An Hip-hop album by a Nigerian act is sitting atop the Top Albums Chart on Apple Music. Widespread, critical acclaim from fans on social media, with many swearing to the supremacy of the project despite a language barrier keeping them from understanding most of the lyrics. Potentially pioneering a new sound that many hip-hop artists are sure to experiment with over the coming months and even years. He may not have actualised his fantasy in the literal sense just yet, but Jeriq is quite clearly living the billion dollar dream already.
Jeriq has already achieved superstar status in the South-East region of Nigeria where he proudly originates from. For context, despite a star studded lineup for the 2020 Enugu Carnival that included Davido, Phyno, Peruzzi, Zlatan, and Flavour, the concertgoers still insisted Jeriq be given a slot to perform that night. But with the arrival of his new project “Billion Dollar Dream”, Jeriq has finally achieved nationwide recognition. Now, hip-hop heads are finally alive to his distinct sound that somehow makes the foreign import of trap and drill music sound like it originated from our very own shores. He repeatedly enraptures his audience using a mix of English language and Igbo dialect to tell personal stories of the hustle and bustle that every Nigerian youth can relate to and be inspired by. Interestingly, he’s only 23 years old, but majority of those two decades have been spent on the road to this current spot as Nigeria’s new face of indigenous rap.
Born Ani Jeremiah Chukwuebuka sometime in 1999, the early death of his father meant he was raised by a single mother for most of his life. The pressure of being the first of five children made him take to the streets of Nkpor and Onitsha in Anambra state to make some extra cash to support his mum in taking care of the family. Consequently, he got mixed up with gangsters and street criminals, and had he not discovered music, his story could have been very different. But luckily he did, and after getting his first taste of viral success in 2015 within Enugu and Anambra with a track titled “Iyoo”, he chose music. And considering how nicely things gave played out for him since, it’s safe to say music chose him back.
He has had several successful singles along the way, but there have been two landmark moments in his journey to this point. The first was his was his debut project “Hood Boy Dreams”, a 6-track EP which was released in 2020. The body of work cemented his place as a real force to be reckoned with on the South-East music landscape. It also earned him a verse from Phyno on the remix to the EP’s biggest single “Remember”. The second moment was another EP, this time a collaborative effort with Dremo titled “Ea$t N We$t” in 2021. The chemistry between both rappers was evident across the five tracks, and Jeriq gained increased exposure in the South West thanks to the presence of the DMW artist. It’s fair to say that tactical masterclass laid the ground work for him to complete his invasion of Nigeria’s largest music market, which he has now successfully done with “Billion Dollar Dream.”
It’s not very often that an artist has the talents of Psycho YP, Kofi Jamar, Dremo, Flavour, and Alpha P on a project without having the show stolen from him even once. The features served no more than a commercial appeal at the end of the day; that’s how good Jeriq was on the 13 tracks. The peak was probably “Cartel Business”, the project’s seventh track. He had the audacity to infuse the local oja flute from the Igbo tradition into a sizzling trap beat and the end product was so outrageous, fans are now dubbing it “oja trap” and copyrighting the sound on his behalf. “Dnd”, “#1”, “True Life Story, and “Chukwuebuka” are other standout tracks worth checking out, but the same could easily be said for the other seven songs on “Billion Dollar Dream.” He had massive help from his production team which comprises of Dr Jayswaarg, Insane Chips, Soo Flashy, Bada$$, Xtraordinaire, and Enaps but ultimately the credit must go to Jeriq for the honesty and creativity he put into his music. Still think Nigerian Hip-hop is dead? Listen to Jeriq and let’s see if you still hold this opinion.