Asake’s Biography
Ahmed Ololade, professionally known as Asake, is a Nigerian vocalist and songwriter. The appellation “Asake” is his mother’s maiden name. Asake studied drama at Nigeria’s Obafemi Awolowo University.
Mr. Money with the Vibe was released in September 2022, breaking the record for the largest opening day for an African album on Apple Music at the time. This is the highest-charting Nigerian debut album in the annals of the Billboard 200 chart, where it debuted at number 66. “Work of Art,” his sophomore album, was released in June 2023 and became his second album to debut at number 66 on the Billboard 200.
YBNL Nation and Empire Distribution are his labels.
Music Career
In 2018, he began releasing music, and his career took off in 2020 with the single “Mr. Money” and its remix featuring Zlatan and Peruzzi. Olamide, a fellow Nigerian artist, signed Asake to his YBNL Records imprint in February 2022. In the same month, he released his debut extended play, Ololade, which included the hit songs “Omo Ope” featuring Olamide and “Sungba.” Asake inked a distribution agreement with Empire in July 2022.
On September 8, 2022, Asake released his debut studio album, Mr. Money with the Vibe, supported by the successful singles “Terminator”, “Peace Be Unto You”, and a remix of “Sungba” with Burna Boy. The album was well-received by fans in his native Nigeria as well as around the globe, and it broke several global records. The album entered the Billboard 200 at number 66.
Genre
Afrobeats
Location
Nigeria
Socials
Asake announced the Mr. Money with the Vibe United Kingdom tour in September 2022, selling out three dates at the O2 Academy Brixton in London. On the last night of the Brixton Academy concerts, a crowd crush resulted in critical injuries to several individuals. Rebecca Ikumelo, 33, a concertgoer, and Gaby Hutchinson, 23, a security officer, later succumbed to their injuries.
In 2022, Asake won Break Out Artist of the Year at the 2022 All Africa Music Awards and was nominated for Best African Music Act at the 2022 MOBO Awards, his first nomination for an international award. Moreover, he was nominated for Best New International Act at the 2023 BET Awards, the same year he was ranked fifth on Rolling Stone Music’s Future 25.
Asake was named “Artist of the year” by Audiomack in December 2022 after his debut studio album Mr. Money with the Vibes amassed over 330 million streams. He was later named alongside Kizz Daniel, Snazzy the Optimist, and 1ucid as one of the most streamed and top trending artists in February 2023 by the platform, following the release of the single “Yoga” in January 2023, which ventured into sega music. The following singles were “2:30” in April and “Amapiano” with Olamide in May.
“Work of Art,” his second studio album, was announced shortly after “Amapiano” was released. Asake appeared on Good Morning America in April 2023 to discuss his music. “Work of Art,” the second studio album by Asake, was released on June 16, 2023. The album debuted at number 66 on the Billboard 200 with initial sales of 13,000 copies. Additionally, the album peaked at number 20 on the UK Albums Chart and number 59 on the Irish Recorded Music Association.
He was taken into custody in October 2021 for displaying a gun on social media. Later, he was accused of illegally displaying weapons and ammunition, to which he entered a not guilty plea. Then, an Accra Circuit judge remanded him to prison imprisonment for 5 days. After spending five days on detention, he was granted bail for GHC 100,000 with one surety at the hearing on Tuesday, October 26.
Discography
