Sidhu Moosewala’s ‘295’ enters Billboard Global 200 Chart, reaches number three on YouTube

PTI

New Delhi, June 17

The internet is slowly catching up on the Sidhu Moosewala phenomenon as the late Punjabi singer’s song “295” has made it to Billboard Global 200 Chart.

Moosewala, whose real name was Shubhdeep Singh, enjoyed a cult following in India with songs like “So High”, “Same Beef”, “The Last Ride” and “Just Listen”.

Now weeks after his gruesome killing in Punjab, the global diaspora has started exploring the singer’s vast discography.

On the Billboard Global 200 Chart, Moosewala’s “295” made a sudden entry this week and is listed at the 154 spot as of Friday.

The list is topped by American singer Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)” and also features tracks by the likes of Harry Styles, Bad Bunny, Lizzo, Camila Cabello, Ed Sheeran and Justin Bieber.

“295” and its official video, which Moosewala released in July 2021, is also creating waves on YouTube and its dedicated music streaming platform YouTube Music.

On YouTube, the viewership numbers of “295” have risen close to 200 million and the track is listed on third spot on the its Top 100 Music Videos Global chart.

Moosewala’s another track “The Last Ride” saw an upward trend on the chart as it is now listed on the sixth spot. The video has amassed over 73 million views on YouTube.

On YouTube Music, “295” is on the fourth position on the global chart, while he is at the second place at the platform’s Top Artist list.

Moosewala, who had joined the Congress months before the state assembly polls, was shot dead on May 29 by unidentified assailants in Punjab’s Mansa district, a day after the state government curtailed his security cover.

His murder had shocked the Indian film and music community with scores of Indian artistes paying tribute to Moosewala on social media.

From the global music community, Canadian rapper Drake had condoled Moosewala’s death on May 30.

In a post on his Instagram Stories, Drake had shared a picture of the “So High” hitmaker with his mother and captioned it, “RIP MOOSE @sidhu_moosewala.” In 2020, Drake started following Moosewala on Instagram.

Moosewala, who counted Drake as one of his music influences and followed him on social media, was a regular performer at live shows in Canada.

Globally popular comedian and YouTuber Lilly Singh too paid a tribute to Moosewala. She called him a “legend” and had asked her followers to stream the music of Moosewala.

“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?!’ Through his revolutionary music, he will live on.

“Beyond the care he had for his community, he created the soundtrack that made many of us feel seen, a perfect blend of hip hop, rap and folk music,” she had posted on Instagram.

Moosewala was honoured by Nigerian rapper Burna Boy at a recent concert. In a viral clip, Burma Boy was seen getting emotional as he remembered the Indian musician.

He later performed Moosewala’s signature step of hitting his thigh and pointing a finger upwards.

Earlier this week, the Punjabi singer was honoured with a special tribute at Times Square in New York as clips of his songs were played on a billboard outside the Nasdaq MarketSite office.

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