M.I Abaga
M.I Abaga
Background information
Birth nameJude Lemfani Abaga
Also known asM.I
Born (1981-10-04) 4 October 1981[1]
Jos, Plateau, Nigeria
GenresHip hop
Occupation(s)
  • Rapper
  • singer
  • songwriter
  • record producer
Years active2004–present
LabelsIncredible Music, Chocolate City

Jude Lemfani Abaga (born 4 October 1981), commonly known by his stage name M.I Abaga, is a Nigerian rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is known for his complex lyrical depth, skill, success in bringing hip hop to dominance in Africa and raising other African musicians.[2]

He gained recognition in 2006 with the popularization of his track "Crowd Mentality". His debut studio album, Talk About It, was introduced in 2008, followed by MI 2: The Movie in 2010. Subsequently, he unveiled his third studio album, The Chairman, four years later. Additionally, Abaga released the playlist Rendezvous in February 2018, followed by A Study On Self Worth: Yxng Dxnzl, in August of the same year.[3] He released "The Guy" album in 2022.

Abaga was CEO of Chocolate City from 2015 to 2019.[4] In March 2020, he announced his exit from the label and launched his own record label Incredible Music.[5]In 2023, he was appointed special adviser to Governor Caleb Muftwang of Plateau State.[6]

He is one of the most decorated rappers in Africa winning multiple Headies, Nigerian Entertainment Awards, Soundcity Awards, Modemen Awards, City People Awards and Nigerian-Malaysian Music awards.[7] He also won Best Hip Hop and Best New Act at the 2009 MTV Africa Music Awards,[8] and was nominated in the Best International Act category at the BET Awards 2010.

Early life

Jude was born in Jos, Plateau State. His parents, Pastor and Mrs. Abaga, are from Takum, Taraba state, both of Jukun-Nigerian descent. He attended Baptist High School, Jos where his mother purchased basic music notations and later, a 7-key mini piano which launched him into the music world.[9] Jude has two brothers, Jesse Jagz, who is also in the Nigerian and African music scene, and Jason Abaga. During Jude's adolescence, he would listen to tracks from Lauryn Hill, Bob Marley, Sarah McLachlan, Pablo Neruda, Jay-Z and DMX.[10][11]

Jude's venture into the hip hop world started with the sampling of musical works from DMX and Lauryn Hill as early as 1998. After his time at Calvin College, Michigan, US, he delved into poetry while pursuing a career in Business and Economics.[9] There, he performed regularly at the school's major hip hop shows and concerts. His rapping gained him a third-place finish at the Calvin College show named 'Hip Hopera' in 2003,[9] which was the only "hip hop show" that Calvin College has ever had. M.I. also made some amateur attempts at comedy, but decided to stick to music.[12]

Career

Jude began his music career when he returned to Nigeria in 2003. He started producing of mixtapes with his friend Djinee. This led to the critically acclaimed single "Safe" (a song which he parodied popular Nigerian songs in its lyrics) which gathered impressive airplay by African radio and music video stations such as MTV Vibe. The track also earned him awards at the Nigerian Music Video Awards, City People, N.E.A among others.

The hype surrounding the release of Safe led to his first studio album titled Talk About It which was rated 8.5/10 by Oye Akideinde of 360nobs.[13][14] The album gathered awards such as Musician of the Year (Modemen Awards in 2008) and Best Hip Hop Artist (City People Awards).[15] His first mixtape was PYERIBOY. He later released a sample mixtape titled Illegal Music in 2009.[16] The mixtape was followed by Illegal Music II which was released in 2012.

Back in Jos, Nigeria, he established Loopy Music with his brother, Jesse Jagz, Ice Prince, Ruby, Threadstone, Lindsay, Moses (Elbulk), and E kelly. M.I was eventually signed to the Chocolate City firm, a well-known music label in Nigeria, which forced him to relocate from Jos to the nation's capital, Abuja, and influenced the start of his successful career in the Nigerian music industry. He has also received international recognition in South Africa from the popular Channel O music Award, MTVbase Awards and the American BET Awards. A proficient producer, lyricist, songwriter and instrumentalist, M.I has been described by DIV as the future of African hip-hop.[12] He has produced and featured on the works of artists like, Don Jazzy, Threadstone (Nigeria's first rock band ), Kel, Djinee, Shifi (Styl Plus), Jesse Jagz, Ice Prince, Hyce-age, Ruby, Lindsey, Leony, Wizkid, and others. He also runs a production company, Rychus Era Productions with his brother Jesse Abaga (Jesse Jagz). In 2013 he was appointed by Nigerian telecommunication company Glo Mobile as a brand ambassador alongside other Nigerian artistes like Omawumi and Burna Boy. He was also a judge in Glo X-Factor, the Nigerian version of the reality singing show in 2013.

