Olamide Clarifies Wizkid Entered Music Industry Before Him
Nigerian rapper and YBNL boss Olamide has set the record straight on his and Afrobeats superstar Wizkid’s entry into the music industry, confirming that Wizkid began his career a year or two before him.
Speaking in a recent interview with streamer Azeeez, Olamide explained that public perception has long misunderstood their timelines. “Wizkid and I didn’t start doing music at the same time. He started a year or two before me; he was already putting out music before I came,” he said.
READ ALSO: Dangote Group Leads Kano International Trade Fair 2025 with Over 1,000 Exhibitors Expected
Fans often link the pair because both rose to nationwide prominence around 2010—Wizkid with the January release Holla at Your Boy and Olamide with Eni Duro later that year. Their parallel rise was cemented when both were nominated for the Next Rated category at the 2011 Headies Awards, a contest won by Wizkid.
Olamide emphasized that his clarification is not meant to diminish either artist’s achievements but to set the record straight. Music records and earlier collaborations support his statement. Notably, Wizkid, now 35, was featured on rapper M.I Abaga’s track Fast Money/Fast Cars in 2008—years before his mainstream breakthrough—showing his earlier entry into the industry.
While Wizkid’s early exposure and rapid ascent established him as a leading voice in Afrobeats, Olamide’s consistent output and influence in rap and street-pop have solidified his status as one of Nigeria’s most powerful homegrown music stars.
Olamide Clarifies Wizkid Entered Music Industry Before Him