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Ben Shapiro shared his reaction to Zohran Mamdani running for the position of NYC Mayor through X on June 25, 2025. Notably, Mamdani is the youngest candidate for NYC mayor and pursued a career as a hip-hop artist during his teenage years, as stated by Times Now in a June 2025 report.
The outlet stated that his music frequently featured Ugandan and diasporic beats and was known as 'Young Cardamom' at the time. Meanwhile, Ben added a video to his post and wrote in the caption:
“NYC wants THIS guy to be their Mayor?”
The political commentator then discussed reasons why Zohran should not become the NYC Mayor.
“I speak here advisedly since I’m of course a very successful rapper. But Zohran Mamdani is a failed rapper. Here is one of his early rap videos and democrats in New York believe this person should be Mayor,” he stated.
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Shapiro then played a music video of Zohran Mamdani, where a woman was spotted displaying the middle finger, and it was seemingly captured at an anonymous spot selling food. As soon as the video ended, Shapiro was heard saying in the clip:
“I mean so that’s not good. He should not be Mayor just because he made that video.”
Zohran has not responded to Ben Shapiro’s video as of this writing.
Mamdani is creating history with a lead against Andrew Cuomo, the former governor, as per BBC News. Zohran also spoke at the mayoral primary in New York City on June 24, 2025.
According to CNN, Mamdani also gave a speech at the mayoral primary, telling the public that he would fight to ensure that the city works for everyone and all the services become affordable at the same time. Zohran continued by saying:
“We can be free and we can be fed. We can demand what we deserve.”
Zohran Mamdani’s rapping videos went viral earlier this month
As mentioned, the Kampala, Uganda native was active as a rapper many years ago as Young Cardamom. Zohran’s mother, Mira Nair, is a popular filmmaker who has directed films such as Salaam Bombay! and Monsoon Wedding.
A report by Billboard on June 18, 2025, stated that Zohran Mamdani’s old rap videos were being obtained by some people. The outlet mentioned that his YouTube channel with the title Mr. Cardamom currently includes a music video of his single Nani, which came out around six years ago.
Nani features actress and travel writer Madhur Jaffrey. The New York Times stated that the song was penned by Mamdani around two years before its release, and it was a tribute to his grandmother, Praveen Nair. While speaking to the outlet, Madhur referred to her character in the music video by saying:
“It’s like playing Lady Macbeth. If you’re an actress, you have to play everything.”
According to The New York Times, Mamdani ran for the class vice president when he was a student at the Bronx High School of Science. He used his rapping skills to compete for the position. However, Zohran could not emerge as a winner in the end.
Mamdani additionally established a rap duo in 2010 with a close friend, Abdul Bar Hussein, and they have an EP titled Sidda Mukyaalo in their credits. Zohran Mamdani is also known for another single, Askari.
