eLDee - Lanre Dabiri

Lanre Dabiri Biography / Profile

Lanre Dabiri, popularly known by his stage name eLDee, is a Nigerian- American rapper, record producer and architect who was born on May 23, 1977 and raised in Kaduna, in the Northern part of Nigeria. 'Lanre' is a nickname for the Yoruba name 'Olanrewaju' which means 'My wealth is the future'

Lanre Dabiri Age

Lanre Dabiri is 46 years old.

Lanre Dabiri Early Life

eLDee studied Architecture at the University of Lagos, Nigeria. His love for music and the arts started at a very young age.In 1998, eLDee and his high school friend 'Kaboom' teamed up with 'Freestyle' and the group 'Trybesmen' was born, which popularized the music genre, Afro-hip hop/Afro-pop that was enginered by elDee .Subsequently, eLDee founded his own independent label 'Trybe Records' to support the group.

Lanre Dabiri Career

In 1999, Trybesmen announced themselves as Nigeria’s leading hip hop group, with singles like 'Plenty Nonsense', 'Shake Bodi' and 'Trybal Marks'. The group held numerous sold out shows across the country and beyond, dominating playlists from Lagos to Abuja and mesmerizing rap fans with their multi-lingual flow, interesting themes and unusual videos.

Trybesmen’s debut album was released shortly afterward in 2000 titled ' L.A.G. Style' and was a massive hit and still a cult-classic and with over 78 sold-out shows in one year, it was no surprise that Trybesmen became a force to be reckoned with across West Africa. They split up afterwards with the members chasing up different interests.

elDee focused on Trybe Records, creating a platform for new talents that would help achieve the goal of placing African Hip Hop/African Pop on the international map and now boasts of developing successful artists such as Sasha, who won the Kora’s Most Promising Artist Award in 2004, 2Shots, Lequse, olaDele, Timi, and Sid, who was a member of the 'Mo-hits Records' label but has since been signed on to Don Jazzy's Mavin Records.

eLDee came up with a collaboration of all the artists on the record label and named them 'Da Trybe', solidifying Trybe records. They produced singles 'Work it out' and 'Oya' in 2002, and the album 'BIG Picture' in 2005.

In 2002, Eldee moved to the United States to pursue a career as an IT Consultant. He however never left the music scene because in 2004, eLDee released a solo album titled 'Long Time Coming' and then 'Return of the King' in 2006. The later album earned him various nominations and awards for both videos and songs, including the Nigerian Entertainment Award for 'Best International Album'.

In 2008, he released his third album, 'Big Boy' which was originally titled 'Evolution'. The 'Big Boy' album received 17 nominations in different categories of various award shows including best video, best album, best cinematography, hottest single, best album, best artist and 2009 MOBO award nomination for 'Best African artist'.

In 2010, eLDee’s released a fourth album titled 'Is it your money Vol.1' and in 2012, a fifth album, 'Undeniable'. He has been featured on numerous international radio stations both in Europe, Asia and the USA and his personal hits like 'I go yarn' which is a song lamenting the situation in Nigeria, a topic most artists are known to steer clear of, stressing the disparity between life in developed countries and developing ones. 'Champion', 'African Chiquito' and 'Bosi Gbangba' have been aired on radio stations all over the world. eLDee has also been featured in countless local and international magazines and newspaper articles and remains one of the most respected artist/producer out of West Africa on the international scene.

Apart from his work as an artist, producer and video director, eLDee is also an interactive media genius, boasting clients like CNN, D3 Publishing, Hines, Accenture, Andersen, Kimberly Clark, Naruto, Primedia, NBA, UPS, Cartoon Network, Consumer Source, Warner Bros, just to name a few.

eLDee is very passionate about the current state of Africa and his passion is mirrored in his activism toward social change and demonstrated in his songs in which he hammers on real issues and seeks to motivate and inspire fans to greatness. he has been featured on CNN for some of his social campaigns.

Lanre Dabiri Personal Life

eLDee and his long-term partner, Dolapo Latinwo-Belo got married on November 2008. The couple who had been together for over a decade during their days as students of the University of Lagos now have 2 daughters, Temi, and Toke.

On December 2013, the rapper wrote on his official Twitter page voicing his support for Gay rights , saying that hopefully one day, Africa will realize that the anti – gay sentiment is not different from racial or religious discrimination. This was met with lots of criticisms and abuses from fans.

Lanre Dabiri Awards

2012 Headies awards in for 'Best Conscious Song of the Year'
2012 Nigeria entertainment Award for'Best business executive'
2013 Prestigious Image Awards for business excellence and contribution to African entertainment.