Oladapo Olaitan Olaonipekun,
also known as Dagrin (25 October 1984 – 22 April 2010), was a
Nigerian rapper from
Ogun, Nigeria. A film of his life entitled ''Ghetto Dreamz'' was released in April 2011.
Early life
Olaonipekun's home was in Meiran, Alagbado, Lagos.
Career
He released his first studio album Still On The Matter, but the album flopped due to not having enough promotion. In 2009 He released his second studio album called C.E.O. (Chief Executive Omoita). In 2010 he was nominated for the Nigerian Entertainment Awards for Best Album (''C.E.O.''), Hottest Single "
Pon Pon Pon", Best Rap Act and Best Collaboration with vocals. His album ''C.E.O.'' (Chief executive Omota ''English:'' Chief Executive Thug) won the Hip hop World Award 2010 for best rap album. From it came the singles "Pon Pon Pon", and "Kondo". Dagrin worked with other Nigerian artists such as Y.Q, 9ice, M.I, Iceberg Slim, Omobaba, Terry G, Ms Chief, Owen G, K01, code, MISTAR DOLLAR, TMD entertainment, Omawumi, Chudy K, Bigiano, and Konga. His third studio If I Die was released posthumously One of the song he sang from the album ''If I Die.'' was ''If I Die'', it was as if he knew he was going to actually die after the release of that album.
Legacy
Da Grin was cited as one of the pioneers of dialect
rap singers of
Yoruba
The Yoruba people (, , ) are a West African ethnic group that mainly inhabit parts of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo. The areas of these countries primarily inhabited by Yoruba are often collectively referred to as Yorubaland. The Yoruba consti ...
language and
Pidgin
A pidgin , or pidgin language, is a grammatically simplified means of communication that develops between two or more groups of people that do not have a language in common: typically, its vocabulary and grammar are limited and often drawn from s ...
in
Nigeria. Nigerian journalist, Idoko Salihu of
Premium Times stated that "Da Grin was a rapper who revolutionised the Nigerian rap industry, he infused English with his native dialect".
''Ghetto Dreamz''
A film of his life ''Ghetto Dreamz'', starring Trybson Dudukoko and
Doris Simeon-Ademinokan as his girlfriend has been made and was released in April 2011.
Discography
* ''
Still On The Matter
A still is an apparatus used to distill liquid mixtures by heating to selectively boil and then cooling to condense the vapor. A still uses the same concepts as a basic distillation apparatus, but on a much larger scale. Stills have been used ...
'' (2006)
* ''
C.E.O (Chief Executive Omoita)
A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...
'' (2009)
* ''
If I Die'' (2011)
Awards and nominations
Won
*
2010 Hip Hop World Awards – Best Rap Album
Nominated
*2010 Hip Hop World Awards –
Artiste of the Year
Death
Olaonipekun had an accident on April 14, 2010 & died 8 days later at the age of 25 on 22 April, 2010 after a vehicle accident in
Lagos, Nigeria.
References
External links
Interview about album Album reviewBiographyGhetto Dreamz Trailer
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grin, Da
Nigerian male rappers
2010 deaths
1987 births
Yoruba musicians
People from Ogun State
Road incident deaths in Nigeria