Remember Dagrin
I fell in love with pon pon pon the first time I listened to that song on radio, a witty rap song with fascinating delivery. Even a non-speaker of Yoruba language can’t help but bounce to its crazy beat. The standard set by AY a Nigerian rapper based in London with a single AY don make it about a decade ago met its match with Dagrin’s offer. The mainstream embraced Dagrin; shows took him around the country in the year 2009. His name began to grow, likewise his fame. The divas in the industry were quick to feature him on musical tracks and the rapper never failed to impress them. By the first quarter of 2010 the rapper surely made the list of top five emcees in high demand in Nigeria.
Dagrin a.k.a Dapo olaonipekun’s fans grew in number, his gangsta (omota) persona endeared him to the females as well. He was a young rapper living the good life but all of a sudden video wheels reported the motor accident incident involving the rapper and a few days later Dagrin gave up the ghost. His death cast a cloud over the music industry.
A look at Dagrin’s lyrics shows he was a gangsta rapper, rap game requires uniqueness, MI has got the feel good music, Mode 9 appeals to the intellect, Eedris is wild on stage, Ruggedman made a revolutionary entry.
Dagrin stepped up on the mother tongue with a ganasta persona, the area boys can identify with his style, and his booty shaking lyrics surely appeal to the ladies. The Yoruba language he employed in his lyrics gave him the mass appeal, it is evident that all a grandmother needs to do is to be closer to a radio set with a little attention to Dagrin’s lyrics if she understands Yoruba language she will feel the rapper.
The future looked great for the young Dapo Olaonipekun but the street smarts his lyrics reflect couldn’t safe him. If Dagrin had not created a unique personality he wouldn’t have made it big in the industry. When life and art are in unison the effect is always stronger. Just like we never wanted 2pac to go, a genuine hip hop rap fan would want Dagrin to be here for a long time, his CEO chief executive omota album is a testimony to this submission. His death will elevate the strength of the album. I couldn’t look into Dagrin’s mind to see if the gangsta lifestyle was responsible for his demise. But one thing I knew, Dadrin made his name in the Nigerian hip hop game.