Anoop Desai

Anoop Desai
Anoop Desai aka TOTEM at Lollapalooza
Background information
Born	(1986-12-20) December 20, 1986 (age 37) Cary, North Carolina
Origin	Chapel Hill, North Carolina, U.S.
Genres	R&B pop
Occupations	Actor Singer
Instrument	Vocals
Years active	2009—present
Formerly of	UNC Clef Hangers
Website	www.anoopdesai.com

Anoop Manoj Desai (born December 20, 1986) is an American singer-songwriter and actor. He began his career as the sixth place finisher on the eighth season of American Idol,^[1] after which he began writing and performing music under the pseudonym TOTEM.^[2] Since 2020, Desai has devoted his time to acting, most notably as The Djinn on the fourth and fifth seasons of What We Do In the Shadows.^[3]

Desai was born in Cary, North Carolina and grew up in Cary. His family moved to nearby Chapel Hill in 1998. Desai's father, Manoj Desai, graduated from IIT Kanpur and came to the US in 1977. His mother, Nalini Desai, grew up in Navsari, Gujarat.^[4] The family is of Indian descent.

In the 1990s, Desai appeared on the WRAL-TV (NC Triangle) television children's show, CentralXpress.com, and played the character "Raj". The show won multiple awards, including seven regional Emmys, two national Iris awards, and a national Gabriel Award.^[5]

Desai attended Carnage Middle School and Phillips Middle School, then later went on to attend East Chapel Hill High School, graduating in 2004. He was awarded a four-year academic merit scholarship to attend the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and was the Haywood W. Hinkle Carolina scholar from 2004 to 2008.^[6]

After being accepted to the UNC, Desai joined the UNC Clef Hangers, a long-standing male a cappella group founded in 1977.^[7] Desai served as the group's music director during his junior year and as the group's president his senior year. Desai's performance as a soloist on the song "She Has No Time" was recognized with the BOCA 2007 (Best of College A Cappella).^[8]

Desai graduated from UNC in 2008 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science and American studies.^[9] He was awarded the 2008 Peter C. Baxter Memorial Prize in American Studies, as one who exemplified "intellectual excellence, personal warmth and creativity.^[10]

Desai rose to national fame with his participation in the eighth season of American Idol. Motivated by the death of his friend Eve Carson,^[11] Desai auditioned for American Idol on August 8, 2008, in Kansas City, Missouri, and was selected as a semifinalist following his "Hollywood Week" performances.^[11] Although he was not one of the three finalists chosen out of his semifinal performance group, he returned as a "Wild Card." On that broadcast, Simon Cowell announced that Desai would continue on as a finalist as part of the first ever Top 13 in Idol history.

Desai's first finals performance of Michael Jackson's "Beat It" was panned by the judges, with Simon Cowell saying that it was "very lightweight" and that he regretted choosing Desai for the Top 13. But Desai won the judges over again the next week, when he sang Willie Nelson's classic country ballad "Always On My Mind" for "Grand Ole Opry Week." Even Cowell was impressed enough to retract his earlier remarks. Desai's rendition of Cyndi Lauper's "True Colors" three weeks later also garnered praise from the judges.

Despite celebrities such as Ellen DeGeneres and Keith Urban said they favored Desai to win,^[12] he was voted off as part of a double elimination Top 7 week. He returned for the season finale to perform "I'm Yours" with fellow Idol contestant Alexis Grace and singer Jason Mraz.

After appearing on American Idol, Desai appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Live with Regis and Kelly, The Mo'Nique Show,^[13] Access Hollywood, Today, and local radio stations across the nation. He also performed with Amos Lee in Atlanta, Georgia. Desai was part of the American Idols LIVE! Tour 2009 with his fellow Top 10 contestants; the tour visited fifty cities in the United States and Canada from July 5 to September 15, 2009.

In 2010, Desai released his first solo single, "My Name," and his debut album, All Is Fair.^[14][15][16] Desai's second single, "All Is Fair (Crazy Love)," was selected by Clear Channel Music and he as an iHeartRadio "artist to watch" for September 2010 with this single as the featured track.^[17]

In 2012, Desai began writing and performing R&B leaning pop music under the pseudonym TOTEM.^[18] The first TOTEM songs were released anonymously and independently on small blogs before being picked up by the likes of FADER,^[19] Billboard,^[20] and Complex.^[21] Eventually, TOTEM garnered significant success on marquee playlists like Spotify's "New Music Friday" and "Pop Rising", and Apple Music's "Best of the Week" and "A-List Pop". in 2016, he headlined the BMI stage at Lollapalooza.

His music, including the singles "Bubblegum" and "Aftertaste," combined with music he has written for other artists, have been streamed tens of millions of times.^[22][23]

In 2018, Desai was offered a role in the developmental Lab of the then Broadway-bound production of The Secret Garden.^[24] In 2019, Desai made his Off-Broadway debut at MCC Theater in the world-premiere of The Wrong Man, a musical written by fellow pop songwriter Ross Golan.^[25]

In 2020, Desai made his professional on-screen debut on the fifth season of Billions. Later TV guest appearances include Little Voice, Russian Doll, and Evil. In 2021, Desai began portraying the Djinn in the fourth season of What We Do in the Shadows to wide acclaim.^[26] He continues to reprise the role. Desai is next expected to play a major role as Raj Masihajjar in Under the Bridge.

In 2023, Desai made his feature film debut in The Adults.^[27] His next feature film role will be in the upcoming film Babygirl.

• Anoop Desai Official Website
• In the Spotlight with Anoop Desai