Timaya

Inetimi Alfred Timaya Odon (born 15 August 1980), better known by his stage name Timaya, is a Nigerian singer and songwriter.

He is from Odi, Bayelsa state, South-South Nigeria.

Timaya is known for combining Nigerian pop with elements of dancehall, hip-hop, and soca, as well as his blend of Afro-Caribbean/Dancehall music.

He is the founder of DM (Dem Mama) Records Limited, which he is also signed to.

Inetimi Timaya Odon was born on 15 August 1980 in Port Harcourt.

He grew up as part of a large family, the youngest of fifteen children.

His father was a banker and his mother was a trader.

For his early education, Odon attended Assemblies of God Nursery And Primary School.

His secondary school education began at Nkpolu Oroworukwo in Port Harcourt.

He would often break house rules to attend late-night music events.

After his mother arranged for him to move to Lagos, he gained admission into Lagos' Ikeja Grammar School, where he eventually obtained a secondary school certificate.

Timaya later returned to Port Harcourt to study Banking and Finance, however, he performed poorly in examinations and dropped out after first semester.

He then moved back to Lagos to join Eedris Abdulkareem's hiphop group as a backup vocalist.

After three years working for Eedris, Timaya departed from the group to focus on his solo career.

He began to record collaborations with fellow up-and-coming artists and made his first cameo appearance in an unreleased music video by UDX, a Lagos-based rap group.

He subsequently met producer Obaksolo in Mafoluku, Oshodi, who produced his first major hit record "Dem Mama" after hearing him perform the a cappella version.

He worked with Namse Udosen (Menthol X) on the track Pomporo on his first album, True Story.

His solo career began in 2005 with the release of the single Dem Mama which highlighted the Odi massacre. His debut album, True Story, released the following year, followed by his second album Gift and Grace, in 2008.

His third studio album De Rebirth was released in partnership with Black Body Entertainment and had the lead single "Plantain Boy".

He collaborated with Dem Mama Soldiers on the album LLNP (Long Life N Prosperity).

His solo career began in 2005 with the release of his debut single, Dem Mama, which was an account of the massacre that happened in his community, Odi.

The song appeared on his debut album, True Story, released the following year to great critical acclaim.

His sophomore album, Gift and Grace, was released in 2008.

He gained further visibility and international prominence through his third studio album, De Rebirth released in partnership with Black Body Entertainment—with its lead single, Plantain Boy.

Both were commercially successful as they took over airwaves within and outside Nigeria.

In 2010, he featured on the song Kokoroko by female gospel artist Kefee, which went on to win in the Best Collaboration category at the 2010 Headies Awards.

He went on to be featured by Kcee in a song titled Erima.

In 2012, Timaya released Upgrade.

To date, his work has earned him several awards and nominations including four Headies Awards wins, 2 AFRIMMA Awards wins, one Nigeria Music Award and an NEA Award.

In August 2023, Timaya released a new single, “Tomato” under Dem Mama Records and Empire.

The music video was released on YouTube the following month.

The music video was directed by Clarence Peters, with cameo appearances from D’Banj, the Cubana Chief Priest.

On 25 June 2012, Timaya released another album, Upgrade which spawned hits like Bum Bum, Sexy Ladies, and Malonogede.

The album featured collaborations with Attitude, Terry G and Vector.

Duncan Mighty and Timaya dueted on 'I Know I Know Dat', which was leaked onto the internet a few hours after the former's album footprints was released into stores.

Both artists were among the honorees at the fourth annual Odudu Music Awards alongside M-Trill, Sodi Cookey, Becky Enyioma and Timi Dakolo.

Describing the song in an interview posted in August 2013, Timaya said: "'Dem Mama' was an account of the 1999 destruction of Odi, a river side community in Niger Delta. Soldiers were hunting down militants they alleged killed eight policemen. The village was burnt down and numerous people killed. I bravely tackled the issue years later and won instant street credibility for my boldness."

In 2014, he released his fifth studio album, titled Epiphany.

The album was a 20-tracker, with global hits, such as Bum Bum Remix featuring Dancehall A-Lister, Sean Paul, Sanko, and Ukwu.

It also featured 2Baba Idibia, Patoranking, Olamide, Sir Shina Peters, Deethi, Phyno and Terry G. In 2017, Timaya performed in Nassau where he headlined the first-ever Afro-Soca Concert.