Mustafa Ahmed (born 28 July 1996), known as Mustafa, formerly known as Mustafa the Poet, is a Canadian poet, singer, songwriter, and filmmaker from

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

. He released his debut EP, '' When Smoke Rises'', in May 2021. His debut album, ''

Dunya In Islam, ' () refers to the temporal world and its earthly concerns and possessions. In the Quran, "dunya" is often paired with the word "life" to underscore the temporary and fleeting nature of the life of this world, as opposed to the eternal r ...

'', was released on September 27, 2024.

Early life

Mustafa Ahmed was born in

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

Sudanese The demographics of Sudan include the Sudanese people () and their characteristics, Sudan, including population density, ethnicity, education level, health, economic status, religious affiliations, and other aspects of the population. In Sudan' ...

parents. He grew up in

Regent Park Regent Park is a neighbourhood located in downtown Toronto, Ontario built in the late 1940s as a public housing project managed by Toronto Community Housing. It sits on what used to be a significant part of the Cabbagetown neighbourhood and ...

, one of Toronto's oldest housing projects. Mustafa attended Regent Park Duke of York Public School. Mustafa first came to fame for his poetry. He was inspired to write by his older sister, who taught him the healing effects of poetry at a young age. When he was in the seventh grade, Mustafa performed an original piece, "A Single Rose", at Nelson Mandela Park Public School. It attracted praise at

Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival The Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival is the largest documentary festival in North America. The event takes place annually in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The 27th edition of the festival took place online throughout May and Jun ...

in 2009.

Career

2014–2016: Poetry and Halal Gang

Mustafa was first profiled in the

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part of Torstar's Daily News Brands (Torstar), Daily News Brands division. ...

at the age of 12, which highlighted his ability to describe and connect white and non-Black audiences to the gritty side of Toronto. On October 4, 2014, Mustafa published "Rabba" with the Toronto-based artist collective

Halal Gang Halal Gang is a Canadian hip hop collective based in Toronto, Ontario. The name stems from the preponderance of the group having Muslim origins with East African and Caribbean Canadian roots. Initially the group is said to have stemmed out from ...

. Members included Mustafa (aka Mustafa the Poet), Puffy L’z, Mo-G, Safe, and Smoke Dawg. As member of Canadian hip hop collective

, he starred in a number of music videos, including the single "Feel" by

Safe A safe (also called a strongbox or coffer) is a secure lockable enclosure used for securing valuable objects against theft or fire. A safe is usually a hollow cuboid or cylinder, with one face being removable or hinged to form a door. The body ...

released in October 2016. In 2016, Mustafa was appointed to

Justin Trudeau Justin Pierre James Trudeau (born December 25, 1971) is a Canadian politician who served as the 23rd prime minister of Canada from 2015 to 2025. He led the Liberal Party from 2013 until his resignation in 2025 and was the member of Parliament ...

's Youth Advisory Council.

2017–2019: ''Remember Me, Toronto''

Poetry and film Mustafa performed at the Fast in the 6 festival at

Nathan Phillips Square Nathan Phillips Square is an city square, urban plaza in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It forms the forecourt to Toronto City Hall, or ''New City Hall'', at the intersection of Queen Street West and Bay Street, and is named after Nathan Phillips ( ...

held on 1 June 2018. In March 2019, Italian fashion designer

Pierpaolo Piccioli Pierpaolo Piccioli (born 29 August 1967) is an Italian fashion designer, and was the creative director of Valentino from 2008 to 2024, jointly with Maria Grazia Chiuri from 2008 to 2016. He was named creative director of Balenciaga in May 20 ...

collaborated Mustafa and three other poets for

Valentino Valentino may refer to People * Valentino (surname), including a list of people with the name * Valentino (given name), including a list of people with the name Mononymous persons * Valentino (fashion designer) (born Valentino Clemente Ludovic ...

