Producer Ikky is ushering in a new era of Punjabi music, and he’s taking the next generation of artists along with him. “I want to make sure that once the door opens for Punjabi music worldwide, it’ll flood the gates,” Ikky told Apple Music in an interview for Apple Music’s Up Next series. Raised and based in the Toronto suburb of Rexdale, Ikky—born Ikwinder Singh, in 2000—has cultivated an inventive, groove-heavy sound that melds his classical training in Punjabi folk music with hip-hop, reggae, R&B, pop, and more. Starting with his first production credit at just 18 years old (on Aman Yaar’s 2017 track “Ford”), he's steadily worked with some of the biggest names in modern Punjabi music to redefine its scope on the international stage: You can hear it in audacious tracks like “Baller” with Shubh and “Chauffer” alongside Diljit Dosanjh and Tory Lanez, and, with singer-songwriter Karan Aujla, an acclaimed joint hip-hop and R&B EP (Four You) and pop album (Making Memories). Keen on paying his artistry forward, Ikky serves as creative director of 91 North Records—a venture with Warner Music dedicated to developing South Asian Canadian talent—and started his own label, 4N Records. “I’m doing this for all of Punjabi music,” he said. “I’m into making an empire.”