Toronto rapper NAV is set to headline the inaugural 6IX Mela festival on Sept. 12 at The Bowl at Sobeys Stadium, bringing together Punjabi music, hip-hop and a distinctly Toronto vibe for a one-night celebration. The festival bills itself as North America’s biggest South Asian music festival, with an expected crowd of roughly 8,000 people.
NAV will share the stage with a lineup that includes Tegi Pannu, Chani Nattan, Inderpal Moga, AR Paisley, BK, Supreme Sidhu, Gav, Simar, Jay Trak and Simmy. The experience is designed around a single stage, putting Punjabi artists and hip-hop performers in the same lineup rather than separating the sounds into different spaces.
Considering that Punjabi and Desi rap are one of the fastest-growing segments in Canadian music, the initiative couldn't have come at a better time.
It's also NAV's only announced hometown show this year. The Toronto-born rapper, who has built an international audience through hip-hop while maintaining a strong connection to the Punjabi Canadian scene, despite collaborating with some of of hip-hop's biggest names, including Drake and Future. Last year, he appeared at Rolling Loud India and joined Karan Aujla during his set, which was one of the most viral moments of the festival.
6IX MELA comes from the team behind Calgary’s Stampede Mela, which launched in 2023 to give South Asian artists a larger platform during the Calgary Stampede. The expansion to the Toronto market arrives as Punjabi music continues to grow across Canada. Artists including Diljit Dosanjh, Karan Aujla and Chani Nattan have pushed further into the mainstream, while Punjabi releases have increasingly appeared on Canadian charts.
