By Balogun Kamilu Lekan
Biography
Ruger, a talented Nigerian musician and songwriter, was born Michael Adebayo Olayinka on September 23, 1999.
Ruger is currently signed to D’Prince’s “Jonzing World Record” with a publishing and distribution deal with Columbia Records, and Sony Music Entertainment, the U.K division.
Michael is known for his trademark eye patch and melodious musical voice.
Education
There is no public information about his education history at the moment
Career
Michael started music at a very tender age, and was a member of his school music band as a teenager and also a member of his church choir.
He began composing songs and performing at shows and school functions. After he was discovered by D’Prince, he was named “Ruger” by D’Prince himself.
In January 2021, D’Prince announced the signing of Ruger to Jonzing World and Sony Music Entertainment UK, in a joint venture with Columbia Records.
He was introduced to the public by D’Prince, following the release of “One Shirt”, with Rema. On 19 February 2021, he released Ruger, a self-titled single off his first EP project, titled PANDEMIC.
He achieved mainstream recognition with the release of his debut extended play and its hit track “Bounce”, which became his major hit and reached number one on Apple Music in Nigeria, and other African countries.
On 19 November 2021, he released his second extended play titled The Second Wave, solely produced by Kukbeats.
Ruger’s musical dexterity was publicly noticed when he was discovered by rapper and music executive, D’Prince of Mavin Records.
D’Prince took Ruger under his tutelage and groomed him for the industry before finally signing him to his record label Jonzing World Entertainment.
Ruger was finally unveiled as a signee of Jonzing World in 2021. His deal with Jonzing World includes a collaboration with Song Music Entertainment UK, Columbia Records.
On January 20, 2021, he made his debut in the Nigerian music scene with the release of his debut single ‘One Shirt’ with Rema.
Later in 2021, he released Ruger, a self-titled single followed by his first EP project, titled PANDEMIC.
The project produced by Kukbeatz gave birth to songs like Bounce, Ruger, Abu Dhabi, Bow, Monalisa, and Yekpa. Kukbeatz.
‘Bounce’ recorded an outstanding success as it went viral. Debuted at 39 on the Top 50 Chart and also reached the number 20 spot on the TurnTable End Of The Year chart.
He followed this up by releasing his 4-track sophomore EP titled The Second Wave. Champion, Snapchat, Dior, and Useless are tracks embedded in this project.
The tremendous breakthrough recorded from his second EP gave him the boost to embark on ‘Rugged Tour,’ his first international tour.
Through this tour, Ruger was able to perform in cities like Houston, Dallas, and Las Vegas.
Ruger also had a sold-out show performance in Cyprus, Netherlands, and Australia,
Ruger dropped his fourth EP in June 2022 with singles like Girlfriend, Wewe, and Warning
Romantic Relationship/Girlfriend
There is no public information about Ruger’s girlfriend, wife or kids at the moment
Net worth
His net worth is reportedly estimated to be between $100,000 – $300,000; but this cannot be independently verified.
Achievements
Discography
- Bounce
- Abu Dhabi
- Bow
- Yekpa
- Monalisa
- Ruger
- Lock Down
- Pandemic (EP)
- Girlfriend
- The Second Wave (EP)
- Champion
- Warning
- WeWe
- Useless
- Dior
- SnapChat
Awards and nominations
- 2021 AFRIMA
- Most Promising African Artiste
- Best Artiste, Duo or Group in African Reggae, Ragga or Dancehall Nominated
- 2021 AEAUSA
- Best New Artist
- Best Reggae/Dancehall Act
Controversy
In 2022, during a performance at Hard Rock Cafe in Lagos, an over-excited female fan sexually harassed Ruger on stage.
Expressing his displeasure towards the act, Ruger walked off the stage in the middle of his performance.
Later in 2022, Ruger and Buju had a face-off on Twitter over music supremacy.
Buju tweeted a screenshot of his chat with Olamide, which shows some lines from the song he’s working on with the singer.
Ruger then released a chat between him and a friend who hailed him after he sent him some lines from his unreleased song.
A fan of Buju however replied Ruger, saying Buju is better than him,
He wrote, “Lol, bnxn is better than you and there’s nothing you can do about it, you this low budget Samuel L Jackson.”
Ruger who found this insulting, clapped back in another tweet, saying “I love buju, he’s good but he’s not better than me. Everything I’ve done since the beginning was only RUGER. All my hits are just RUGER. I’m always proud going on stage around the world with my own hits and everyone is singing along. You see the difference?”
This then however generated divided opinions and criticism from netizens.
In another development, on the 25th of August 2022, the two artists came for each other again for the second round of their beef.
It started on Twitter when Buju shared a link to his new project with a screenshot of his song with Wizkid and also a picture of his latest album ranking number on Apple Music’s Nigerian album chart with the caption “What if I ? what if I ?what if I ?COOOKKKK???? #BadSince97”
Ruger in a clap back quoted the tweet saying “Get a solo hit then talk to me fatty bum bum.”
In response, Buju quoted Ruger’s tweet with “Project #1 and I didn’t have to whine my waist ?”. In addition, Buju also included a screenshot of the position of Ruger’s projects; Pandemic EP and The Second Wave (Deluxe edition), on the Apple music album charts at number 64 and 33 respectively.
Ruger however replied, “Man had to body shame? ?? hurt him deeeeep ?”.
Disclaimer
The information in this article was curated from online sources. NewsWireNGR or its editorial team cannot independently verify all details.
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