Bhangra is a type of non-traditional music of Punjab originating in Britain, specifically Southall. It is a type of upbeat popular music associated with the Punjabi diaspora in Britain. The style has its origins in the folk music of Punjab as well as western pop music of the 1970s and 1980s. Prior to this musical fusion, Bhangra existed only as a dance form in the native Punjab. This Punjabi music was unique in that it was not traditional nor did it seek any authenticity. While the traditional folk music of Punjab has a set of melodies that are used by various singers, Bhangra was a form of strict "band culture" in that new melodies were composed for each song. Therefore, the musicians were as important as the singers.
Daler Singh, better known as Daler Mehndi, is an Indian singer, songwriter, author, and record producer. He has helped to make Bhangra popular worldwide, as well as Indian pop music independent of Bollywood music. He is known for his dance songs, turban, and long flowing robes.
Rajinder Singh Rai, better known by his stage name Panjabi MC, is a British-Indian recording artist, rapper, producer and DJ. He is best known for the worldwide 2002 bhangra hit "Mundian To Bach Ke", which sold 10 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling singles of all time. Among other songs, he gained acclaim with the 2003 release "Jogi". AllMusic has called him "one of the most prominent names in bhangra".
Asian underground is a term associated with various British Asian and South Asian Canadian musicians who blend elements of Western underground dance music and the traditional Asian music of their home countries in South Asia. The sound has roots in the South Asian Diaspora, and many notable musicians within the genre are immigrants or children of immigrants. The first well-known mention was the compilation album Anokha - Soundz of the Asian Underground released in 1997 and masterminded by Talvin Singh and Sweety Kapoor. It is not a strict musical genre per se, since the specific sounds can vary wildly.
Rishpal Singh Rekhi, better known by his stage name Rishi Rich, is a British-Indian music producer based in London. He began his career in the Asian Underground scene and later became internationally known for his bhangra tracks, his Hindi remixes, and as a pioneer of Asian-R&B fusion music.
Neha Kakkar Singh is an Indian playback singer. She is the younger sister of playback singers Tony Kakkar and Sonu Kakkar. She began performing at a very early age at religious events. In 2005, she participated in the second season of the singing reality show, Indian Idol. She made her Bollywood debut as a chorus singer in the film Meerabai Not Out. She rose to prominence with the release of the dance track "Second Hand Jawaani" from Cocktail (2012), which was followed by several popular party songs, including "Sunny Sunny" from Yaariyan and "London Thumakda" from the 2014 soundtrack album Queen. Apart from playback singing, Kakkar has appeared in several music videos and as a judge on several television reality shows, including "Indian Idol".
The Bollywood Brass Band is a brass band playing Bollywood and traditional Indian music, based in London, England.
Johney Brar, also known as DJ JoN-E or "Johnny No Best", is a Canadian DJ, producer, writer and radio host. He was the host and executive producer of the primetime Desi Live Radio Program which first aired on CHRY 105.5FM then was nationally distributed in the United States on HD Radio in New York/New Jersey WRKS 98.7FM HD2, Washington WTOP 103.5FM HD2, Chicago WKQX 101.1FM HD2, San Jose/Bay Area KIOI 101.3FM HD2 and Los Angeles KPWR 105.9FM HD2. He is currently head of operations for Sixcity Media.
FatLabs is a Canadian home recording studio in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. It was established in 2003 by Vikas Kohli. The studio is known for its ability to work with different categories of genres.
Desi Live Radio Program was the first nationally distributed South-Asian radio show in the United States. The show was produced and hosted by Johney Brar and distributed by HumDesi Radio Network in HD Radio format. The program first aired on CHRY 105.5FM then moved in 2008 to HD Radio airing in New York City/New Jersey - WRKS 98.7 FM HD-2, Los Angeles - KPWR 105.9 FM HD-2, Chicago - WKQX 101.1 FM HD-2, San Jose/Bay Area - KIOI 101.3 FM HD-2 and Washington - WTOP 103.5 FM HD-2.
