Skepta facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Skepta
Skepta performing in 2019
Born	Joseph Olaitan Adenuga Jr (1982-09-19) 19 September 1982 (age 42) Tottenham, London, England
Occupation	Rapper record producer songwriter disc jockey
Years active	2002–present
Children	2
Relatives	Jme (brother) Julie Adenuga (sister)
Musical career
Genres	British hip hop grime
Labels	Boy Better Know The Orchard All Around the World Island
Associated acts	Boy Better Know Roll Deep Jme ASAP Rocky Chip Ghetts Giggs Octavian Wizkid Young Adz

Joseph Olaitan Adenuga Jr. (born 19 September 1982), known as Skepta, is a British grime artist, rapper, music producer, and DJ. He is famous for his unique style and important role in the grime music scene.

Skepta started his music journey with his younger brother Jme. They were briefly part of the group Roll Deep before they helped create Boy Better Know in 2005. With Boy Better Know, Skepta took part in a famous "clash" (a rap battle) against another artist named Devilman. This battle is still remembered as one of the biggest in grime history.

Skepta released his first album, Greatest Hits, in 2007. His second album, Microphone Champion, came out in 2009. Both were released independently, meaning he did it himself without a big record company. His third album, Doin' It Again, was released in 2011. Skepta also tried acting, appearing in the 2015 film Anti-Social.

His fourth album, Konnichiwa (2016), was a huge success. It included popular songs like "That's Not Me" and "Shutdown". This album received great reviews and won the Mercury Prize, which is a very important music award in the UK.

In 2018, Skepta worked with American rapper ASAP Rocky on the song "Praise the Lord (Da Shine)". This song became a global hit and was the highest-charting song for both artists. In 2019, Skepta released Ignorance Is Bliss, which was popular in many countries. He also released Insomnia in 2020, a joint album with British rappers Chip and Young Adz. This album reached the top 10 in the UK Albums Chart.

Skepta has been nominated for three Brit Awards, which are major music awards in the UK. He is seen as a very influential person in British popular culture because of his impact on the grime scene. In 2017, he was listed as one of the most influential people in the UK by Debrett's. On 4 April 2018, he received a special honor in Nigeria, becoming a chief with the title "Amuludun of Odo-Aje".

Early Life and Family

Joseph Olaitan Adenuga Jr. was born on 19 September 1982, in Tottenham, North London. His parents are from Nigeria, with his father being from the Yoruba people and his mother from the Igbo people. He is the oldest of four children. His siblings are fellow musician Jme, radio presenter Julie, and graphic designer Jason.

Music Career Highlights

Starting Out: 2002–2007

Skepta began his career as a DJ for a grime group called Meridian Crew, based in Tottenham. The Meridian Crew often performed on unofficial radio stations. Early in his career, Skepta released instrumental tracks like "Pulse Eskimo" in 2002, and "DTI (Pirate Station Anthem)" and "Private Caller".

Skepta started rapping just before Meridian Crew broke up in 2005. After that, he and his brother Jme joined Roll Deep for a short time. Then, in 2006, they became founding members of Boy Better Know. A famous grime artist named Wiley encouraged Skepta to start rapping. After forming Boy Better Know, Skepta had a memorable rap battle with Devilman for a DVD called Lord of the Mics 2. This battle is considered one of the most important in grime history. Soon after, Skepta released a collection of songs called "Joseph Junior Adenuga". His first official album, Greatest Hits, was released on 17 September 2007, through his own label, Boy Better Know.

Growing Success: 2008–2011

In September 2008, Skepta released his first single, "Rolex Sweep", which reached number 89 on the UK music charts. He then released his album Microphone Champion on 1 June 2009. He also released the song "Too Many Man" with Jme, Wiley, Frisco, and Shorty, which reached number 79.

Skepta released five singles from his third album, Doin' It Again. This was his first album with a major record label. The singles included "Bad Boy", "Rescue Me", "Cross My Heart" (featuring Preeya Kalidas), "So Alive", and "Amnesia". Three of these songs made it into the Top 40 of the UK Singles Chart. "Rescue Me" was the most successful, reaching number 14. Doin' It Again spent three weeks in the top 100 album charts and reached number 19 in its first week.