Illegal Music 3 - The Finale was released on 29 February 2016. The ten-track mixtape was made available online for free, gathering over 400,000 downloads in just three days.

On 9 February 2018 a seventh studio project titled Rendezvous, a playlist with a style generally different from the regular. The project came as a surprise to fans as it was released merely a day after the rapper announced the release date for Yxng Dxnzl.

Yxng Dxnzl (pronounced Yung Denzl) was itself released on 24 August 2018, about three months later than the initial release date. The album was tagged "A Study on Self Worth" and included the single You Rappers Should Fix Up Your Lives - which triggered a slew of responses.[17][18] The album was released as part of a collection of Nigerian rap albums titled LAMB August, with the aim of re-awakening rap music in Nigeria.[19] All three albums, Crown by A-Q and Loose Kaynon, Yung Denzl by M.I Abaga & BadBoyBlaq by Blaqbonez were executively produced by M.I.[20] On 6 March 2020, the rapper announced his departure from Chocolate City after 13 years of being a part of the label.[21] In December 2022 M.I Abaga was featured in Africa Cypher (Hennessy Cypher) that happened in Nigeria, the Cypher also featured artists such as A-Reece, Vector, M.anifest and Octopizzo.

Personal life

On 22 September 2022, M.I and Eniola Mafe married in Lagos.[22][23]

Rapping technique

Tripol of Blaze-A-Mic describes M.I's flow as "easy going but packed full of punches".[24]

Legacy

M.I was appointed a United Nations Goodwill Ambassador in 2012.[25][26] M.I also supports the Jostified campaign.[27] He has achieved worldwide recognition as part of the vanguard of the "Afrobeats" wave.[28][29]

Musicians who have cited M.I as inspirations to them include Jesse Jagz, Ice Prince, Odumodublvck,[30]Phyno, Show Dem Camp, Khaligraph Jones, Cassper Nyovest,[31]Nasty C,[32]Blaqbonez, Ladipoe, A.Q, Loose Kaynon, Ric Hassani.[33]

Feuds

Kelly Hansome

There has been a rivalry between Nigerian artists, M.I. Abaga and Kelly Hansome. This started when M.I. in his track Fast Money, Fast Cars stated, "Kelly Hansome is handsome, I'll tell him when I see him. But if I want a man, it'd be Keke or D1". Kelly Hansome did not take kindly to these words and from there they both have gone track for track with Kelly Hansome releasing Catch Me If You Can, where he goes in on the whole Chocolate City label. In response, the Choc City camp released Nobody Test Me with a line from M.I talking directly to Kelly Hansome, saying, " Only one Kelly that I know, Kelly Rowland. Why would I diss them, give them cheap promotion. I think that they're so dry, I should give them lotion". Later, Kelly Hansome released Chocolate Boys (Chocolate City members). M.I. released a track on his 2010 album, M.I.2 named Beef. With Kelly hearing this, brought out the track Finish You Boy.[34]

Iceberg Slim

In 2009 a US-based rapper by the name Iceberg Slim released a single titled Mr International where he said the lines: "Am I better than M.I? I don't know. Am I? Matter of fact you should ask M.I". That apparently didn't sit too well with M.I, prompting him to release a single known as "Somebody Wants To Die", featuring his label mate Ice Prince on the track. Less than 48 hours after the release of M.I's "Somebody Wants to Die" IceBerg Slim released "Assassination" and sources quote that his Facebook status at the time of the release read "Somebody Wants To Die", I'll be responsible for the "Assassination" ... let the countdown begin ... (I told em it would be a M.I.stake, but they didn't listen)".[35] There was a contest in the mind of rap fans on who happened to be the best rapper in Nigeria. M.I developed more fans than Iceberg Slim and had more hit records, while Iceberg Slim gained hearts on Nigerian rap fans in a very short and unusual period. In 2012, both rappers decided to sweep the feud under the rug. Iceberg stated, "I don't think I picked on MI. It was a healthy competition in Hip-Hop, which most people don't understand. In Hip-Hop community, we could be best friends or brothers and I can say I'm the best rapper in the world and no one takes offense or takes it personal. My shot at MI wasn't a sign of disrespect in any way. Though sarcastic, it was healthy. People just took it out of context and thought I was dissing him. Rap music is all about competition because it helps you grow and improve on yourself."[36]

