Simisola Bolatito Kosoko (née Ogunleye; born April 19, 1988), professionally known by her stage name Simi, is a Nigerian singer, songwriter, and actress. She began her career in gospel singing and released her debut studio album “Ogaju” in 2008. She also served as one of the best judges in the 7th season of “Nigerian Idol” in 2022. In 2014, she released “Tiff”, which went on to be nominated for the Best Alternative Song at the Headies 2015. She signed a record deal in 2014 with the record label X3M Music, but dropped out in May 2019 after the end of her contract with the label. She released her 2nd studio album “Simisola” on 8 September 2017. On April 19, 2019, she released her 3rd studio album “Omo Charlie Champagne” Vol. 1 to coincide with her 30th birthday. In June 2019, she launched her record label, Studio Brat.
Early life
Simi was the fourth of four children born on April 19, 1988. She was raised in a suburb of Lagos, Surulere. In an interview with Vanguard, Simi said that her parents split up when she was nine. She also described herself as a “tomboy”
Simi Education
She started her education at Stars International College, Ikorodu, Lagos State, and later went on to study at Covenant University, where she obtained her Bachelor’s degree in Mass Communication.
Career
While growing up, Simi used to dance and sing in her local church’s choir. Simi wrote her first composition at the age of 10. Simi’s professional music career began in 2008 with the release of “Ogaju”, her first studio album. The album was a collection of several songs, including “Iyemo Temi” and “Arra Ile.” It was produced by none other than Samklef.
2014–2018:
Simi released her 5 track EP, Restless, in January 2014, which led to her signing to X3M Music and a record deal. The EP consists mostly of covers of popular acts, such as Rihanna’s “Man Down” and Adele”s “Set fire to the Rain”.
Simi released two singles, “Tiff” and “E No Go Funny”, on January 9, 2014. Both songs received a lot of airplay and received generally positive reviews. The video for “Tiff,” directed by Josh Clarke, was released in August 30, 2015, and the song was nominated for a Best Alternative Song at The Headies in 2015.
Later that year, Simi won “The most promising act to watch” at the Nigeria Entertainment Awards.
In an interview with Leadership, Simi announced that she had started working on a second studio album, scheduled to be released in 2016. NotJustOk named Simi as one of the artists to watch for 2016. Simi released a remix of “Jamb Question” featuring Nigerian rapper Falz.
In February 2016, she released the love ballad “Love Don’t Care”, which was produced by Oscar Heman Akah. The song was well-received on the radio and received positive reviews. “Love don’t care” is a song that deals with tribalism in Nigeria as well as discrimination. The music video for the song features Clarence Peters.
October 2016, she was nominated for “Best Breakthrough Act” at the “MTV Africa Music Awards”.
On October 27, 2016, she released an extended play titled “Chemistry” with Falz. The EP was described by “360 Nobs” as an “experiment with the word art”. She was nominated for three categories at “The Headies 2016” in December 2016 and won one of them.
In the run-up to the release of Simisola’s 12-track album, Simi dropped two singles; “Smile for me” and “Joromi”. Both songs were backed by music videos helmed by Clarence Peters & Aje Films. Simi also released music videos for O Wa Nbe, “Complete Me”, “Gone for good” & “Aimasiko” to support the release of the album.
Simi revealed the full track list of Simisola on September 1st, 2017. The album was released on September 7th, 2017 and debuted at No. 5 on Billboard’s World Albums Chart.
2019
Simi announced on social media in March 2019 that her 3rd studio album would be released on her birthday, April 19th, 2019.
The album is a departure from the afro-centered feel of her 2017 debut, Simisola. It is a mix of sentimental ballads, afropop, afro-fused, afrosoul, reggae, r&b, EDM, and moombaton.
The album was produced by Oscar and Vtek, with additional tracks coming from Vidal Sassoon, legendury beatz, and sess. It also features guest vocalists Patoranking, Maleek Berry, Falz, and her husband adekunle gold.
Simi dedicated her album to her late father, Oladele Olgunleye, who passed away in 2014.
Three singles were released in advance of the album – “I Dun Care”, “Lovin”, and “Ayo”.
X3M Music confirmed in May 2019 that Simi had decided not to renew her recording contract and had decided to part ways with them. Simi also announced on social media that she was launching her independent record label “Studio Brat”.
The song ‘Duduke’ was released in 2020 and symbolizes the love and hope of her unborn child.
2020
Simi released her second EP, Restless II, in 2020, which is the second part of the original Restless EP that was released in 2014.
2022
Simisola Kosoko of Studio Brat fame, better known as Simi, has just released her long-awaited studio album titled “To Be Honest”. This is Simi’s fourth studio album and follows her EP “Restless II” which was released in 2020. The album consists of 11 solid tracks and features guest appearances from Fave and Deja, as well as her husband “Adekunle Gold”.
Simi’s success on this studio album led to her selection as a Spotify Equally Africa music program ambassador in July, making her the second African artist after Tiwa Savage to be named an Equally global and Equally African artiste.
Spotify’s EQUAL program seeks to promote gender equality and celebrate the work of influential women artists. She is one of many African-born and raised women who are shaping the culture and pushing the boundaries of the music industry.
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Originally posted 2024-01-30 19:20:30.
