Ayodeji Ibrahim Balogun (born 16 July 1990), known professionally as Wizkid, is a Nigerian singer and songwriter. Born in the Ojuelegba suburb of Surulere, Lagos, Wizkid is a voice in the emerging Afrobeats movement. His music is a blend of Afrobeats, afropop, R&B, afrobeat, reggae, dancehall, and pop. He began recording music at the age of 11 and released a collaborative album with the Glorious Five, a group he and a couple of his church friends formed. In 2009, Wizkid signed a record deal with Banky W’s Empire Mates Entertainment (E.M.E). He rose to the limelight after releasing “Holla at Your Boy”, the lead single from his debut studio album, Superstar (2011), which also spawned the singles “Tease Me/Bad Guys” and “Don’t Dull”.

On 17 September 2014, he released the self-titled second studio album, Ayo, which was supported by six singles, including “Jaiye Jaiye”. Wizkid left E.M.E. after his contract expired. In 2016, Wizkid achieved international recognition following his collaboration with Drake on the hit single “One Dance”, which reached number-one on the US Billboard Hot 100 and topped the charts in 14 additional countries. The song broke multiple records, making Wizkid the first afrobeats artist to appear in the Guinness World Records. In March 2017, he signed a multi-album deal with RCA Records and released his third studio album, Sounds from the Other Side, later that year. The album was supported by five singles, including “Come Closer” (featuring Drake).

In 2018, he was featured on the song “Checklist” by Normani and Calvin Harris, which reached number-one on the Billboard World Digital Song Sales chart. The following year, he was featured on Beyoncé’s project The Lion King: The Gift on the single “Brown Skin Girl”, which also reached number-one on the World Digital Song Sales chart, and won him a Grammy Award for Best Music Video. In October 2020, he released his fourth album, Made in Lagos, which received commercial success and acclaim, reaching number-one on the Billboard World Album Chart. The album includes the single “Essence” featuring Tems, which became the first Nigerian song to chart on the Billboard Hot 100, and reached the top ten following a remix released by Justin Bieber. Wizkid’s fifth album, More Love, Less Ego, was released on 11 November 2022.

Life and music career
1990–2010: Early life and career beginnings
Ayodeji Ibrahim Balogun was born on 16 July 1990, in Ojuelegba, Surulere, Lagos. He grew up in an interfaith household with twelve female siblings. His mother is a Pentecostal Christian and his father practices Islam. Wizkid attended Ijebu Ode Grammar School. He grew up listening to King Sunny Ade, Fela Kuti and Bob Marley. In a radio interview with Tim Westwood in 2012, he said that “his father has three wives”. In another interview with Adesope of Factory 78 TV, Wizkid said he formed a group called the Glorious Five with a couple of his church friends.

They managed to release an album prior to disbanding. Wizkid went by the stage name Lil Prinz until 2006. He later met OJB Jezreel, a record producer who prevented him from recording for a year. While visiting OJB’s Point Beat Studios frequently, he watched 2 Face Idibia record songs for his Grass 2 Grace album. He was also present during the recording sessions for Sound Sultan’s debut album Jagbajantis.

He cited Naeto C as one of the people who mentored and coached him when he was 15 years old. Wizkid signed a record deal with Empire Mates Entertainment in 2009. He co-wrote “Omoge You Too Much”, a song from Banky W.’s The W Experience album. He also worked with Naeto C, Ikechukwu and M.I while developing his craft. In mid-2009, he dropped out of Lagos State University (LASU). He later attended Lead City University, but dropped out after completing two sessions.

2010–2011: Superstar
Wizkid began recording his debut studio album Superstar in 2009. He released “Holla at Your Boy” as the album’s lead single on 2 January 2010.The song was nominated for Best Pop Single, and earned him the Next Rated award at The Headies 2011. In addition to winning the award, he was awarded a 2012 Hyundai Sonata courtesy of the organizers. Its music video was nominated for Most Gifted Newcomer Video at the 2011 Channel O Music Video Awards.

On 2 April 2010, Wizkid released “Tease Me/Bad Guys” as the album’s second single. It was initially released as a freestyle rap. “Don’t Dull”, the album’s third single, was released on 6 December 2010. Superstar was recorded in English and Yoruba. It was released on 12 June 2011 by Empire Mates Entertainment. The album incorporates elements of Afrobeats, R&B, dancehall, and reggae.

