Byg Byrd
Maninder Singh Kalyan, professionally known as Byg Byrd is an Indo-Canadian record producer and record executive. He is also associated with Punjabi music. He produced for variety of artists notably French Montana, Chinx Drugz, Lil Kim, Lil Durk and Jim Jones, along with Punjabi artists including Sidhu Moose Wala, Tarsem Jassar, Sunny Malton, Jazzy B and Prem Dhillon.
He rose to mainstream with his track 'So High' and 'Issa Jatt' with Sidhu Moose Wala. He is also the co-founder of Brown Boys, which he founded with rapper Sunny Malton.
Early life
Byrd is from Toronto, Canada and was born into a Canadian Punjabi Sikh family and he attended Mississauga Secondary School Byrd's family is originally from Hoshiarpur district in Punjab, India.In May 2022, Byrd launched his own Vodka line called Brown Boys Vodka.
Career
Early career
Byg Byrd started making music within the hiphop scene which eventually led him to work on the song "100" in 2012, which featured French Montana, Cheeze, and Chinx Drugz in the Coke Boys 3 album. He also worked on the song "Soulful" which featured French Montana and Lil Durk in Coke Boys 4.Rise to fame
In August 2017, Byrd and Moosewala released "So High" which became their most successful track. He can also been seen throughout the music video along with Sunny Malton, which was shot in Toronto.In 2017, Byrd produced "Just Listen" by Sidhu Moosewala. The song managed to reach 12th in the UK Asian Charts. Other significant Byrd collaborations and features include "East Side Flow", "Sidhu's Anthem", Forget About it "Chosen", "B-Town ", "Hauli Hauli" and Homicide and "Never Fold".
Byrd also produced 3 songs on Moosewala's album, PBX 1 which debuted 66 on the Billboard Canadian Albums Chart. The album also reached the top spot on iTunes and became the top Indian Pop album.
In 2020, Byrd has also collaborated with Punjabi legend, Jazzy B on the song ‘Putt Sardara De’
In 2022, Byrd collaborated with Happy Singh on the song "Ko Ni Tera Yaar".
Feud with Sidhu Moosewala & Sunny Malton
The initial Brown Boys feud started between Moosewala and Sunny Malton, Byg Byrd and BigBoiDeep after their release of the album Brown Boys Forever. On Instagram, Byrd and Malton said Sidhu Moosewala was not paying them and was "leaking" their songs. Moosewala responded with "I am ready to swear on anything religious. Putting my hand on my heart I am ready to say that if I have ever leaked any song of mine, I want my tongue to be held and I will stop singing."In December 2020 and January 2021, Byg Byrd and Malton got into a serious internet feud over ownership of Brown Boys Records. Despite being equal partners, Malton claimed his personal relationship was suffering for the last 4–5 months and that BygByrd signed artist, Tarna without his permission under alias of Brown Boys.
Reaction to Moosewala's death
Byrd lauded the influence of Sidhu and the initial trio on the broader Punjabi music scene, while also expressing his condolences to Sidhu and his family. He revealed that he refrained from speaking earlier because he believed it was neither appropriate timing nor his position to do so.Musical style
Byg Byrd is known for his unique style of music, which blends Punjabi folk music with Hip-Hop. He often incorporates traditional Punjabi instruments such as the tumbi, flutes and dhol into his tracks.Album discography
Studio album
| Title | Details |
| Brown Boys Forever |
|