Punjabi Rapper and Singer Sidhu Moosewala Shot Dead at 28

Sidhu Moosewala, the prolific voice of Punjabi hip-hop, was shot dead earlier today near the village of Mansa by as yet unidentified assailants. He was 28 years old and two weeks shy of his 29th birthday on June 11th.

The artist – also an actor and as recently as late 2021, a politician – had his security cover curtailed by the Punjab government earlier this week, with the latter citing a crackdown on VIP culture. The Indian Express reports that Sidhu Moosewala, whose real name is Shubhdeep Singh Sidhu, was shot at “at least 10 times near a temple in village Jhawahar Ke, and was declared brought dead at the Civil Hospital in Mansa.”

Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann took to Twitter to call for calm and said, “I am deeply saddened and shocked by the horrific murder of Sidhu Moose Wala..No culprit will be spared..My heartfelt sympathies and prayers are with his family and his fans all over the world..Appeal to all to remain calm.”

Influenced by the likes of Tupac Shakur from an early age, Sidhu Moosewala shot to fame in 2017 with his single “So High.” He followed it up with his 2018 debut album PBX 1, which set the tone for a commanding, unfiltered voice among Punjab’s young. His confrontational tone took centerstage on the album with songs like “Jaat Da Muqabala” but also turned introspective on “I’m Better Now,” a breakup song.

With albums like Snitches Get Stitches (2020) and Moosetape (2021), plus EPs such as his 2022 record No Name, Moosewala became known as an unflinching singer. Even as he notched up chart positions in Canada, the U.K. and became one of the most streamed artists in India, Moosewala called on leading hip-hop artists like Bohemia, DIVINE, Raja Kumari and others for Moosetape. His most recent single, “Levels,” was out on May 25th.

Lyrically, Moosewala’s music persona was not detached from his own actions. In 2020, he was booked under the Arms Act after a video surfaced of him using an AK-47 rifle. The same year, his single “Panjab – My Motherland” reportedly carried references to the Khalistani separatist movement. As recently as February 2022, he stood for elections on an Indian National Congress ticket from Mansa in the Punjab Legislative Assembly polls, gaining about 36,000 votes but losing out to politician Vijay Sangla from the Aam Aadmi Party. Moosewala then released “Scapegoat” in April, reacting to the increased political forces around him while also accepting the election result.

Tributes for Moosewala poured in from the hip-hop community in India following his shocking demise. U.K. DJ and radio personality Bobby Friction called Moosewala “the very definition of the word gamechanger in the South Asian/Panjabi music world.”

Raja Kumari shared a couple of photos with Moosewala and tweeted, “I’m in shock. Please don’t share any videos with me and give me time to pray for my friend.”