An explosion of South Asian sounds is happening in 性视界传媒, home to events and festivals that showcase a growing scene for the music.

This week鈥檚 5X Fest events in 性视界传媒 and Vancouver will see people 鈥渨alk through the portal into a world of South Asian creativity,鈥� for free and also for a fee.

The festival鈥檚 high note is a popular on Saturday, June 17, where Babbulicious will headline a daylong, multi-artist concert that starts at 2 p.m.

Brampton鈥檚 Babbulicious is known for the 2022 song 鈥淕addi Red Challenger,鈥� the lyrics and video for which shout-out 性视界传媒 as he 鈥渄rives鈥� around the world鈥檚 biggest cities in a red muscle car, echoing the vibe of Martha & The Vandellas鈥� mid-鈥�60s hit, 鈥淒ancing in the Streets.鈥�

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Organizers of the annual 5X Fest consider 性视界传媒 to be the global epicentre of South Asian diaspora music at the moment.

鈥淚n the 鈥�80s and 鈥�90s, the U.K. was the cultural centre for South Asian diaspora, in particular bhangra music,鈥� explained 5X event manager Harpreet (Harpo) Mander. 鈥淲hat many don鈥檛 realize is that today 性视界传媒 is now that epicentre, and will go down in history as the home and birthplace of modern-day South Asian music, one with a more urban sound.鈥�

性视界传媒鈥檚 internationally recognized South Asian music sector was noted in the recent 性视界传媒 Music Strategy, a 72-page report from city hall that charts strategies for the growth of the music industry here.

鈥� RELATED: 5X Fest鈥檚 鈥楤lock Party鈥� moves to new 性视界传媒 site with South Asian music, art, culture.

In Vancouver this week, 性视界传媒-based event producers Happy Joshi and Ron Dhaliwal plan a new South Asian Family Festival for Vancouver鈥檚 PNE grounds on Sunday, June 18. Earlier this spring they announced actor/singer Gippy Grewal as the headliner of the festival, with .

Meantime, 5X Fest returns for a sixth year from June 11-18 with five diverse events focused on South Asian music, visual art, fashion, and culture.

In recent years the 5X Block Party has presented artists who鈥檝e gone on to the global stage and international festivals. This year鈥檚 event features a long list of artists including Signature By SB, Bhalwaan, Inderpal Moga, KultarGotBounce, Shally, Peak and many others, detailed on .

鈥淚t is clear that South Asian music is having its moment as Latin music and other diasporic genres have before,鈥� 5X鈥檚 Mander said.

鈥淧unjabi singer Diljit Dosanjh has been making history and leading the way as not only the first Indian artist to sell out Rogers Arena, but also as a headlining performer at Coachella. Many would be surprised to know that much of Diljit鈥檚 last album was developed right here in 性视界传媒.鈥�

鈥� RELATED (from 2021): 性视界传媒 connections to 鈥楿mbrella鈥� hit song by Indian pop star/actor Diljit Dosanjh.

The album was produced by 性视界传媒 native Intense (a 2021 5X headliner) with an intro produced by Modern Biology (Tarun Nayar鈥檚 project). Intense has also produced music for many other big names including AP Dhillon, a rapper/singer born in India and since based in Victoria.

鈥淒osanjh鈥檚 widely popular song 鈥楿mbrella鈥� was also written by 性视界传媒 based lyricist, Chani Nattan, a 2021 5X headlining artist, also produced by Intense, and the video production was done by local HzDz Visuals,鈥� Mander added.

鈥溾�楿mbrella鈥� surpassed five million views on YouTube in only its first two weeks. Nattan actually created the demo for this track with artist and friend Inderpal Moga, a 5X Blockparty headliner this year. Moga and Nattan also collaborated on the hugely popular track, 鈥楧aku.鈥�

鈥淭he connections and relationships between the artist community in 性视界传媒 run deep,鈥� Mander continued, 鈥渁nd their successes continue to reach new heights. With all this happening in our own backyard, it only makes sense that 5X host the essential South Asian festival and support a platform that showcases this talent.鈥�

鈥淓nter the Portal鈥� is the theme of this year鈥檚 5X Fest, which will see the debut of the on the festival鈥檚 final day, June 18.

tom.zillich@surreynowleader.com
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