Oladipo Olamide Emmanuel known popularly as Chinko Ekun is one of the music industry’s current rising stars. Armed with a plethora of releases beginning from his undergraduate days at Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), the graduate of Law has relentlessly fought his way to earn mentions as a hitmaker in modern Nigerian music history.
For those who are acquainted with the rapper’s art, one thing that easily comes to mind is his ability to impress with off-the-top flows. His freestyle prowess is laudable and this is in fact what caught the attention of YBNL boss, Olamide who later went on to offer him a record deal, circa 2015.
Upon his signing to the YBNL imprint, he released a number of singles including; Alejo Oran and Emi Na Re. Albeit the latter enjoyed a decent degree of appreciation, the overall reception was underwhelming. Chinko would later walk away from the label, and dropped a follow up single, Jen Le Yo which was released to an even colder reception.
The rapper had effectively landed in a position where fans and the consuming public began to question his relevance. Relentless, Chinko went on to put out a star-studded single, Shayo featuring Falz and Dremo. The said single was followed by a befitting video and an announcement of his new record deal with the label, Dek Niyor Entertainment.
The Falz-featured single, Shayo became a casual hit but subsequent releases failed to hit the mark. It seemed as though the rapper had dipped again until his eventual smash hit, Able God which featured his former label-mate, Lil Kesh and breakout act, Zlatan Ibile.
The spiritual-esque record resonated. It accommodated his own plea and by extension, captured the desire of everyday people. “Able God, shower your blessings, we want this money…” The message transcended ears to hearts and the instrumental was infectious enough to make us dance away our any frustrations. Able God became one of 2018’s biggest songs. It was a chart-topper, street anthem and national anthem if you will.
The festive season in the year before saw him land an overwhelming degree of gigs and an opportunity to perform alongside Wizkid at the Starboy’s end of year concert. Able God was a blessing, not to Ekun alone. New kid on the block, Picazo Rhap who recently landed a record deal with YBNL was discovered by virtue of his impressive freestyle to the instrumental of the said song. Able God is without a doubt Chinko Ekun’s magnum opus.
It’s been seven months since the rapper dropped Able God and in a similar fashion, Ekun is yet secure another hit. As a follow-up to the smash hit, Chinko has released a new Peruzzi-featured single, dubbed Samena. Although solid, Samena fails to wield as much weight as the former. The release of Samena which is now a month old has been followed a series of press-run for amplification. The new single has a good amount of star-power as the DMW-signed, Peruzzi is equally fresh off an impressive run.
In truth, the records of Able God are hard to beat but one is in hopes that with the newly-released Samena and subsequent releases, the rapper would be able to circumvent the label of one-hit-wonder, maintain mainstream visibility and possible, activate another run.
I am rooting for him.