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With 4.47 billion views on his YouTube channel, 26 million Instagram followers and 18.6 million monthly listeners on Spotify — a music superstar some Australians have never heard of is breaking new ground with a stadium tour of the country. The pride of Punjabi music Diljit Dosanjh is bringing his AURA tour down under, nearly selling out Parramatta's 25,000-seat Western Sydney stadium, with some tickets selling for almost $800 a seat. Making history as the first Indian artist to headline stadiums in Australia with his Sydney and Melbourne dates, he will also make shows in Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth. With hits like G.O.A.T, Born To Shine and Patiala Peg, Dosanjh's fans see him as an artist who bridges cultural gaps because his music is loved by both Indians and non-Indians alike. Dosanjh's music mixes authentic Punjabi lyrics and rhythm with pop, R&B and rap styles, with his music videos and on-stage performances also reflecting his Punjabi heritage. "This tour is for the fans," he told Rolling Stone Australia earlier this year. Dosanjh even shared the stage with Ed Sheeran in Birmingham last year and is one of a growing contingent of global acts selling out Aussie venues. Within the space of one year, Australia will have welcomed Indian/Canadian artist AP Dhillon, K-pop rapper and singer G-Dragon, Puerto Rican reggaeton superstar and 2026 Super Bowl halftime show performer Bad Bunny and Syrian-Lebanese music sensation George Wassouf. Punjabi representation on global stage Dosanjh's tour has shone a light on local artists Kabil Dhillon is a 23-year-old dhol (a traditional Punjabi drum) drummer and bhangra (traditional Punjabi dance-style) dancer. He performed with Dosanjh on stage two years ago and said his coming to Australia has a huge impact on local artists — especially ones from a Punjabi background. "People used to ask me like, 'Where are you from?' And I'd be like, 'I'm from India'. They'd say, 'Yeah, [Indian actor] Shah Rukh Khan'. Now if I told him I'm from Punjab, the first thing that would come to mind would be Diljit Dosanjh." Mr Dhillon said Dosanjh had become the face of Punjab. "He sort of created that impact, built that representation for Punjabis across Australia and around the world." Mr Dhillon's sister Ruhani is one of the backup dancers sharing the stage with Dosanjh this Sunday, describing it as a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity". "It's honestly a dream come true for me. Just because I really look up to Dosanjh in terms of his energy and his personality and his stage presence." Cultural shift in Australian music scene Sunday's concert is expected to have a large contingent of Australia's Indian community but also many others who enjoy the music even if they do not understand the language. "Punjabi people love it. My Aussie mates love it," Mr Dhillon said. "It's the beats of the dhol, it's the bhangra, it's the dancing, it's the colour, it's the music, it's the light … that just resonates with people of multiple backgrounds." Ruhani said artists like Dosanjh were bridging cultural borders. "He's really put it, our life, on this global platform that not just Indians, but people from other cultures are starting to appreciate." Music NSW managing director Joe Muller said there had been a shift in Australian audience's music appetite over the past two decades. "I think it's really important that we see that multiculturalism, reflected on our stages and reflected in our, in our music industry," he said. Rikki Libunao is in a K-pop dance group that follows the K-pop circuit in Australia and has noticed the same diversification of the Australian music palette. "I've seen it [the Australian music scene] evolve quite a lot actually," she said. "Over the years we've had older generations like Girls' Generation or BigBang visit Australia and even this coming weekend, we have a girl group called Twice. "They'll be coming for their Second World tour and even younger generations like Ateez and Stray Kids have been visiting Australia every couple of years." To Ms Libunao and her 15-member dance group, these artists coming to Australia represent more than just a music show. "It's really like enhancing our already rich culture here in Australia and I believe it's raising Asian representation," she said. "I see my peers around me, they get inspired by creating music or even learning dance for the first time."