's autumn/winter 2019 collection. A line from his poem "From the Perspective of Black Love" was featured as part of the collection. He describes attending the show as an emotional experience, seeing women in creations made for their bodies. ''Vogue'' described the event as "poetry back in fashion". His collaborations would be worn by

Emilia Clarke Emilia Isobel Euphemia Rose Clarke (born 23 October 1986) is an English actress, best known for her role as Daenerys Targaryen in the HBO fantasy series ''Game of Thrones'' (2011–2019), for which she received nominations for four Primetime E ...

at a Game of Thrones premiere. Still under the name of Mustafa the Poet, he produced and released ''Remember Me, Toronto'', a short Canadian documentary film about the hip hop culture in Canada in 17 March 2019. Created for the Canadian hip hop community, the documentary discusses the losing of people due to the increasing

gun violence Gun-related violence is violence against a person committed with the use of a firearm to inflict a gunshot wound. Gun violence may or may not be considered criminal. Criminal violence includes homicide (except when and where ruled justifiable ...

and

homicide Homicide is an act in which a person causes the death of another person. A homicide requires only a Volition (psychology), volitional act, or an omission, that causes the death of another, and thus a homicide may result from Accident, accidenta ...

rates in Toronto over the past decade. Mustafa said that he aimed to discuss the systemic structure working against the lower economies of Toronto and wanted to give these artists the opportunity to "rewrite their memories and the memories of those they lost." In the film, the artists reflect on the inter generational nature of trauma and gun violence. Artists featured included

Drake Drake may refer to: Animals and creatures * A male duck * Drake (mythology), a term related to and often synonymous with dragon People and fictional characters * Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family ...

Baka Not Nice Travis Savoury (born March 6, 1979), known professionally as Baka Not Nice, is a Canadian rapper and former security guard. He signed with Drake's record label OVO Sound, an imprint of Warner Records, in 2018. Career Baka's career began as part ...

, Gilla, Pilla B, TJin,

Pressa ''Pressa'' was an International Press Exhibition held in Cologne between May and October, 1928. As German exhibitors were barred from participating in the ''Exposition International des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modern'' held in Paris in ...

, Loco City, Smiley, Top 5, Blockboi, Twitch,

Jay Whiss Jordan Whiston (born September 24, 1992), better known by his stage name Jay Whiss, is a Canadian rapper and songwriter from Toronto, Ontario. He first gained international attention after the release of the single "Watch This", which appeared o ...

Puffy L'z Habib Mohamed (born August 2, 1995), better known by his stage name Puffy L'z, is a rapper and singer from Toronto, Ontario. He is of Somali descent. Puffy L'z released his debut studio album '' Take No L'z'' on July 19, 2019, and it received a 6/1 ...

, Rax, Booggz, Yung Lava, and archival footage from the murdered artist

Smoke Dawg Jahvante Jahqwane Sheldon Smart ( – ), known professionally as Smoke Dawg, was a Canadian rapper from Toronto, Ontario. He was a part of hip hop collective Halal Gang alongside Mustafa the Poet, Puffy L'z, Safe, and Mo-G who come together w ...

. Music and songwriting Mustafa has co-written several popular singles as a songwriter, often closely collaborating with Toronto producer

Frank Dukes Adam King Feeney (born September 12, 1983), better known as Ging and by his former stage name Frank Dukes, is a Canadian musician, record producer, and songwriter. A prolific producer, he has worked with artists including Lorde for ''Melodrama'' ...

. In 2016, Mustafa would begin working with Dukes and co-wrote the song "Attention" by

The Weeknd Abel Makkonen Tesfaye (; born February 16, 1990), known professionally as the Weeknd, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, record producer, and actor. He is best known for adding Pop music, pop, electronic music, electronic and hip-hop stylings ...

on the latter's album '' Starboy''. Mustafa would also provide some background vocals. The following year, he co-wrote two tracks on

Camila Cabello Karla Camila Cabello Estrabao (; ; born March 3, 1997) is an American singer and songwriter. She rose to prominence as a member of the Pop music, pop girl group Fifth Harmony, one of the List of best-selling girl groups, best-selling girl gro ...

