Yaa Rahman by K. G. Markose

Yaa Rahman arrived from the Yaa Rahman album and quickly became one of the most replayed tracks of 2020. K. G. Markose, Nizar Vadakara's arrangement gives the track a layered quality that rewards repeated listening.

The performance by K. G. Markose is the centrepiece here — controlled where it needs to be, open where it counts. Hearing Yaa Rahman without thinking of a talented ensemble cast is almost impossible for anyone who has seen Yaa Rahman.

Released in 2020, it arrived at a time when Malayalam music needed exactly this kind of sincerity. It is the kind of track that works at full volume with friends and equally well in a quiet room alone — the mood adjusts without the song changing.

Running to 5:42, the song is exactly as long as it needs to be, which is the hardest length for a songwriter to find. Yaa Rahman has earned its place in the catalogue of Malayalam music that genuinely matters. The listeners who found it early already knew.