LADIPOE

Rapper LADIPOE’s songwriting and storytelling skills earned him a mainstream following in Nigeria’s pop-dominated, late 2010s music scene. Born Ladipo Eso in 1992, the Lagos native got his start as a founding member of trio Lyrically Equipped before featuring on Nigerian rap duo Show Dem Camp’s 2013 track “Feel Alright.” Thanks to his accessible beats and rhymes, LADIPOE became the first rapper to sign with his native country’s most successful pop label, MAVIN RECORDS, which released his first major single, “Man Already,” in 2017. By bringing hip-hop to the forefront of Nigerian pop culture, LADIPOE crowned himself “LOTR” (a.k.a. “Leader of the Revival')' and released his debut album, T.A.P (Talk About Poe), the following year. However, he truly broke through with 2020’s “Know You” and 2021’s “Feeling,” even scoring a BET Hip Hop Awards “Best International Flow” nomination later that year. In 2021, LADIPOE also released his Providence EP, on which he raps about love and life over infectious melodies.