): chest ↩︎

Our bodies are strong
We stride like a pride of lions
If you hear about a crime scene in your town, that’s us
I keep guns in the boot and drugs in my pocket

Wrapping up his threats, Gurinder non-chalantly talks about being a hardened thug. One who keeps his car’s boot filled with guns. And keeps some afeem (an opium derivative consumed in large parts on both sides of the Indo-Pak border) in his breast pocket.

Vocabulary:
• Vaardat (वारदात): crime scene ↩︎