's debut album '' Camila'', "All These Years" and the single "

She Loves Control "She Loves Control" is a song by American singer Camila Cabello, included on her debut studio album '' Camila'' (2018). It was written by Cabello, Ilsey Juber and Mustafa Ahmed and producers Skrillex, Frank Dukes and Louis Bell. Musically, "She Lo ...

". He was featured on the ''

Now Now most commonly refers to the present time. Now, NOW, or The Now may also refer to: Organizations * Natal Organisation of Women, a South African women's organization * National Organization for Women, an American feminist organization * Na ...

s list of Toronto musicians to watch for in 2017. In 2019, he co-wrote the

Jonas Brothers The Jonas Brothers () are an American pop rock band formed in 2005 comprising brothers Kevin Jonas, Joe Jonas, and Nick Jonas. Raised in Wyckoff, New Jersey, the Jonas Brothers moved to Little Falls, New Jersey, in 2005, where they wrote thei ...

single "

Sucker Sucker may refer to: General use * Lollipop or sucker, a type of confection * Sucker (slang), a slang term for a very gullible person * Hard candy ** Cough drop ** Mint (candy) Biology * Sucker (botany), a term for a shoot that arises undergro ...

". He went on to title all the songs in

''Parkscapes'' sample pack released in June 2019, which would be used on Taylor Swift's album '' Lover''. He dedicated part of the album's royalties to his alma mater, Regent Park School. That year, he was noted as "one of the 10 Canadian songwriters who are penning the biggest hit songs right now" by

CBC Music CBC Music (formerly known as CBC FM, CBC Stereo and CBC Radio 2) is a Canadian FM radio network operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. It used to concentrate on classical and jazz. In 2007 and 2008, the network transitioned towards a ...

. In 2020, he once again aided Frank Dukes in co-writing the

Shawn Mendes Shawn Peter Raul Mendes ( , ; born August 8, 1998) is a Canadian singer. He gained a following in 2013 when he posted song covers on the video-sharing platform Vine (software), Vine. The following year, he caught the attention of artist manage ...

and

Justin Bieber Justin Drew Bieber ( ; born March 1, 1994) is a Canadian singer. Regarded as a pop icon, he is recognized for his multi-genre musical performances. He was discovered by record executive Scooter Braun in 2008 and subsequently brought to the U ...

single "

Monster A monster is a type of imaginary or fictional creature found in literature, folklore, mythology, fiction and religion. They are very often depicted as dangerous and aggressive, with a strange or grotesque appearance that causes Anxiety, terror ...

2020–present: ''When Smoke Rises''

On 10 March 2020, Mustafa released his debut single "Stay Alive". The single was dedicated to those he'd lost to gun violence and was known for capturing Regent's Park resiliency. The single was produced by

and James Blake. The single featured numerous cameos from Toronto rappers including

members

and Mo-G as well as Lil Berete. It was known for including lyrics about resilience, community, and the bleak realities of living on the fringes pair perfectly. The single prompted

Complex Complex commonly refers to: * Complexity, the behaviour of a system whose components interact in multiple ways so possible interactions are difficult to describe ** Complex system, a system composed of many components which may interact with each ...

to list Mustafa on the list of Best New Artists of the March 2020. Mustafa released his debut EP '' When Smoke Rises'' on 28 May 2021. Described as "inner city folk music", the EP was written and produced with Simon on the Moon and

, along with James Blake,

Jamie xx James Thomas Smith (born 28 October 1988), known professionally as Jamie xx, is an English musician, DJ, record producer, and remixer. He is known for both his solo work and as a member of the indie pop band the xx. He has been described as a " ...

, and

Sampha Sampha Lahai Sisay (born 16 November 1988) is a British singer, songwriter, musician and record producer from Morden, South London. Sampha has collaborated with Drake, Kendrick Lamar, Frank Ocean, SBTRKT, Jessie Ware, Alicia Keys, Gorillaz, ...

