Muktarh

Born and raised in Lagos, Muktarh (born Muktar Adedeji Adeyemo) has always been drawn to music and its ability to serve as a tool of self-expression. His upbringing in the cosmopolitan pulse of Nigeria’s economic capital provided ample inspiration for the singer’s interest in hip-hop. As he grew up, he formed a music band in his high school and studied the work of masters like 2Pac, DMX, and Drake among others. Kickstarting his professional recording career in 2024, the artist’s goal was to artfully blend the lyrical rigour of hip-hop with the free-wheeling musicality and gritty vocal tradition of indigenous Nigerian music. His forthcoming debut single, “Young Bad Boy,” is a testament to that vision as Muktarh layers specific bars and anecdotes about living on the street, mental struggles, and beating the odds into a nearly three-minute play-by-play archiving of his life while looping in elements of Yoruba and Pidgin. In many ways, “Young Bad Boy” follows in the haunting yet devastatingly insular approach made popular by acclaimed New York MC, DMX, and Nigerian rap hero, Olamide who’s widely credited for popularizing the indigenous rap movement.

Speaking about his debut single, Muktarh describes “Young Bad Boy” as a tale of working through any hindrances. “The song is a dedication to the hustle and what it takes to become a success. As someone striving for success, there are a lot of hurdles and you just have to be ready to find a way through it,” he says. “I wanted the song to have elements of hip-hop but it also had to reflect where I’m from, who I am, and the realities of life as I see it. That’s why there’s an indigenous feel to it and even though it sounds like that, it’s also an encouragement for people not to let their heads go and give up.”