Sidhu Moose Wala: Who was the murdered Punjabi rapper with a Canadian connection?

Growing anger over death of Sidhu Moose Wala Anger is growing in India following the shooting death of Punjabi rapper Sidhu Moose Wala, who grew to fame while living in Toronto.

Punjabi rapper Shubhdeep Singh Sidhu, better known by his stage name Sidhu Moose Wala, was a rising artist in the South Asian music scene before he was fatally shot in India.

The 28-year-old moved to Brampton, Ont., from India as an international student in 2016. A year later, he kick-started his music career when he released his first single on YouTube, with his music channel on the site now racking up a following of more than 11 million subscribers from around the world.

Sidhu was born and raised in a village in the Mansa district of Punjab and obtained a degree in electrical engineering from Guru Nanak Dev Engineering College in Ludhiana before making his way to Canada to study at Humber College in Toronto, according to India Today.

In his four-year music career as a full-time artist, the rapper became one of Punjab’s most popular and ubiquitous hip-hop artists, with his music often topping charts in India.

“India has very few authentic modern artists. He was right on top of that list,” Indian singer Vishal Dadlani said on Twitter.

Local police in India said Sidhu was killed on Sunday in a gang rivalry which may have ties to Canada, the Hindustan Times reports. The assailants fired 30 rounds at Sidhu’s vehicle and he was declared dead on arrival at the hospital, according to Punjab’s chief of police, VK Bhawra.

In June 2020, Sidhu’s song "Bambiha Bole” entered the top 50 in Canada on the Apple Music chart and topped the 2020 U.K.’s Asian charts. It also entered the top five of the Global YouTube charts.

The Guardian listed Sidhu as one of its 50 new artists to watch for in 2020, noting that "South Asian music rarely crosses over into the U.K. charts."

Sidhu would rap about destruction, self-praise and rebellion in most of his songs, often citing his personal experiences as a Sikh from a low-income background when he was exposed to violence, drugs and guns in the state of Punjab.

"Ho Unlimited Challde Aa Vair Ni; Limited Count Ne Breath De; Main Duniya De Opposite Challda, Te Parallel Challda Aa Death De (With unlimited enemies and limited breath, I walk opposite the world and parallel to death)," read the lyrics of one of his 2019 songs, titled Legend.

NBA Raptors’ Punjabi-language host and commentator, Parminder Singh, said Sidhu’s success in Canada, and on a broader international scale, has resonated with and inspired younger immigrants, especially from the Punjabi community from India.

“He was all about uplifting, uprising, getting the community what they should truly be deserving of,” Singh told CTV’s News Channel on Sunday.

“He began his career in Canada, was doing amazing … for folks who come to Canada, this is like; we’ve made it and we’re going to get settled here.”

Sidhu’s music often acknowledged his identity as a Punjabi Sikh immigrant in Canada. His 2018 song B-Town, for example, is a tribute to the town of Brampton which has about 40 million views on YouTube.

His song The Last Ride, released earlier this month, was a tribute to one of his biggest influences, Tupac Shakur.

The music video, which has garnered millions of views on YouTube, featured a recreation of the scene when the American rapper was shot to death in his car in 1996.

The rapper also cultivated a controversial reputation for his gun-related lyrics that some said promoted violence.

In 2020, Indian police charged him under India's Arms Act for allegedly promoting gun culture in one of his songs. He was never convicted of the alleged crime, but critics have called him out for normalising violence in his lyrics and videos.

Drake paid tribute to Sidhu on Sunday, posting to his Instagram story a photo of the singer with the caption "RIP MOOSE".

Canadian comedian Lilly Singh also remembered Sidhu in an Instagram post, calling him a "young legend."

"If you see tribute images of him today, please don't keep scrolling, but rather take a moment to stream the music of Sidhu Moosewala. It has often been featured in my content and has always resulted in people asking me, 'what song is that?!'" Singh wrote.

Sidhu, who had spent most of the past six years in Brampton, Ont., recently tried his hands at politics in India. He joined India’s Congress Party in 2021 and unsuccessfully ran in the state’s assembly elections.

A day before his death, the Punjab government withdrew security cover for more than 400 individuals, including Moose Wala, in a bid to clamp down on “VIP culture,” which privileges politicians above ordinary citizens.

With files from The Associated Press