, among others. The EP won the

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

Juno Award The Juno Awards (stylized as JUNOS), or simply known as the Junos, are awards presented by Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences to recognize outstanding achievements in Canada's mu ...

for

Alternative Album of the Year Alternative or alternate may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Alternative (''Kamen Rider''), a character in the Japanese TV series ''Kamen Rider Ryuki'' * Alternative comics, or independent comics are an alternative to mainstream superh ...

and was shortlisted for the

2021 Polaris Music Prize The 2021 edition of the Canadian Polaris Music Prize was presented on September 27, 2021. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada, the award was presented in a livestreamed virtual event hosted by Angeline Tetteh-Wayoe of CBC Music. The longlist ...

. Mustafa was featured on

Metro Boomin Leland Tyler Wayne (born September 16, 1993), known professionally as Metro Boomin, is an American record producer and music executive. Widely acclaimed for his dark and cinematic production style, he is regarded as one of the most influential p ...

's 2022 album ''

Heroes & Villains ''Heroes & Villains'' (stylized in all caps) is the second solo studio album by American record producer Metro Boomin. It was released through Republic Records and Boominati on December 2, 2022. The album contains guest appearances from John Le ...

'', on the track "

Walk Em Down (Don't Kill Civilians) "Walk Em Down (Don't Kill Civilians)" is a song by American record producer Metro Boomin and Atlanta-based rapper 21 Savage featuring Canadian poet and singer Mustafa from the former's second studio album ''Heroes & Villains'' (2022). It was prod ...

", alongside rapper

21 Savage Shéyaa Bin Abraham-Joseph (born October 22, 1992), known professionally as 21 Savage, is an American-British rapper. Born in London and raised in Atlanta, he began his recording career in 2013 and released three independent mixtapes to regiona ...

. In July of 2023, Mustafa's older brother Mohamed Ahmed was killed in a shooting. On January 4, 2024, Mustafa organized a benefit concert at the New Jersey

Newark Symphony Hall Newark Symphony Hall is a performing arts center located at 1020 Broad Street in Newark, New Jersey. Built in 1925, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1977. It was known for many years as The Mosque Theater, and is the f ...

for food and medical supply distribution in Gaza and Sudan with a number of artists including musicians

Clairo Claire Elizabeth Cottrill (born August 18, 1998), known professionally as Clairo, is an American singer-songwriter. She began posting music on the internet at age 13. Clairo rose to prominence following the viral success of the music video for ...

Daniel Caesar Ashton Simmonds (born April 5, 1995), known professionally as Daniel Caesar, is a Canadian singer and songwriter. After independently building a following through the release of two EPs, ''Praise Break'' (2014) and ''Pilgrim's Paradise'' (2015) ...

Stormzy Michael Ebenezer Kwadjo Omari Owuo Jr. (born 26 July 1993), known professionally as Stormzy, is an English-Ghanaian rapper, singer, and songwriter. In 2014, he gained attention on the UK underground music scene through his ''Wicked Skengman'' ...

, comedian

Ramy Youssef Ramy Youssef (, ; born March 26, 1991) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, screenwriter, producer, and director. He is known for his role as Ramy Hassan on the Hulu comedy series '' Ramy'' (2019–2022), for which he won a Golden Globe A ...

, and poets Hala Alyan and Safia Elhillo. The sold-out concert at the 3,500-person venue attracted more than 220,000 livestream views on Instagram. Concert proceeds went to the relief organization Human Concern International for Palestine.

Discography

Albums

EP

Singles

Other charted songs

Guest appearances

Songwriting credits

Filmography

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{Halal Gang 1996 births Living people Canadian people of Sudanese descent 21st-century Canadian poets Canadian spoken word poets Canadian documentary film producers Canadian male poets Black Canadian poets Poets from Toronto YouTube filmmakers Juno Award for Alternative Album of the Year winners 21st-century Black Canadian male singers 21st-century Canadian male singers 21st-century Canadian singers Canadian male singer-songwriters Canadian hip-hop singers Canadian folk singer-songwriters Singers from Toronto Black Canadian filmmakers Filmmakers from Ontario 21st-century Canadian songwriters Juno Award for Songwriter of the Year winners Juno Award for Video of the Year winners