Masala! Mehndi! Masti! meaning "Spice! Henna! Fun!" is the largest interdisciplinary South Asian arts and entertainment festival outside of South Asia. This free event takes place annually in Toronto, Ontario, Canada (GTA) at the Exhibition Place over a three-day period. The festival exhibits local and international South Asia inspired talent in areas such as music, fashion, dance, theatre, film, visual arts and crafts, literary works, yoga, social issues and more.
Zameer Rizvi is a technology entrepreneur and innovator of AI software. Before finding success in the tech business, he pursued a music career as a singer/songwriter. He founded Odesso Inc in 2017, a rapidly growing tech start-up that makes enterprise SaaS software.
Kantimathi Subramanian Iyer, known professionally as Shweta Subram, is a Canadian playback singer, known for singing in the song "Jalebi Baby" (2020). She primarily sings in Hindi, as well as Punjabi, Sindhi, Tamil, English and other languages. Shweta is the recipient of multiple awards including the North American Best Singer award from Sangam Kala Group, and Best Singer Award from Shankar Mahadevan Academy's talent hunt, judged by Shankar Mahadevan himself. Shweta was an active participant in the International Indian Film Academy Awards (2011), performing with Bollywood music composer/director duo Salim–Sulaiman for IIFA Rocks in Toronto.
Anita Lerche is a Danish-American singer-songwriter, composer and actress originating from Denmark. With the release of her album Heer from Denmark in November 2006, she became the first non-Asian woman from the west to create a solo album in Punjabi. In addition to singing in Punjabi, she has sung in a total of 16 different languages.
Jonita Gandhi is a Canadian singer of Indian descent. She has recorded songs predominantly in Hindi and Tamil languages with few in Punjabi, Telugu, Marathi, Gujarati, Bengali, Kannada and Malayalam languages. Some of her most acclaimed songs include "The Breakup Song", "Mental Manadhil", "Chellama" and "Arabic Kuthu". She is also well known for her YouTube presence. Her singing debut started through Chennai Express in 2013.
Vidya Iyer, better known by her stage name Vidya Vox, is an American YouTuber and singer. She was born in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India and immigrated with her family to the United States of America at the age of eight. According to NBC News, her music is a mix of "Western pop, electronic dance music, Bollywood hits, and Indian classical music." Since beginning her channel in April 2015, her videos have received over 906 million views, and her channel has accumulated over 7 million subscribers.
Bhangra Paa Le is a 2020 Indian Hindi-language comedy-drama film, directed by Sneha Taurani and produced by Ronnie Screwvala. It stars Sunny Kaushal and Rukshar Dhillon. Initially planned to release on 13 September 2019 and then 1 November 2019, it was theatrically released in India on 3 January 2020.
Gurdeep Pandher is a Sikh-Canadian, Yukon-based author, teacher and performer, who makes Punjabi dance videos. Gurdeep was born into a farming family, in a small village in Siahar, Punjab. He moved to Canada in 2006 and became a Canadian citizen in 2011. Moving to Canada inspired him to tour the entire country and further understand his adopted nation. He has lived in numerous Canadian provinces, including small Canadian villages, but found his home in a wilderness cabin in Yukon.
The Bollywood Monster Mashup is a South Asian festival held at Mississauga Celebration Square in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by Vikas Kohli in 2011 and is organized by monstrARTity Creative Community, a not-for-profit arts organization. The event features artists from many genres of music and dance, including Bollywood, Tollywood, rock, disco, and pop, as well as food vendors and family-friendly activities. Notable acts who have performed at the festival include Sunny Leone, Aaman Trikha and Yasser Desai.
Hitesh Sharma, known professionally as Tesher, is a Canadian rapper, singer-songwriter and producer. He is best known for his singles "Young Shahrukh" and "Jalebi Baby", both released in 2020. A remix version of "Jalebi Baby" was released in 2021 with Jason Derulo.
