By Charles Mgbolu
Barely one week after news of the supposed death of Nigerian upcoming hip-hop star Oladips surfaced on social media, fans are learning a shocking new twist after the singer came out on social media to say he was alive.
On November 15, 2023, fans of the upcoming hip-hop artist Oladipupo Oladimeji, known by his stage name Oladips, stumbled on a video on social media showing two friends wailing over his ‘’dead body'' and begging him to ‘’come back’’.
His management wrote a short statement afterward, confirming the 28-year-old singer had died.
‘’ We are saddened to inform the general public that Oladipupo Olabode Oladimeji, aka OLADIPS passed away yesterday, Nov’14th Tuesday evening, at exactly 10:14 pm. We are still in shock as we speak!’’ the statement read in part.
'Live and direct'
‘’People say this is filter and all sorts, but as you can see, this is Oladips live and direct,’’ he said in the video posted on his Instagram live held on Thursday evening.
He added that he would react to all the questions he was certain would arise from this development when he felt emotionally and mentally ready.
News of the supposed death triggered an outpour of grief on social media, coming soon after the death of another fast-rising artist, Mohbad, who died under controversial circumstances in September.
Now news of Oladip's ‘’resurrection’’ has caused immense relief but also angry reactions.
‘’Is this a sick joke or what?’’ asked a fan, Caleb, on X.
‘’You have a lot of explaining to do’’ added another, Oluwaseun, also on X.
Staging deaths
However, the Nigerian music industry is no stranger to upcoming artists staging their deaths as publicity stunts.
In 2015, Skibii, a Nigerian musician, began to trend after news of his supposed death surfaced on social media.
Skibii, in his defence, said he passed out due to a medical condition he has, which alarmed his friends, who concluded he had passed away.
Fans believe upcoming artists in particular pull such stunts to make their names a trending topic on social media, hence boosting their popularity.
Oladip's first album, titled ‘’Superhero Adugbo", was released a day after the news of his death and has been gaining popularity and airplay.
His obituary announcement and video of his wailing friends have now been deleted from social media.
