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Culture

AP Dhillon to Play in 2025 NBA All-Star Celebrity Game

The Punjabi-Canadian star joins musicians like Noah Kahan and Shaboozey as well as celebrities like streamer Kai Cenat, wrestler Bayley and athletes Baron Davis and Allisha Gray.

AP Dhillon
AP Dhillon photographed for Billboard Canada's Punjabi Wave cover story
Photography team: Ishmil Waterman, Lane Dorsey, Sasha Jairam/Billboard Canada. Styling by Veronika Lipatova, Nikita Jaisinghani, Aliecia Brisette. Makeup & Hair by Franceline Graham.

The NBA has recruited a Punjabi superstar for its All-Star Celebrity Game.

AP Dhillon, the B.C.-based star of the Punjabi Wave, will suit up for Team Rice (coached by San Francisco 49ers legend Jerry Rice) to show off his basketball skills. The selection brings a global star to a league that has increasingly international reach.


The Celebrity All-Star rosters feature a mix of athletes, entertainers and artists such as Billboard Canadian Hot 100 record-setter Shaboozey, Noah Kahan, Mickey Guyton, NFL icon Terrell Owens, Druski, streamer and recent Billboard cover star Kai Cenat, former NBA star Baron Davis, basketball trainer Chris Brinkley, WWE wrestler Bayley, actor Rome Flynn, Golden State Warriors alum Matt Barnes, WNBA players Allisha Gray and Kayla Thorton and many more.

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Retired baseball slugger Barry Bonds coaches the other team, alongside rapper 2 Chainz.

Check out the full rosters below:

Dhillon recently featured on the lovelorn acoustic Punjabi-language song "AFSOS" by popular Indian singer-songwriter Anuv Jain:

In addition to suiting up on the court, Kahan will be part of the 2025 All-Star Weekend Concert Series along with The Chainsmokers, Flo Rida and Zedd.

The 2025 NBA All-Star Celebrity Game action is set to tip off at 7 p.m. ET on Feb. 14.

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Charlotte Day Wilson
Jessica Foley
Charlotte Day Wilson
Concerts

CNE 2026 Bell SOUNDSTAGE Lineup: Charlotte Day Wilson, JoJo, Finger Eleven and More

As part of its partnership with NXNE and a renewed focus on live music, CNE will also welcome a special soon-to-be revealed global headliner presented by Billboard Canada on Aug. 28.

The Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) is embracing its musical roots with a high-profile lineup for 2026.

The beloved long-running fair, baptized The Ex by Torontonians, has unveiled the full list of artists who will be headlining the newly-named Bell SOUNDSTAGE at the Bandshell to celebrate the event's 147th edition. Canadian stars like Charlotte Day Wilson and Finger Eleven as well as international pop star JoJo have been added to this year's programming, which reflects a diverse mix of renowned names and rising stars across a multitude of genres including pop, hip-hop, Punjabi music and soca, among others. They join previously announced acts like Lights, Lupe Fiasco, Shaggy and more.

This year, the exhibition is partnering with Toronto music festival NXNE, to modernize its musical programming with chart-topping artists and newer acts, and revamping the Bandshell as the Bell SOUNDSTAGE. “Music is such a massive part of who we are,” Mark Holland, CEO of the CNE, told Billboard Canada in April during his Executive of the Week interview. "Connecting everybody to that is a democratic mission that we are really invested in."

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