NotJustOk

M.I's popularity has grown quickly over the years in Nigeria as he has become one of the most critically acclaimed rap artists and has recently been compared to other artists like Naeto C, el Dee, D'banj, 9ice and Mode 9. He was listed as the fourth most talented rapper in Nigeria by online music site Notjustok.com.[37][38] The ranking didn't sit well with M.I and he used the song NotJustOk/Savage (Track 5) on his 2016 released mixtape Illegal Music 3 to address the issue of him being compared to other Nigerian rap stars. He explicitly demanded that critics leave his name off any list and stop rating, ranking or criticizing music they didn't help create just because the critic wants to gain more traction, followers and boost their ratings.

Vector

M.I and Vector had an ongoing rap supremacy spat overtime to claim who was the best Hip Hop act in Nigeria, in 2019, it led to M.I releasing a diss track "The Viper", he insinuated how he had helped entertainers compared to Vector. He said, "See we rise by lifting others, who you lifted? Nobody in all these years. Can say that Vector put em in position wow."[39][40]

Vector hit out at M.I in the diss track "Judas, the rat", responding to his claims he said,

"Jesse Jagz, you're my buddy, I couldn't do this in a hurry but the truth about your brother has been blurry. So sometime in this sermon, I will say some uncomfortable facts to show his fans their GOAT (Greatest Of All Time) is really a rat. Let's start the lecture.

"Who are the rappers that I put on?  Many more plus two out of your three and I didn't sign anything. I did it all for free since you were scratching on the surface like your DJ Lambo. How about the guns you brought to help become rambo?...So what am I supposed to do Sign a man I wouldn't sign? I don't do politics music.

"Yoruba people would say, 'Eni dale lo bale lo.' Ambode is leaving with VisionScape"[41][42]

In December 2020, Vector and Jude "M.I" Abaga seem to have squashed their battle when they both met in the third and final part of "The Conversation", a Hennessy Nigeria documentary series based on the rivalry between M.I and Vector, the duo met face-to-face and discussed what transpired between them. Both rappers addressed what caused the beef and their thoughts on each other. M.I said he had the impression that Vector just doesn't like him, while Vector said he believes M.I is cunning and deceptive.[43][44]

They finally had a collaboration when Vector featured M.I on a song titled Crown of Clay in March 2021 which emphasized the positive attributes of being African and called out the negative impacts of white supremacy and imperialism. The two lyrical juggernauts also worked together on a song called 'Spirit' which was the first track on a seven-song EP called Hennessy ‘The Very Special Tape Volume 1.' The EP was a collaborative effort by the Cognac company to boost the rap culture in Africa and features other rappers like Payper Corleone, Preacher Kingz, Dabu The Gemini and Hennessy VS Class VII winner Matosan.[45][46]

Discography

Filmography

Year Movie Role Ref
2018 Chief Daddy Mr. X [49]
2021 Namaste Wahala Self [50]

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Nominee/Work Ref
2008 Modemen Awards Musician of the Year Won
Hip Hop World Awards Best Rap Single Won [51]
Next Rated M.I Abaga Nominated
Lyricist on the Roll Nominated
2009 MTV Africa Music Awards Best New Act Won [52]
Nigerian Music Video Awards Best Mainstream Hip Hop Video Won [53]
Best Use of Special Effects in a video Won
Video of The Year Nominated
Best Director Mex Nominated
Nigerian Entertainment Awards Nigerian Entertainment Awards Best New Act of the Year Won
Hip Hop World Awards Hip Hop Revelation M.I Abaga Won [54]
Best Rap Album "Lets Talk About It" Won
Lyricist on the Roll M.I Abaga Nominated
The Future Awards Musician of the Year Nominated
2010 Won
Malaysian African Entertainments Awards Won
City People Entertainment Awards Won
National Daily Artist of the Year Won
Orange Wall of Fame Most Amiable Brand Won
Hip Hop World Awards Best Rap Single Nominated
Lyricist on the Roll M.I Abaga Nominated
BET Awards Best International Act Nominated [55][56]
2011 Diaspora Professionals, Dubai Artist of the Year Nominated
The Headies Artiste of the Year Nominated
Album of the Year MI2: The Movie Nominated
2015 The Headies Best Rap Album The Chairman Won
Album of the Year Nominated
Best Rap Single Nominated
2018 The Headies "You Rappers Should Fix Up Your Lives" Won [57]
Lyricist on the Roll Won
The Headies Award for Best Performer Nominated

See also

References

  1. ↑ "32 Hurrays for Rap Superstar M.I Abaga! Photos of his Girlfriend Erica Okundaye, Vector, Noble Igwe, Victoria Kimani & Audu Maikori at his Surprise Party in Lagos". Bellanaija. 8 October 2013. Retrieved 2 May 2014.
  2. ↑ "Hip-hop at 50: Top 10 Greatest Nigerian Rappers of All Time - The49thStreet". 31 August 2023. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  3. ↑ Raymond, Tonton Nelson (26 August 2018). ""A STUDY ON SELF WORTH: YXNG DXNZL" — ONE LISTEN REVIEW (Album Rating: 80%)". Medium. Retrieved 22 January 2020.
  4. ↑ "Chocolate City announces MI as the new the CEO". Guardian. 1 July 2015. Retrieved 24 March 2016.
  5. ↑ "M.I Abaga Exits Chocolate City, Announces Own Label 'Incredible Music'". The Guardian Nigeria News - Nigeria and World News. 6 March 2020. Retrieved 6 March 2020.
  6. ↑ Erezi, Dennis (28 July 2023). "Plateau governor Muftwang appoints Mikel Obi, MI Abaga as advisers". The Guardian Nigeria News - Nigeria and World News. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  7. ↑ LHX, TRANSSION. "Top 5 African rappers with the most awards | Boombuzz". Boomplay Music - WebPlayer. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  8. ↑ OG, Demola (10 October 2009). "Mtv Africa Music Award Winners". NotJustOk. Retrieved 24 March 2016.
  9. 1 2 3 M.I @ Chocolate City Archived 22 September 2012 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 15 September 2012 16:04:35 GMT
  10. ↑ Jude Abaga: Early Life. Irrelevant link: Retrieved 26 December 2012.
  11. ↑ M.I's MySpace.com page. Retrieved 26 December 2012.
  12. 1 2 Profile @ Wazobia FM. Who is Who Wednesday, 6 April 2011 12:52.
  13. ↑ M.I - Talk About It Album Review Retrieved 14 April 2015.
  14. ↑ Review: MI – Talk about it Retrieved 26 December 2012
  15. ↑ Check out M.I's Awards Collection Retrieved 14 April 2015.
  16. ↑ MI – Illegal Music 1 By Jaguda - 16 March 2009; © Jaguda.com.
  17. ↑ "The Best Replies To MI's "You Rappers Should Fix Up Your Lives" – FilterFree". filterfree.ng. 27 October 2017. Retrieved 29 August 2018.
  18. ↑ Akan, Joey. "M.I Abaga: Here are the best rap replies to "You rappers should fix up your lives"". Retrieved 29 August 2018.
  19. ↑ Agbo, Njideka (10 August 2018). "LAMB August: MI To Release His Albums On These Dates". guardian.ng. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  20. ↑ TheSoundNG (14 August 2018). "Lamb August: Hope Returns For Nigerian HipHop in August". TheSoundNG. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  21. ↑ "After 13 years, MI Abaga Finally Says Goodbye To Chocolate City". Latest Naija Nigerian Music, Songs & Video - Notjustok. 6 March 2020. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  22. ↑ "M.I Abaga and fiancé tie the knot at colourful traditional wedding ceremony - MyJoyOnline.com". www.myjoyonline.com. 23 September 2022. Retrieved 24 September 2022.
  23. ↑ BellaNaija.com (23 September 2022). "#TheIncredibles22: Eniola Mafe & M.I Abaga Tie The Knot Traditionally". BellaNaija. Retrieved 24 September 2022.
  24. ↑ orangeslice.org.
  25. ↑ Belated Congrats to M.I Abaga on his Nomination as UN GOODWILL AMBASSADOR! Archived 3 February 2013 at the Wayback Machine AfricaMusicLaw™ | 18 October 2012 . Retrieved 26 December 2012.
  26. ↑ M.I Honored as UN Goodwill Ambassador for UNODC Archived 14 December 2012 at the Wayback Machine, Tue, 9 October 2012. Retrieved 26 December 2012.
  27. ↑ JOSTIFIED. Retrieved 26 December 2012.
  28. ↑ Guide to Nigeria's Afrobeats stars, BBC
  29. ↑ "How Nigeria's Afrobeats are redefining the sound of Africa". The Guardian. 24 April 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2014.
  30. ↑ Metibogun, Shade (1 November 2023). ""No Olamide?" Fans react to Odumodu Blvck's list of top five Nigerians rapper". Legit.ng - Nigeria news. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  31. ↑ Bisi (19 August 2015). "M.I Is the Best Rapper in Africa – Cassper Nyovest -". The Herald. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  32. ↑ Eze, Chinelo (6 December 2023). "South African Rapper Nasty C Lists His Top 5 Nigerian Rappers". The Guardian Nigeria News - Nigeria and World News. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  33. ↑ Adene, Gift (26 April 2020). "'No one wanted to help me except MI Abaga' - Popular singer Ric Hassani writes on his struggle to fame". Kemi Filani News. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  34. ↑ AMEBOR.COM, 7 January 2011.Kelly Hansome Takes Takes Shot At M.I. Retrieved 3 November 2012.
  35. ↑ Jaguda.com, 18 August 2009. M.I. – Somebody Wants To Die (Feat. Ice Prince) | Beef with IceBerg Slim? Retrieved 3 November 2012.
  36. ↑ "From New York With Lyrics..." Archived 18 May 2013 at the Wayback Machine ThisDay Live, 8 April 2013.
  37. ↑ "Iceberg Slim: From New York With Lyrics". News.naij.com. 22 August 2013.
  38. ↑ M.I vs Iceberg Slim Archived 7 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  39. ↑ "M.I vs Vector Beef: How it all Started". Affairs TV News. 14 October 2019. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  40. ↑ Aigbokhaevbolo, Oris (7 October 2019). "#TheViper: 3 Reasons Vector can't recover from the MI Abaga diss". Medium. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  41. ↑ "Rapper Vector attacks MI, Ambode, others in Judas The Rat". Punch Newspapers. 11 October 2019. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  42. ↑ "NaijaLoaded M.I vs Vector". 12 October 2019.
  43. ↑ ""The Conversation" Hennessy Nigeria, Youtube". YouTube. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021.
  44. ↑ "M.I And Vector Ends Beef, Possible Collaboration Underway". The Guardian Nigeria News - Nigeria and World News. 6 October 2020. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  45. ↑ "Here is how Vector and MI Abaga finally made a song together on, 'Crown of Clay'". 12 March 2021.
  46. ↑ "Hennessy Nigeria Shares New Mixtape 'The Very Special Tape, Vol.1'". 27 May 2022.
  47. ↑ "So Fresh, So Incredible, It's MI". 3 November 2008.
  48. ↑ "DonChiWrites Presents MI2: The Review". 29 November 2010.
  49. ↑ "RMD, Falz, MI, Ini Edo, others star in "Chief Daddy"". 18 September 2018. Retrieved 5 March 2021.
  50. ↑ "Highly anticipated Bollywood-Nigerian collaboration, "Namaste Wahala" to be released soon!". Pulse Nigeria. 17 January 2021. Retrieved 5 March 2021.
  51. ↑ "Nigerian hip hop awards winners list for 2008 - Gistmania". www.gistmania.com. 18 March 2008. Retrieved 7 September 2015.
  52. ↑ MTV.co.uk homepage.MTV Africa Music Awards Nominations Announced. Retrieved 16 October 2012.
  53. ↑ "Winners, Photos and Fashion from 2009 Nigerian Music Video Awards". BellaNaija. 5 November 2009. Retrieved 7 September 2015.
  54. ↑ "Hip Hop World Awards Winners - Naija | Jaguda.com". 17 May 2009. Retrieved 7 September 2015.
  55. ↑ "BET Awards Nominations Led By Jay-Z, Beyonce, Alicia Keys, Drake … And Justin Bieber". MTV. 18 May 2010.
  56. ↑ "BET Nominates Nigerian MI and Psqaure for best International Act". Jaguda.com. 19 May 2010.
  57. ↑ "The complete list of winners at 12th edition of music awards". Pulse Nigeria. 4 May 2018. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
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