From Gurdaspur to Canada

Amritpal Singh Dhillon, known as AP Dhillon, grew up in a village in Gurdaspur, Punjab, before moving to Canada in 2015. A 2023 GQ India profile says he studied at Camosun College in Victoria, British Columbia, and worked while building a modest recording studio in a garage. The feature places this early work before the release of Brown Munde in 2020 and the wider attention that followed. Its account traces a journey between study, employment and music-making. It is a profile of selected moments in his career rather than a complete record of every person who worked on his releases.[1]

Influences and identity

In a 2024 Hollywood Reporter India interview, Dhillon recalled that his father introduced him to Sufi music and described later listening to hip-hop, rock and pop. He said that music began as a hobby and became a way to express his identity and experiences. Discussing The Brownprint, he connected its themes of ambition and struggle with his Punjabi heritage. He also described drawing on Punjabi and Hindi action films he had watched growing up when directing videos. These are the artist’s own descriptions of influences and creative choices, not a claim that all Punjabi Canadian musicians share the same experiences.[2]

A team behind the music

A Tribune feature on the documentary AP Dhillon: First of a Kind discussed Dhillon’s early singles and the growth of Brown Munde. It presented his move from Gurdaspur to British Columbia as part of a story that also involved collaborators, including Shinda Kahlon and Gurinder Gill. A group of musicians, writers and producers can shape a song even when one name is most visible in publicity. The feature’s account is a written discussion of a documentary and its subjects; the documentary and recordings themselves were not reviewed for this page.[3]

Sources & notes

Source records include access dates and, where known, limits on what was examined. Checks used AI assistance; independent human or specialist review has not been completed.

  1. GQ India. GQ Hype: AP Dhillon — I’m still getting used to being famous ↗Written feature · Source date: 2023-08-25 · Locator: Gurdaspur, Canada and garage studio. Accessed 2026-11-03.Selected written evidence inspected; audio and video not reviewed.Return to From Gurdaspur to Canada, paragraph 1 ↑
  2. Ananya Shankar; AP Dhillon. AP Dhillon Interview: On His India Tour, Being Inspired By Bollywood Movies And Collaborating With His Dad ↗Written feature · Source date: 2024-12-13 · Locator: Musical influences and The Brownprint. Accessed 2026-11-03.Selected written evidence inspected; audio and video not reviewed.Return to Influences and identity, paragraph 1 ↑
  3. Sarika Sharma. AP Dhillon: Reign of Brown Munde ↗Written feature · Source date: 2023-09-03 · Locator: Documentary and Run-Up Records collaborators. Accessed 2026-11-03.Selected written evidence inspected; audio and video not reviewed.Return to A team behind the music, paragraph 1 ↑
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