A deep dive into Zohran Mamdani’s 10 favourite songs

What the report says

Dazed published a music-focused profile of Zohran Mamdani, identifying him as New York City’s mayor and tracing how his public music references have become part of his political persona. The outlet notes that Mamdani previously rapped as Young Cardamom and performed at Uganda’s Nyege Nyege festival in 2016, while now maintaining a wide-ranging interest in contemporary and nostalgic music.

The article lists ten tracks or albums tied to Mamdani through interviews, campaign moments and public comments. They include Jay-Z’s The Blueprint, which Dazed says he described as an early formative album; Kim Petras’ “Like Your Look”; Ja Rule’s “New York” featuring Fat Joe and Jadakiss, which he reportedly wanted as a mayoral walk-out song; and Tata Young’s Bollywood hit “Dhoom Machale,” presented as a nod to his Indian heritage.

Dazed also highlights less expected choices, including Taylor Swift’s “Only the Young,” Dear Evan Hansen’s “Waving Through a Window,” Eiffel 65’s “Too Much of Heaven,” Kacey Musgraves’ Golden Hour, Canadian rapper k-os’ “4 3 2 1,” and Heems’ Eat, Pray, Thug. The piece says Mamdani has credited Heems’ political endorsement of a childhood friend with helping draw him into local politics.

The profile matters less as a policy report than as a cultural snapshot: Dazed frames Mamdani as a politician whose musical taste spans hip-hop, pop, Bollywood, Broadway, country and underground scenes, using those references to connect biography, identity and campaign image.