New Sounds and Big Hits: 2012–2017

In 2012, Skepta released two singles, "Hold On" and "Make Peace Not War". Both songs reached the Top 40 in the UK. After these songs, Skepta decided to release a mixtape called Blacklisted on 2 December 2012.

Skepta in 2014

In March 2014, Skepta added a verse to the remix of "German Whip" by Meridian Dan. In the same month, he released his new single, "That's Not Me", featuring his brother Jme. This song reached number 21 on the UK charts. The music video for "That's Not Me" won the award for Best Video at the 2014 MOBO Awards. Skepta shared that the video only cost him £80 to make.

Later in 2014, Skepta released "It Ain't Safe" featuring ASAP Bari. This was followed in early 2015 by "Shutdown". He also featured on "Red Eye to Paris" by Flatbush Zombies and the remix of "Ojuelegba" by Wizkid, which also featured Drake. Skepta joined Kanye West for a surprise show in London, where they performed several songs together. In 2015, GQ magazine named him one of the 50 best-dressed British men.

Skepta made his acting debut in the 2015 film Anti-Social. On 14 February 2016, Skepta released "Ladies Hit Squad" featuring grime artist D Double E and American rapper ASAP Nast. Skepta announced on Instagram that his album, Konnichiwa, would be released on 6 May 2016. Konnichiwa became the highest-charting grime album, reaching number 2 in the UK music charts. The album included songs like "That's Not Me", "Shutdown", and "Man". A launch party for Konnichiwa was held in Tokyo on 5 May 2016, where Skepta performed the entire album live.

Skepta started his "Banned From America" tour on 16 April 2017. This tour had 14 shows across the United States and Europe. The tour was named this because Skepta's visa application to enter the United States was denied in 2016, which forced him to cancel his "No Fear" American tour.

Skepta released his Vicious EP on 31 October 2017. It featured songs with ASAP Rocky, Lil B, and Section Boyz.

Recent Work: 2018–Present

In May 2018, Skepta was featured on ASAP Rocky's song "Praise the Lord (Da Shine)", which became a hit. Also in May, Skepta released his single "Pure Water", which reached number 78 in the UK. In June, he released "Energy (Stay Far Away)" with Wizkid, which reached number 59.

In 2020, Skepta appeared with Pop Smoke on Kid Cudi’s song “Show Out”. In December 2019, Skepta also appeared as himself in a Grand Theft Auto Online expansion as a radio host. He also worked with Gorillaz and Tony Allen on the song "How Far?" in May 2020.

On 30 July 2021, Skepta released his EP, All In. In 2022, Skepta signed with Wasserman Music for his music representation worldwide. In October 2023, Skepta released "Can't Play Myself (A Tribute to Amy)", which uses a sample from Amy Winehouse's "Tears Dry on Their Own". In January 2024, he apologized for artwork for his upcoming single "Gas Me Up (Diligent)" after it caused offense. He stated that the parallels were unintended and promised to be more careful in the future.

Personal Life

On 4 April 2018, Skepta was honored in his Nigerian hometown in Ogun State. He received the chieftaincy title of the Amuludun, which means "Chief Entertainer" of Odo-Aje.

Skepta has two children, a daughter and a son.

He is also a visual artist. In September 2022, the famous auction house Sotheby's displayed some of his paintings. These paintings were all created during the COVID-19 lockdowns. On 2 December 2024, he was a DJ at Jaguar's event for their new Type 00 concept car in Miami, Florida.

Discography

Studio albums

• Greatest Hits (2007)
• Microphone Champion (2009)
• Doin' It Again (2011)
• Konnichiwa (2016)
• Ignorance Is Bliss (2019)
• Knife And Fork (2025)

Collaborative albums

• Insomnia (with Chip and Young Adz) (2020)

Mixtapes

• Joseph Junior Adenuga (2006)
• Been There Done That (2010)
• Community Payback (2011)
• Blacklisted (2012)
• The Tim Westwood Mix (2015)
• All In (2021)

Awards and Nominations

Skepta has won many awards for his music. Here are some of them: