Princewill Emmanuel (born February 26, 2002), professionally known as Alpha P, is a Nigerian rapper and singer-songwriter signed to Penthauze. Previously, he was signed to Universal Music West Africa (formerly

Universal Music Group Nigeria Universal Music West Africa (formerly marketed as Universal Music Group Nigeria) is the West African division of the global record label Universal Music Group. Founded in 2017, it has its corporate headquarters located in Victoria Island, Lagos, ...

), an imprint of

Universal Music Group Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as Universal Music Group or Universal Music) is a Netherlands, Dutch–United States, American multinational Music industry, music corporation under Law of the Netherlands, ...

, in 2019. That same year, he rose to fame with his debut extended play, ''

King of the Wolves ''King of the Wolves'' (KOTW) is the debut extended play by Nigerian singer-songwriter Alpha P. It was released on 15 November 2019 through Universal Music Group Nigeria. Background and promotion Following the disbanding of the music duo RNA, an ...

''. He gained international recognition with his 2024 single "W", featuring Nigerian rapper

Olamide Olamide Gbenga Adedeji (born 15 March 1989) is a Nigerian rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. He is regarded as one of the most influential artists in Nigeria and Africa and has been crucial to the creative and commercial succe ...

and record producer Thisizlondon.

Early life

Alpha P was born in

Benin City Benin City serves as the Capital city, capital and largest Metropolitan area, metropolitan centre of Edo State, situated in Nigeria, southern Nigeria. It ranks as the List of Nigerian cities by population, fourth-most populous city in Niger ...

Edo State Edo State, Edo, officially known as Edo State, is a States of Nigeria, state in the South South, South-South Geopolitical zones of Nigeria, geopolitical zone of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. As of 2024, the state was ranked as the List of Ni ...

, and raised in the city's Southside. At age 12, he began making music, drawing inspiration from his early experiences writing songs in the church choir, which sparked a deep passion for the art. Growing up, Alpha P's musical influences included

Wizkid Ayodeji Ibrahim Balogun (born 16 July 1990), better known 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 Afrobea ...

Wande Coal Oluwatobi Wande Ojosipe (born 18 October 1985), popularly known as Wande Coal, is a Nigerian singer and songwriter. Early life Wande Coal was born on 18 October 1985 in Lagos Island, Lagos state, Nigeria, to Chief Ibukun Olufunto and Omolara ...

D'banj Oladapo Daniel Oyebanjo (born 9 June 1980), known professionally as D'banj ( ), is a Nigerians, Nigerian singer, rapper, music executive, event host and television personality. He signed with American rapper Kanye West's record label GOOD Music ...

Banky W. Olubankole Wellington (born 27 March 1981), popularly known by his stage name Banky W and credited in film as Banky Wellington, is a Nigerian-American singer, rapper, actor, entrepreneur and politician. Early life Olubankole Wellington was bo ...

Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem, is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Regarded as one of the greatest and most influential rappers of all time, he is credited with popula ...

Drake Drake may refer to: Animals and creatures * A male duck * Drake (mythology), a term related to and often synonymous with dragon People and fictional characters * Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family ...

, and

Jaden Smith Jaden Christopher Syre Smith (born July 8, 1998) is an American rapper and actor. The son of Jada Pinkett-Smith and Will Smith, he has received various accolades, including a Teen Choice Award, an MTV Movie Award, a BET Award and a Young A ...

. Despite not being part of the choir, he relocated to

Lagos Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...

to pursue a professional music career.

Career

2019–2020: Career beginnings, record deals, ''King of the Wolves'', and ''Wolves & Mustangs, Vol. 1''

Alpha P began his music career in 2019, performing in churches alongside fellow artist Rema. After RNA (comprising Rema and Alpha P) disbanded, Bizzle Osikoya, former A&R executive at

Mavin Records Mavin Records (also known as the Supreme Mavin Dynasty) is a Nigerian corporation and record label founded by record producer and recording artist Don Jazzy on 8 May 2012. The label's inception came to fruition following the closure of Mo' Hits R ...

, facilitated Alpha P's record deal with

(now marketed as. Universal Music West Africa) in 2019. On September 6, 2019, during his media tour promoting ''King Of The Wolves'', Alpha P visited Soundcity 98.5 Lagos and discussed his EP and its inspiration with Sheye Banks. Alpha P gained momentum and was featured on Tomi Owó's single "Number One" on October 18, 2019, which was included on the

MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...

Shuga Naija The third season of the Television series, television drama series ''Shuga (TV series), Shuga'', dubbed ''Shuga Naija'', was first broadcast on MTV Base (African TV channel), MTV Base from December 2013 to January 2014. The season was written by Ke ...

'' soundtrack. On November 15, 2019, Alpha P release his debut

extended play An extended play (EP) is a Sound recording and reproduction, musical recording that contains more tracks than a Single (music), single but fewer than an album. Contemporary EPs generally contain up to eight tracks and have a playing time of 1 ...

, ''

King Of The Wolves ''King of the Wolves'' (KOTW) is the debut extended play by Nigerian singer-songwriter Alpha P. It was released on 15 November 2019 through Universal Music Group Nigeria. Background and promotion Following the disbanding of the music duo RNA, an ...

'' through Universal Music. On December 19, 2019, Alpha P released the music video for "Paloma", the second track from his debut EP, shot by Dalia Dias, which sparked controversy as fans drew comparisons between Rema's hit single " Dumebi", and Alpha P's "Paloma" on

Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...

. In January 2020, ''Connect Nigeria'' named "Radar", a track from Alpha P's ''King Of The Wolves'' EP, Song of the Week. On February 8, 2020, Alpha P delivered a live performance of "More" on

Cool FM Cool FM is an Independent Local Radio station based in Newtownards, Northern Ireland. The station is owned and operated by Bauer and forms part of Bauer's Hits Radio Network. The station began broadcasting in 1990 when its parent station ...

's AUX Africa show.

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

hosted its Online African Music Festival, ''Stay Home... #WithMe'' on March 28, 2020, amidst the lockdown, featuring Alpha P's performance of his entire ''King Of The Wolves'' EP from Universal Music Studio in Lagos. On 13 May 2020, Alpha P, DJ Tunez, and D3an released an EDM version of "Paloma" for the remix. On July 10, 2020, Alpha P was featured on Ricky Tyler's "Peachnut". In September 2020, he released the single "Quarantine", which later became the lead single for his project ''Wolves & Mustangs, Vol. 1''. Released subsequently, ''Wolves & Mustangs, Vol. 1'' featured four tracks, including a collaboration with

PsychoYP Nicholas Ihua-Maduenyi (born 28 October 1998), widely known as PsychoYP, is a Nigerian alternative hip hop rapper, singer, and songwriter. He is a member of the music collective Apex Village. He came into the music scene with a critically acclaim ...

2021present: Feature run and ''Welcome To The Pack''

Alpha P released "Oh No" on June 11, 2021. Later that month, on June 25, he was featured on

Justin Bieber Justin Drew Bieber ( ; born March 1, 1994) is a Canadian singer. Regarded as a pop icon, he is recognized for his multi-genre musical performances. He was discovered by record executive Scooter Braun in 2008 and subsequently brought to the U ...

's " Peaches (remix)", alongside

Omah Lay Stanley Omah Didia (born 18 May 1997), known professionally as Omah Lay, is a Nigerian singer, songwriter and record producer. Omah Lay came into limelight and gained international recognition with his singles "Godly,” Understand," "Attention ...

and Masterkraft, who also serves as the primary producer of the Afrobeats version. The remix charted at number 7 on Nigeria's Songs of Summer Chart. In November 2021, Alpha P was featured on DJames' song "Whine," produced by DJames and Michael Walls. On August 25, 2022, DJ Tunez features Alpha P, alongside

, and Tay Iwar on "Majo". The track debuted at number 12 on the

UK Afrobeats Singles Chart The UK Afrobeats Singles Chart is a record chart compiled in the United Kingdom by the Official Charts Company (OCC) to determine the 20 most popular singles in the afrobeats and afroswing genres. The chart is compiled by the OCC from digital ...

, and number 47 on Nigeria's

TurnTable Top 100 Songs The ''TurnTable'' Top 100 Songs (also known as Nigeria Official Top 100 Songs) is the music industry standard record chart in Nigeria for songs, published weekly by ''TurnTable'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on airplay (radio and tv) and ...

, on the week of 29 August 2022. Alpha P was featured on Y.D.A's "SADE" remix alongside

King Perryy Anthony Offiah (born 28 April 1997), professionally known as King Perryy, is a Nigerian Afrofusion, afrofusion singer and songwriter. He gained popularity with the single "Man on Duty" featuring Timaya which was released in 2018 under Timaya's ...

on October 2022. On 23 November 2022, he released "Veronica" featuring Babyboy AV and produced by Blaisebeatz. After a quiet 2023, Alpha P signed a record deal with

Phyno Chibuzo Nelson Azubuike (; born 9 October 1986), who is known professionally as Phyno, is a Nigerian rapper, singer, songwriter and record producer. Phyno was born and raised in Enugu State but is a native of Anambra State. He started his musi ...

's Penthauze Records on August 23, 2024, and released his debut single under the label titled, "W," featured rapper

and produced Thisizlondon. This single was included on his second EP, ''Welcome To The Pack'', released on September 6, 2024. ''Welcome To The Pack'' boasts appearances from Olamide, London, and Kemuel. The project received positive reviews from music critics, including T. J. Martins reviewing for Album Talks.

Discography

Extended plays

Singles

References

{{authority control 2002 births Living people Musicians from Benin City 21st-century Nigerian male rappers Nigerian male singers 21st-century Nigerian musicians 21st-century Nigerian rappers Nigerian Afrobeats musicians