Emiway Bantai

About

Bilal Shaikh (born 13 November 1995), best known by his stage name Emiway Bantai, is an Indian hip-hop artist, rapper and producer. An independent artist, he has built a fan base entirely through social media, releasing popular videos for singles such as “Machayenge” (2019) and “Firse Machayenge” (2020) to reach a global audience with hundreds of millions of views. Inspired as a teen in Mumbai by American rapper Eminem, Emiway has collaborated with international artists such as Dax, Macklemore, Snoop Dogg and Token. He is also known for his diss tracks in rap beefs with rappers like Raftaar, Divine, MC Stan, and KR$NA.

Mohammed Bilal Shaikh was born in 1995 in Bengaluru, India. Around the age of three, he moved with his father to Mumbai. He grew up in Antop Hill, where he learned Mumbai slang.
In 2010, his classmates introduced him to his first hip-hop track, “Not Afraid” by Eminem. After dropping out from class 12, he became depressed and did not complete school. To earn money, Shaikh worked as a helper at the Hard Rock Cafe.

Shaikh came up with the stage name Emiway by combining the names of two of his idols…