Tunde Adebimpe facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Tunde Adebimpe
Tunde Adebimpe performing with TV on the Radio in 2015
Background information
Birth name	Babatunde Omoroga Adebimpe
Born	(1975-02-25) February 25, 1975 (age 50) St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
Genres	Experimental rock indie rock
Occupation(s)	Singer musician songwriter actor
Instruments	Vocals keyboards percussion
Years active	1998–present
Labels	Sub Pop

Babatunde Omoroga Adebimpe (born February 25, 1975) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and actor. He is most famous as a founding member and one of the lead singers of the band TV on the Radio, which is based in Brooklyn. With the band, he has released five studio albums. In April 2025, Adebimpe released his first solo album, Thee Black Boltz.

As an actor, Adebimpe has appeared in movies like Twisters, Spider-Man: Homecoming, Marriage Story, and Rachel Getting Married. He has also been in several independent films. In 2024, he appeared in the science fiction TV series Star Wars: Skeleton Crew. He has also lent his voice to animated shows such as Strange Planet, Lazor Wolf, Pantheon, and Tuca & Bertie.

Early Life and Family

Tunde Adebimpe was born in the United States. His family had moved there from Nigeria. He went to high school at Shady Side Academy in Fox Chapel, Pennsylvania, where he is still involved today. His father, who has passed away, was a psychiatrist in Pittsburgh. Tunde is married to French cartoonist Domitille Collardey, and they have a child together.

Music Career Highlights

Adebimpe performing in 2009

Starting TV on the Radio

Tunde Adebimpe helped start the band TV on the Radio in 2001 with guitarist and producer Dave Sitek. At first, Tunde was the only lead singer. Later, Kyp Malone joined them as another lead singer and guitarist. These three wrote and recorded the band's first album, Desperate Youth, Blood Thirsty Babes, which came out in 2004.

After that album, the band grew to include bassist Gerard Smith and drummer Jaleel Bunton. This group recorded three popular albums: Return to Cookie Mountain (2006), Dear Science (2008), and Nine Types of Light (2011). Sadly, Gerard Smith passed away shortly after Nine Types of Light was released. The band continued as a quartet, and Jaleel Bunton started playing bass for Smith's parts during live shows. Their fifth album, Seeds, was released in 2014.

Solo Work and Other Projects

Before starting his solo career, Adebimpe mostly performed with TV on the Radio. However, he often worked with other musicians. He sang backup on the song "Dragon Queen" for the band Yeah Yeah Yeahs in 2009. He also appeared on several songs by Dragons of Zynth.

In 2008, Adebimpe formed an experimental music group called Nevermen with Mike Patton and Doseone. Their first album, also called Nevermen, was released in 2016.

In 2009, he worked with Massive Attack on their song "Pray for Rain". In 2010, he was featured on Dave Sitek's project Maximum Balloon for the song "Absence of Light". Adebimpe and other TV on the Radio members also appeared on three songs from Tinariwen's album Tassili (2011). They also worked on the Amadou & Mariam song "Wily Kataso" from the 2012 album Folila, which won a Grammy.

In 2012, Adebimpe started a band called Higgins Waterproof Black Magic Band. They released their first EP in October 2013. He also sang on the song "Bad Radio" from Leftfield's album Alternative Light Source in 2015. In 2017, he provided vocals for "Thieves! (Screamed The Ghosts)" on Run The Jewels' album Run the Jewels 3.

Adebimpe also worked with Rockstar Games and released "Speedline Miracle Masterpiece (ft. Sal P. & Sinkane)". This song was part of the Welcome to Los Santos soundtrack for the video game Grand Theft Auto V.

In October 2022, he covered the Sleater-Kinney song "The Drama You've Been Craving" for a tribute album. This album celebrated the twenty-fifth anniversary of Dig Me Out.

In October 2024, Adebimpe announced he had signed with Sub Pop for his first solo album. The album, titled Thee Black Boltz, was released on April 18, 2025.

Film and Television Roles

In 1998, Tunde Adebimpe was one of the first animators for MTV's claymation show Celebrity Deathmatch.

He starred in an indie movie called Jump Tomorrow in 2001. This movie was based on a short college film where he played the same character.

In 2003, Adebimpe directed the music video for the Yeah Yeah Yeahs song "Pin".

In 2008, he appeared in Jonathan Demme's movie Rachel Getting Married. He played the groom, Sidney, alongside Rosemarie DeWitt and Anne Hathaway. In the film, Adebimpe sings a song called "Unknown Legend" without any instruments.

In 2011, Adebimpe directed a visual film to go along with TV on the Radio's fourth album, Nine Types of Light. He asked many of the band's favorite filmmakers to create short clips for the film. Adebimpe directed the video for the song "Forgotten" himself.

In 2013, Adebimpe directed and animated the video for Higgins Waterproof Black Magic Band's song "The Blast the Bloom". Later in 2013, he finished filming Nasty Baby, directed by Sebastian Silva. He starred in it with Kristen Wiig. The movie was released in 2015.

Adebimpe also made a short appearance as himself on the IFC show Portlandia in 2014.

In 2016, he provided the voice for Banana Guard #16 in the Adventure Time episode "The Thin Yellow Line".

In 2017, he appeared in the second season of The Girlfriend Experience.

Adebimpe played Mr. Cobbwell in Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017).

In 2020, he had a small role as a street preacher in the HBO miniseries Perry Mason.

In 2022 and 2023, he voiced Stephen Gold in the AMC+ series Pantheon.

Adebimpe was also cast in the 2024 TV show Star Wars: Skeleton Crew.

Visual Art Projects

Tunde Adebimpe originally started as a cartoonist. He still enjoys designing, drawing, and painting. He has created the artwork for all of TV on the Radio's album covers. He also painted the cover for the band's 2013 song "Mercy".

In 2009, Adebimpe released his own art comic book called Plague Hero. This painted book shows a boxing match between two animal-like characters. Some copies of the book came with a DVD of "Mystery Sh*t," which was a collection of song ideas and animations from Adebimpe's old work.

In May 2017, Adebimpe presented A Warm Weather Ghost. This was a live performance that combined different types of media. It was created for the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis.

Filmography

Film Roles

Television Roles

Discography

Solo Albums

Solo Singles

Albums with TV on the Radio

• Desperate Youth, Blood Thirsty Babes (2004)
• Return to Cookie Mountain (2006)
• Dear Science (2008)
• Nine Types of Light (2011)
• Seeds (2014)