While working on Superstar, Wizkid collaborated with record producers such as E-Kelly, Jay Sleek, Shizzi, DJ Klem, Masterkraft, Q-Beats and Samklef. The album features guest appearances from Banky W., Skales, D’Prince and Wande Coal. It was initially scheduled for release on 14 February 2011 but was later pushed back.

On 12 June 2011, Wizkid hosted a launch party for the album at the Expo Hall of the Eko Hotel and Suites. The launch party featured performances from Banky W, Skales, 2face Idibia, Samklef, Wande Coal, D’Prince, Olamide, eLDee, Jesse Jagz, Ice Prince, Lynxxx and Seyi Shay. Superstar garnered Best Album of the Year at the 2012 Nigeria Entertainment Awards, and was nominated for Album of the Year at The Headies 2012.

Sony Music/RCA
In 2017, Billboard reported that Wizkid signed a multi-album worldwide record deal with RCA Records, a subsidiary of Sony Music.

Fashion style
In an interview with Alex Frank of Vogue magazine in February 2015, Wizkid said he wears a mixture of streetwear and traditional Nigerian clothes. He cited Pharrell Williams as one of his fashion style icons. Moreover, he revealed plans to establish a clothing line following the release of Sounds from the Other Side.

Legacy
Wizkid’s work is credited for popularizing Afrobeats worldwide in the late 2010s and early 2020s. Morgan Enos of The Recording Academy praised his 2020 album Made in Lagos as a “potent mix of Afrobeats and R&B”, stating that it ”further accelerated the already-unstoppable surge of Nigerian music throughout the world”. NotJustOk opined “The ‘afrobeats to the world’ movement is one that has progressed from being a trek, to a trot and now presently, a swift race, with baton tightly clenched by several star players whose sounds have sliced through the airwaves to reach international heights and by so doing, level the once seemingly unsurmountable playing field. One of such acts is Wizkid”. Critics noted that Wizkid has introduced Afrobeats to a wider audience, paving the way for other African artists to reach international success.

Wizkid in 2020
Poppie Platt of The Daily Telegraph said “The Afrobeats pioneer’s fusion of traditional rhythms, slick R&B production and a smattering of pop-ready lyrics, sung in a mix of Yoruba and English, have helped to commercialise the genre across the West, making it one of the industry’s most profitable – and brilliant – imports. “. Nicole Vassell of The Independent deemed Wizkid “king of Afrobeats”, by asserting that he’s “undeniably one of the reasons for the genre’s mainstream appeal”. Joe Coscarelli of The New York Times credited his collaborations with international artists such as Chris Brown and Major Lazer for cementing him as a “lasting international pop cultural ambassador”. Former Governor of Minnesota Mark Dayton declared 6 October as “Wizkid day” in the state, stating “Wizkid has inspired Minnesotans, and music fans around the world as one of the biggest cultural influencers of our time.

In 2021 Billboard stated that Wizkid “is the first African artist to truly make a major pop breakthrough in the United States and seems best poised to do so globally, too”. Eromo Egbejule of The Guardian Nigeria mentioned Wizkid as an inspiration for a generation of African artists, including Tiwa Savage, Davido, Mr Eazi, Maleek Berry, Tekno and Burna Boy.

Awards and nominations
Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Wizkid
Wizkid’s music has earned several achievements, including the Grammy Award for Best Music Video as a lead artist on Beyoncé’s “Brown Skin Girl”; his first ever Grammy Award.

He is the most awarded African artist at the American Music Awards, MTV Video Music Award, Soul Train Awards, Billboard Awards and iHeartRadio Music Awards, while also tying for the most at BET Awards, MOBO Awards. He is also a recipient of an ASCAP plaque for his songwriting contributions to Drake’s “One Dance”, which also earned two Guinness World Records, for being the first song to reach a billion streams on Spotify, and at the time being the most streamed song on Spotify. Wizkid was cited as one of the Top 100 most influential Africans by New African magazine in 2019. He is also the most awarded artiste in The Headies award history. He was nominated in the Best Global Music Album and the Best Global Music Performance categories in the 64th Annual Grammy Awards for Made in Lagos Deluxe Edition and “Essence” respectively. In November 2021, Apple Music Awards announced him as the winner of Artist of the Year (Africa).

WIZKID URL LINKS:

Website: http://www.wizkidofficial.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wizkidayo
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@WizkidVEVO
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wizkidayo
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wizkidmusic
X: https://www.x.com/wizkidayo