Zlatan

Omoniyi Temidayo Raphael, now better known as Zlatan Ibile, has found his way to popularity due to his talent and desire to reach heights in music. Zlatan was born on December 19, 1994, in Kwara State, Nigeria. The childhood of the young Zlatan was a little different from the youth of his peers. 

Of course, he had some difficulties, but he always tried to find a way out. At arelatively young age, Zlatan became interested in music. Of all the genres, he liked hip-hop themost, and to be more precise, afrobeat. This music style was new at the time, so many artists had ample experimentation opportunities, and only later did the genre take on today's form.Of course, music was a great hobby, but he understood that he also needed a good education.Zlatan has chosen the direction of business administration. To do this, he graduated fromMAPOLY, or as it is called Moshood Abiola Polytechnic, in 2011. Although he already had adiploma and could easily look for a job related to his field, Zlatan simply could not quit music.This time he was more determined. To do this, Zlatan began to actively improve himself and learn in more detail the afrobeat genre to finally start creating his own songs. For the next twoyears, Zlatan tried to make his own tracks, but they did not gain much popularity. He needed a chance to show himself in front of the public. And then he had this chance.

It happened when Zlatan was 19 years old. Abeokuta hosted a music competition called the OneMic Campus Tour. It is attended by musicians who wanted to prove themselves, and the winner was awarded prizes and a contract with a music studio. It was not just a music competition because it evaluated not only the voice but also the behavior on stage, creativity, and how well the artist is able to interact with the audience. It is because of all these factors that many, even good singers could not go far. However, the years of preparation for Zlatan were not in vain.Despite strong opponents, he still managed to reach the final. In it, he competed with five other participants proving his skills. Despite the obstacles, Zlatan's performances won over both the judges and the audience. His energy and catchy lyrics showed him as a real show business professional and brought him a victory.

As promised, he was rewarded with a car and a contract with ID Cabasa Coded Tunes. This, as you can understand, was a turning point in the career of the artist. After such a resounding victory, he needed to present himself fully and show the general public what he is capable of. His first full-fledged song on the professional stage can be called "Odun Yi" feat Spaceboi. Althoughthe song gained some local popularity, it was hard to call it a full-fledged good start. There were some problems with mixing in the song, and it did not stand out against the background of other songs in the afrobeat genre. It will take Zlatan a year to finally release a song that will gain widespread popularity. The next song was "Omoge" feat Oritsefemi. The mixing of this song was already much better than in the first track, and the audience better received the over alenergetic dance motive. Although the song moved away from the rap side and switched to the standard dance rhythm, it only benefited the song.

The next song will bring Zlatan the same wide popularity he so wanted. This song was "MyBody" feat Olamide. The song returned to the already traditional Afrobeats course, although it retained a strong dance rhythm. “My Body” has become a real hit in Nigeria and even in some other countries. Currently, the music video for the song "My Body" has more than half a million views on YouTube. After releasing this song, Zlatan was flooded with various offers, and now he had much more creative freedom than before. After such success, the next songs should be the same hits, and Zlatan understood this perfectly. Do you think he failed? Of course not. “Jogor”feat Lil Kesh and Naira Marley became a real hit. Zlatan finally found the afrobeat style in which he was most comfortable performing, and it was noticeable. Dancing afrobeat, moderately fast rap with interesting lyrics and energy allowed this song to spread to all possible clubs and parties in Nigeria and some other countries. Such popularity could not be stopped. 

Today, “Jogor” hasmore than 3 million views on YouTube.

Finally, we came up with probably the most important hit of Zlatan, which simply take by the storm not only the territory of Africa but also went far beyond its borders. Of course, we aretalking about "Zanku”. Zanku (Leg Work) not only became his first truly solo single but also created a dance that gained unprecedented popularity. Even despite the dance, the song itselfshowed a much higher level of professionalism than at the beginning of his career. This applies to both the mixing and the overall rhythmof the song. And of course the dance. Although it isnot too heavy, it may have given him popularity because everyone could try to do it. Within a few days of the song and music video being released, thousands of people began teaching the dance on various social networks. Zanku was able even to surpass the popularity of ShakuShaku's past viral dance. Although Zanku has fewer views on YouTube than the same Jogor, itsoverall popularity has been much more significant. It was noticeable that even some producersstarted making their new tracks at the same tempo at which Zanku.

Of course, since the release of the single "Zanku", Zlatan has released many more songs, but themain turning point in recent years has been the release of his debut album called "Zanku.” Thealbum was released on November 1 and received quite mixed reviews. The album’s maincriticism was the poor mixing of some songs, the songs’ incoherence, and weak relative to othersongs. Despite all this, the album received positive feedback from listeners, which is an essentialcriterion for the album’s success. Songs such as "Adura Agba”, "Omo Olope" and "Love andGain" were exceptionally well received. Although each of these songs has a different motive andstyle, they are usually selected for listening to this album.

In general, what can be said about Zlatan? First of all, his popularity was led by the desire to dohis favorite thing and constant self-improvement. The desire to succeed in the business you adorehas become the primary motivator for Zlatan. This desire gave him the strength to overcome anyobstacles and eventually achieve what he wanted. Of course, his musical career has just begun,but there is no doubt that the love of the audience that he received in just four years will remainwith him for a very long time.