Asake’s Alleged Exit From YBNL, and Other Olamide’s Signees Whose Departure Caused Uproar Online
- Olamide's music label Yahoo Boy No Laptop, aka YBNL, is one of the top music labels in the Nigerian music industry
- Olamide's YBNL stands side by side with Don Jazzy's Mavin music label, followed by the likes of Davido's DMW and Chocolate City
- Following its establishment in 2012, YBNL label has served as the starting point to fame to some of the biggest names in the Nigerian music industry
- Some of these artistes like Adekunle Gold and Lil Kesh have, however, left the label after becoming famous
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Nigerian Indigenous singer Olamide Adedeji, simply known as Olamide or Baddo Beyong, has songs and a legendary pen game and is considered one of the country's heavyweights on the music scene.
Olamide, who rose to fame alongside his internationally recognised colleague Ayo Balogun Wizkid in 2010, has earned himself the name 'King of Street' over the years, with his musical prowess alongside his support and impact towards many of the newer generation in the industry.
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The YBNL boss is instrumental to the rise of several Nigerian stars who were not even signed to his label, from Zanku label boss Zlatan Ibile to the controversial Zeh Nation label boss Portable, who made a name for himself on the streets after Baddo featured on his hit song Zazu.
Aside from being a professional singer for over a decade, Olamide is also the brain behind YBNL, one of the most successful music labels in the industry.
YBNL was in the news towards the end of 2024 after reports of the label's top star, Asake's alleged exit.
In this article, Legit.ng examines how Olamide started YBNL, his former artistes who left and trended online, and the contract duration for his signees.
How Olamide started YBNL
Before he established YBNL, Olamide was a signee under one of Nigeria's veteran music producers, ID Cabasa's Coded Tunes label.
In 2012, Olamide launched YBNL to create a collaborative and supportive environment for artistes and producers.
In an interview with Apple Music, the music star explained that the surplus from his earnings inspired him to invest in and support young artistes.
In his words:
"I just started stacking up money, and the money was becoming too much for me. I’m like, yo, I don’t have anything to do with all this money, mehn, I need to sign new guys. Let me spend money on people, you know."
More than a decade later, YBNL is relevant in the music industry. In 2020, the label signed a distribution and publishing deal with internationally recognised music outfit Empire Distribution.
It should be noted that every artistes who signed for Olamide's YBNL label from 2020 automatically becomes signed to Empire.
Contracts duration at Olamide's YBNL
Popular music journalist Joey Akan disclosed in a statement that artistes signed to Olamide's YBNL were generally given a two-year contract, after which they could choose to extend or go independent.
"Since the deal with Empire, things might have changed. But pattern recognition teaches us that YBNL is a two-year-contract label," he said.
He singled out Fireboy DML as an exception, who joined the label in 2018 and has remained with YBNL to this day.
YBNL signees whose exit trended
Aside from signing artistes, Olamide's label is home to top music producers like Pheelz, 'Mr Producer,' and Young Jonn, 'The Wicked Producer,' who are now pursuing careers as music artistes.
Listed below are some artistes whose exit trended online after they departed from Olamide's YBNL.
1. 'Mr Money' Asake's alleged exit in 2024
Asake, perhaps the most popular YBNL star on the international scene, witnessed massive growth in his career after Olamide signed him in 2022 following a collaboration on his hit song Omo Ope.
Following the release of Omo Ope, the YBNL star who used his mum's name as his stage name dropped hits upon hits in two years, from Sungba to Joha, Terminator, 2:30 and Yoga.
Asake, within two years, shut down stages on the international scene, including selling out the iconic O2 Arena. He also earned himself a Grammy nomination in 2024 and 2025.
However, towards the end of 2024, reports emerged on social media that Asake had severed ties with Olamide and the YBNL music label.
Reports claimed Asake’s contract with YBNL recently expired, and he declined to renew it despite Olamide’s efforts.
Further stirring up the rumours was Asake's decision to unfollow everyone, including Olamide, on social media and remove YBNL from his Instagram bio.
However, as of this report, neither Olamide nor Asake has confirmed or refuted the rumour of Mr Money's exit from YBNL.
2. Adekunle Gold exits YBNL in 2017
Like in Asake's case, there were rumours about Adekunle Gold's exit from YBNL, as some netizens claimed the Orente crooner had a beef with Olamide.
Adekunle Gold dismissed the rumours in an interview with PUNCH, stressing that he was on good terms with Olamide.
“I wonder why people keep saying things like this. Both me and Olamide have come out to say it severally that we are still on good terms," he said.
Adekunle Gold now owns his label, Afro Urban Records.
3. Lil Kesh bids goodbye to YBNL in 2016
Lil Kesh was one of the earliest signees to YBNL, with his contract lasting two years.
After his contract expired, rumours also emerged online that it was due to his differences with Olamide.
Like Adekunle Gold, Lil Kesh dismissed the rumours, stating that it was a matter of contract expiration between him and the YBNL boss.
Lil Kesh now manages his career independently and owns the Young And Getting It, aka YAGI label.
4. Chinko Ekun was kicked out of YBNL
The rapper, who was signed to YBNL around 2014, left in 2016 alongside Adekunle Gold.
In 2022, while sharing his testimony in a video shared by Pastor Bolaji Idowu of Harvesters International Christian Center (HICC), Chinko Ekun disclosed he was kicked out of YBNL.
"I lost my record deal, and I had an issue with my record label boss. He was so mad and said that I should leave the house. I became homeless. I am the type of gentle guy, I don’t come to the Internet and talk. I couldn’t stay where I was and had to come to the island to squat with Aloma," he said.
5. Temmie Ovwasa out of YBNL after 5 years
Temmie Ovwasa, also known as YBNL Princess, signed a record deal with the label in August 2015 but left in 2020 after a disagreement with the label owner, Olamide.
Following her exit, Temmie Ovwasa made headlines for repeatedly dragging Olamide, including how his wife turned her into an errand girl.
Olamide's album hits milestone on Spotify
Meanwhile, Legit.ng reported that Olamide's "Carpe Diem" album made history by becoming the first album by a Nigerian rapper to hit 200 million streams on Spotify.
The album recorded the feat four years after its release on October 8, 2020.
As his eleventh studio album, it featured collaborations with top artists, including Fireboy DML and Omah Lay.
Proofreading by Nkem Ikeke, journalist and copy editor at Legit.ng.
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Source: Legit.ng
