Who was the Punjabi singer at New York mayor Zohran Mamdani’s inauguration?

Babbu Beard’s song, a mix of Punjabi and English, celebrates the everyday life and humour of the South Asian diaspora. Lines referencing New York and the confidence of desi youth drew cheers from the crowd gathered outside City Hall.

The artist, whose real name is Babbu Singh, is part of Canada’s Punjabi-Canadian music scene and is closely associated with the Brampton-Toronto belt. He rose to popularity in the early 2020s through short, humorous music videos and remixes on TikTok and Instagram. ‘Gaddi Red Challenger’, which playfully pokes fun at diaspora stereotypes such as flashy cars and loud pride in one’s roots, made him a familiar name in online Punjabi circles.

Soon after the event, Babbu posted photographs with Mamdani on social media, thanking the mayor for the invitation. The post drew thousands of likes and reposts within hours.

Reactions online were sharply divided. Many users from South Asian communities welcomed the moment as a sign of representation at one of the world’s most prominent civic stages. Clips of the mayor dancing were widely shared with messages celebrating New York’s multicultural identity.

At the same time, criticism came from conservative and far-right accounts, some of which objected to a non-English song at an official civic event and called Babbu an Afghan national. A few posts used inflammatory language and stereotypes, provoking some X users to decry a lack of knowledge about Sikhs in the US.

The singer responded lightly to the criticism, posting humorous replies and continuing to share clips from the performance. The attention translated into a sharp rise in followers and streams for his music. His song returned to playlists and charts, and the images from City Hall have continued to circulate online.