Michael Ugochukwu Stephens, known professionally as Ruggedman, is a Nigerian rapper from

Ohafia Ohafia is an Igbo town in the Ohafia local government area (LGA) in Abia State, Nigeria. It is an Igbo speaking region. The ancestral capital of Ohafia town is the centrally located village of Elu. Ohafia Local Government Area, is an administrati ...

Abia State Abia State ( ig, Ȯha Abia) is a state in the South-East geopolitical zone of Nigeria, it is bordered to the north and northeast by the states of Enugu, and Ebonyi, Imo State to the west, Cross River State to the east, Akwa Ibom State to the ...

Career

A graduate of

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

from

Lagos State University Lagos State University, also known as LASU, is located in Ojo, with sub-campuses at Ikeja and Epe both towns in Lagos State, Nigeria. The university was established in 1983 by the enabling law of Lagos State, for the advancement of learning ...

, Ọ̀jọ́, Ruggedman started exploring music in 1999. He produced his own songs and released two tracks in 1999, both which were well-played on radio. Ruggedman launched himself into the music industry in 1999, eventually becoming the most featured rapper in Nigeria. His albums are all released on his personal label, Rugged Records. Ruggedman has performed worldwide alongside international acts such as

Sean Paul Sean Paul Ryan Francis Henriques OD (born 9 January 1973) is a Jamaican rapper and singer who is regarded as one of dancehall's most prolific artists. Paul's singles "Get Busy" and "Temperature" topped the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in the ...

Wyclef Jean Nel Ust Wyclef Jean (; born October 17, 1969) is a Haitian rapper, musician, and actor. At the age of nine, Jean immigrated to the United States with his family. He first achieved fame as a member of the New Jersey hip hop group the Fugees, a ...

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Maxi Priest Max Alfred "Maxi" Elliott (born 10 June 1961), known by his stage name Maxi Priest, is a British reggae vocalist of Jamaican descent. He is best known for singing reggae music with an R&B influence, otherwise known as reggae fusion. He was one ...

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer. Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...

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, T-Pain, and

Nas Nas (born 1973) is the stage name of American rapper Nasir Jones. Nas, NaS, or NAS may also refer to: Aviation * Nasair, a low-cost airline carrier and subsidiary based in Eritrea * National Air Services, an airline in Saudi Arabia ** Nas Air ( ...

. Ruggedman's record label, Rugged Records, signed its first act, singer MBRYO, in September 2012. MBRYO was featured on Ruggedman's "Ruggedy Baba pt 2″, produced by Blaize Beatz. ''Money Making Music'', Ruggedman's 2012 album, is a collaboration with MBRYO as part of a promotion for the new artist, with guest appearances by Terry G and Funbi. Ruggedman hosted the prestigious NB Plc sponsored Star Quest Reality TV Talent Show in 2009, 2010, and 2011.

Controversies

In 2022, Ruggedman lost the Headies Humanitarian Award to Davido, another Nigerian Artist, and was notably stating that the Headies was “just a popularity contest and Davido was undeserving.” In 2002, Ruggedman released the controversial song "Ehen" featuring Nomoreloss. The song which was a direct to diss to then established acts in the Nigeria music industry had him mentioning names of

Eedris Abdulkareem Eedris Turayo Abdulkareem Ajenifuja (born December 24, 1974), popularly known as Eedris Abdulkareem, is a Nigerian hip hop, R n B and Afrobeat artist, songwriter and singer. He was the lead rapper of the defunct Nigerian hip hop boy band The R ...

, Black Reverendz, Maintain and Rasqui for their apparent lack of lyrical contents in their songs.

Discography

;Albums *''Thy Album Come'' (2004) *''Ruggedy Baba'' (2007) *''Untouchable'' (2010) *''Money Making Music'' (2012)

Career

Controversies

Discography

Singles

References

External links