Cartel Madras are a Canadian experimental hip-hop duo comprised of sisters Eboshi and Contra. Born in Chennai in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and raised in Calgary, Canada their music is a cultural syncretism, an experimental heady mix of house, trap, and punk. Known for their live performance style explosive and aggressive, Cartel Madras delivers their music by combining elements of the underground trap, queer, and punk scene. They started by releasing their music on SoundCloud and performed their first show in January 2018, immediately after that performance they exploded onto the Calgary music scene; getting booked to play almost every weekend of that year. It is through word of mouth that followed their first year of performing in 2018 that their rise has been so quick. Their music is radical, racy, and truly unique in the contemporary international hip hop landscape. Signed to the legendary Sub Pop records in 2019 after being A&R scouted at their first Sled Island performance, they subsequently signed to Royal Mountain Records for their Canadian distribution. After announcing the signing they released their hit single “Goonda Gold”, off the Age of the Goonda EP, in the same year which found its way to the EA Sports UFC 4 soundtrack.

After touring with Sudan Archives in 2020, Cartel Madras was set to do a North American tour with label mates- clipping as well as their first UK and Europe tour. However COVID19 resulted in the remainder of their 2020 performances being canceled. During the pandemic Eboshi and Contra were separated with Eboshi in Toronto and Contra in Calgary, this resulted in them working on their 2021 project “remotely”. Working with Toronto based producers Dom Dias and Jide, as well as Chattanooga, Tennessee based producer Tyris White, they created The Serpent and the Tiger. The music video of one of the lead singles from this project “Working” was directed by Eboshi and Contra for Pop-Kultur Berlin, a multimedia festival in Germany that Cartel Madras would go onto perform at in 2022 to a sold out room. “Working” has received over 5 million streams across all platforms. 

Cartel Madras has received coverage from NME, Vogue India, Bonafide, Fashion Magazine, Exclaim!, NEXT, Rolling Stone India, GQ, and Gay Times amongst many other Canadian and international outlets. A common thread in their interviews is their desire to push the boundaries of art and genre while being passionate about representing Calgary, Chennai, and the LGBTQIA+ community. After the 2021 release of The Serpent and the Tiger, Cartel Madras performed at SXSW for the first time, toured Europe, and were part of the first group of Canadians to be selected as official Patrón Tastemakers. This summer, Cartel Madras will be performed at Do West Fest in Toronto, ON, 5X Fest in Surrey, BC, Le Festif! in Baie St. Paul, QC, Cumberland Wild in Cumberland, BC, as well as Capital Pride in Ottawa, ON. In December 2023 they opened for M.I.A in Pune, India. They are currently working on their debut album.