Sneakbo

Born Agassi Odusina in 1992, in southwest London, this inventive rapper combined grime with Afro-beat and dancehall influences to create a sound that sporadically graced the U.K. singles charts from 2011 onward. Sneakbo got his first break when the Play Hard management company/label — home to fellow London artist Chipmunk — took interest and he was ultimately signed to their label. His debut single, “The Wave,” was issued in late 2011, during the brief period that he was imprisoned following charges of aggravated assault. When he was released, Sneakbo focused on building upon that single’s success by recording new material and making live appearances throughout Europe. Jetski Wave, his own clothing line, soon began to flourish and by the end of 2012, he had guested on D'banj’s U.K. Top Ten hit “Oliver Twist” and had his first solo Top 40 single in the form of November’s “Zim Zamma.” Continuing to work with production duo Ill Blu, Sneakbo enjoyed further success in summer 2013 with the Shabba Ranks-sampling “Ring a Ling.” In 2014 he guested on another U.K. pop hit, “Dr. Who!” by Tujamo and Plastik Funk. He also released his full-length Certified, which featured several tracks produced by Ill Blu as well as a guest appearance from Gappy Ranks. Mixtape JetSkiWave 2 appeared in 2015, and summery single “Too Cool (Right Here)” (featuring Nyla) was released in 2016. ~ James Wilkinson