Olamide

Olamide is Olamide Gbenga Adedeji, a rapper, singer and record executive born in Bariga, Lagos, on 15 March 1989. He raps in Yoruba and English. More than any other Nigerian artist of his generation, he has built careers for others as well as his own.

Signed to ID Cabasa’s Coded Tunes, he released Rapsodi in 2011. He then started his own label, YBNL Nation, for the album YBNL (2012). Baddest Guy Ever Liveth (2013) won Album of the Year at The Headies, and Street OT, Eyan Mayweather, The Glory and Lagos Nawa! followed at a yearly pace. Through YBNL he launched Lil Kesh, Adekunle Gold, Fireboy DML and Asake.

Carpe Diem (2020), with “Infinity” featuring Omah Lay, topped Apple Music in Nigeria. UY Scuti (2021), Unruly (2023), Ikigai, Vol. 1 (2024) and Olamidé (2025) followed. “Amapiano” with Asake earned him his first Grammy nomination, and Billboard named him one of its Global Power Players in 2025.