King Bawa (born 8 July 1992), better known by his stage name as Kheengz, is a Nigerian rapper and actor born in the Northern part of Nigeria. He currently works under his own independent record label called YFK Entertainment. His debut album ''Voice of Arewa'' was released 25 December 2019 was a huge success up north. His single ''I Am North'' made wave in the music scene as it is about stereotyping arewa.
Early life
Kheengz was born in
Zaria
Zaria is a metropolitan city in Nigeria which at the present time lies within four (4) local government areas in Kaduna state; it happens to be the capital city to the Zazzau Emirate Council, and one of the original seven Hausa city-states ...
,
Kaduna
Kaduna is the capital city of Kaduna State, and the former political capital of Northern Region, Nigeria, Northern Nigeria. It is located in north-western Nigeria, on the Kaduna River. It is a trade Centre and a major transportation hub as the ...
and was raised in
Bida
Bida is a Local Government Area in Niger State, Nigeria and a city on the A124 highway which occupies most of the area.
The LGA has an area of and a population of 188,181 at the 2006 census.
The postal code of the area is 912.
The city
Bida i ...
,
Niger
)
, official_languages =
, languages_type = National languagesKadara ethnicity. He was the third of six children. He earned a Bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering from
Ahmadu Bello University
Ahmadu Bello University Zaria is a federal government research university in Zaria, Kaduna State, Nigeria. ABU was founded on 4 October 1962, as the pioneer university in Northern Nigeria. It was founded and named after the Sardauna of Sokoto, Al ...
, Zaria.
Career
Kheengz began writing rap songs while in secondary school in 2006. He started recording in 2010 at university. He released a cover of Sarkodie's hit song ''You Go Kill Me (Azonto)'' and later freestyled
Ice Prince
Panshak Henry Zamani (born 30 October 1984) better known as Ice Prince Zamani or just Ice Prince, is a Nigerian rapper, hip hop recording artist and actor. He rose to fame after releasing " Oleku", one of Nigeria's most remixed songs of all t ...
's hit song Aboki, which got him the attention from
M.I Abaga
Jude Lemfani Abaga (born 4 October 1981), better known as M.I Abaga, is a Nigerian rapper and record producer. He rose to prominence in 2006 when his song "Crowd Mentality" became popular in Jos, Nigeria. His debut studio album ''Talk About It ...
.
2013–2014: ''College Kid m''ixtape
On 30 August 2013, Kheengz released his first project ''College Kid Mixtape'' which features rap artistes
M.I Abaga
Jude Lemfani Abaga (born 4 October 1981), better known as M.I Abaga, is a Nigerian rapper and record producer. He rose to prominence in 2006 when his song "Crowd Mentality" became popular in Jos, Nigeria. His debut studio album ''Talk About It ...
,
Erigga
Erhiga Agarivbie (born 30 March 1987), better known by his stage name Erigga, is a Nigerian singer and rapper.
Biography
Erhiga Agarivbie was born in Warri, Delta State, where he grew up with his family. He is the first of five children. H ...
, Snowflake, Soul Flavour and G'rell. The lead single on the popular mixtape is "Jealousy". He later released a video titled ''I believe'' that was dedicated to the students killed in College of Agriculture,
Yobe State
Yobe is a state located in northeastern Nigeria. A mainly agricultural state, it was created on 27 August 1991. Yobe State was carved out of Borno State. The capital of Yobe State is Damaturu; and it's largest and most populated city is Potisku ...
.
2015–2017: ''VOA (Voice of Arewa)'' EP and Pedestal EP
His sophomore project was EP ''VOA (voice of arewa),'' which he released 21 November 2015. He went on to release the'' Pedestal'' EP on 21 December 2017. He later released a song with a movement "I Am North" to address the popular stereotypical views of Northerners in Nigeria.
2019–2021: ''Voice of Arewa'' Album and ''The Four Horsemen'' EP
Kheengz debut album ''Voice of Arewa'' (also tagged Voice of the North) was released on 25 December 2019. The album has features from
Erigga
Erhiga Agarivbie (born 30 March 1987), better known by his stage name Erigga, is a Nigerian singer and rapper.
Biography
Erhiga Agarivbie was born in Warri, Delta State, where he grew up with his family. He is the first of five children. H ...
,
DJ AB
Haruna Abdullahi (born 30 December 1993), known professionally as DJ AB, is a Nigerian rapper, music producer, songwriter and performing artist.
Early life
DJ AB was born in Kaduna State, Nigeria where he obtained his Junior Certificate, JSCE a ...
, DJ Steev and Ijaya. He also featured
Ice Prince
Panshak Henry Zamani (born 30 October 1984) better known as Ice Prince Zamani or just Ice Prince, is a Nigerian rapper, hip hop recording artist and actor. He rose to fame after releasing " Oleku", one of Nigeria's most remixed songs of all t ...
in the remix of "Alhamdulillah" which was released in 2019. On 26 December 2020, Kheengz teamed up with other northern rappers
DJ AB
Haruna Abdullahi (born 30 December 1993), known professionally as DJ AB, is a Nigerian rapper, music producer, songwriter and performing artist.
Early life
DJ AB was born in Kaduna State, Nigeria where he obtained his Junior Certificate, JSCE a ...
, Deezell and BOC Madaki on a joint EP ''The Four Horsemen'', containing four tracks.
On 4 June 2021, Kheengz released a single ''Who be This Guy'' featuring
Falz
Folarin Falana (born 27 October 1990), better known by his stage name Falz, is a Nigerian rapper, songwriter and actor who began his career while in secondary school after forming a group called The School Boys with his friend before his profe ...
and
M.I Abaga
Jude Lemfani Abaga (born 4 October 1981), better known as M.I Abaga, is a Nigerian rapper and record producer. He rose to prominence in 2006 when his song "Crowd Mentality" became popular in Jos, Nigeria. His debut studio album ''Talk About It ...
. Since the announcement of the music collaboration in July 2020, media space has been creating many buzz on the collaboration before it was released. The video was released on 2 July 2021, directed by Bash'em.
Kheengz explored another aspect of his creativity by starring in
Nigerian
Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jour ...
television series ''
Crazy, Lovely, Cool
''Crazy'', ''Lovely'', ''Cool'' is a Nigerian Television series directed by Obi Emelonye and in production partnership with The Nollywood Factory (TNF) and Trace TV.
Premise
''Crazy, Lovely, Cool'' is a coming-of-age TV series that takes a f ...
'' on
Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
.
Discography
Studio album
*''Voice of Arewa'' (2019)
EPs
*''Voice of Arewa the EP'' (2015)
*''Pedestal EP'' (2017)
*''The Four Horsemen EP'' (2020)