Tobe Nwigwe
American musician (born 1987)
Musical artist
Tobechukwu Dubem "Tobe" Nwigwe [pronunciation? ] (born March 8, 1987) is an American rapper, singer and actor.
Personal life
Nwigwe is from the Alief neighborhood of Houston in the U.S. state of Texas .[ 1]
He is of Nigerian descent, and hails from the Igbo ethnic group . He was raised Catholic , but later began attending nondenominational churches.[ 2]
Tobe played high school and then college football at the University of North Texas .[ 3] He was being considered for draft by the NFL , however, a Lisfranc ligament tear left him unable to play.[ 4] He then founded the nonprofit TeamGINI, a name derived from “Gịnị bụ mkpa gị??” which translates to “What’s your need?” in the Igbo language . TeamGINI aims to help families in need by giving them gifts that aid them in gaining financial literacy and independence.[ 5] After encouragement from the motivational speaker Eric Thomas, Nwigwe began focusing on music.[ 6]
Tobe is married to Martica Ivory "Fat" Nwigwe, née Rogers. They have 5 children, Ivory, Sage, Chukwueze, Chikodili and Jachike.[ 7]
Music career
Beginning in August 2016, Nwigwe began posting an original song and video every Sunday across social media.[ 4] This led to a large social media following through his Instagram and YouTube posts and videos.[ 6]
Nwigwe regularly collaborates with his wife.
Nwigwe appeared on the BET Hip Hop Awards 2018 Cypher.[ 8] He is a featured artist on PJ Morton 's album Paul , released on August 9, 2019 by Morton Records and Empire Records.[ 9]
In 2019, Nwigwe performed on NPR's Tiny Desk Concert series.[ 10] His music has garnered a lot of attention, including from Michelle Obama, who put his song "I'm Dope" on her workout playlist.[ 11] In 2020, Nwigwe went viral on digital platforms for his song "I Need You To (Breonna Taylor)".[ 12] He said God gave him a vision to do the song as a public service announcement.[ 13] He performed his songs "Try Jesus" and "Eat" at the 2020 BET Hip Hop Awards.[ 14] "Try Jesus" reached No. 4 on the Billboard R&B Digital Song Sales chart.[ 15]
Nwigwe has collaborated with many other artists, including Pharrell Williams ,[ 16] television host Anthony "Spice" Adams ,[ 17] Paul Wall ,[ 18] Chamillionaire ,[ 19] Duckwrth ,[ 20] Big K.R.I.T. ,[ 21] D Smoke ,[ 22] Black Thought ,[ 23] Royce Da 5'9" ,[ 24] Nas , Jacob Banks , Justin Timberlake , and Penny & Sparrow .[ 25]
Nwigwe's The Pandemic Project was released in 2020.[ 26]
Discography
Tobe From The Swat mp3 album (ETA Records, 2017)[ 27]
The Originals (LP, Self-released, 2018)[ 28]
More Originals (LP, Tobe Nwigwe LLC, 2018)[ 29]
Three Originals (LP, Tobe Nwigwe LLC, 2019)[ 30]
Fouriginals (LP, Tobe Nwigwe LLC, 2019)[ 31]
Tobe From The Swat / The Live Experience (Double LP, Tobe Nwigwe LLC, 2019)[ 32]
Cincoriginals (LP, 2020)[ 33]
The Pandemic Project (EP, 2020)[ 34]
At the Crib Arrangements (EP, 2021)[ 35]
The Monumintal Live Recording (2022)[ 36]
moMINTs (LP, 2022)[ 37]
On My Soul (2023)
Awards and nominations
References
^ "How a Nigerian Kid from Alief is Making Purpose Popular" . June 16, 2017.
^ "Tobe Nwigwe Is a Visionary Hip-Hop Missionary" . Texas Monthly . May 24, 2019. Retrieved November 16, 2022 .
^ "Tobe Nwigwe - Football" . University of North Texas Athletics . Retrieved December 26, 2020 .
^ a b Guerra, By Joey (October 11, 2019). "Tobe Nwigwe twists himself into Houston's next big star" . Houston Chronicle . Retrieved December 26, 2020 .
^ John, Caroline (October 28, 2020). "Tobe Nwigwe Wiki: Facts about the Houston Rapper" . Earn The Necklace .
^ a b Pariseau, Leslie (August 13, 2020). "Tobe Nwigwe Never Planned to Go Viral. Then He Rapped About Breonna Taylor" . The New York Times . ISSN 0362-4331 . Retrieved December 9, 2020 .
^ "TOBE NWIGWE MOMINTS AT THE CRIB" . YouTube .
^ "BlocBoy JB, YBN Cordae And More Spit Some Fire | Hip Hop Awards 2018 Cypher" . YouTube .
^ "Stream PJ Morton's New Album 'Paul,' Featuring Rapsody, Jazmine Sullivan, & More - Okayplayer" . August 9, 2019. Archived from the original on May 6, 2023. Retrieved May 6, 2023 .
^ O'Neill, Abby (August 19, 2019). "Tobe Nwigwe: Tiny Desk Concert" . NPR.org . Retrieved December 9, 2020 .
^ @MichelleObama (January 19, 2020). "It's about that time when New Year's resolutions get a bit harder to stick to. To offer a little inspiration, I wan…" (Tweet ) – via Twitter .
^ "TOBE NWIGWE | I NEED YOU TO (BREONNA TAYLOR)" . YouTube .
^ "Artist Tobe Nwigwe hopes viral song will reinvigorate calls for justice for Breonna Taylor" . NBC News . July 15, 2020.
^ "BET Hip Hop Awards 2020 Performers | BET" . BET . Retrieved December 9, 2020 .[dead link ]
^ "R&B Digital Song Sales Chart" . Billboard . Retrieved December 9, 2020 .
^ "Fat, Pharrell, and Johnny Venus join Tobe Nwigwe for new "Lord Forgive Me" single" .
^ "Tobe Nwigwe | SPICE. feat. SPICE ADAMS (The Originals) #getTWISTEDsundays" . YouTube . November 11, 2018.
^ "TOBE NWIGWE I JUICE ft. PAUL WALL" . YouTube . September 15, 2019.
^ "Tobe Nwigwe - Been Broke ft. FAT, 2Chainz, Chamillionaire" . YouTube . July 12, 2022.
^ "TOBE NWIGWE | WILDLINGS FT. OLU OF EARTHGANG + DUCKWRTH" . YouTube . November 15, 2020.
^ "TOBE NWIGWE | BOZOS FT. BIG K.R.I.T." YouTube . November 22, 2020.
^ "TOBE NWIGWE - HEADSHOTS FT. D SMOKE" . YouTube . December 6, 2020.
^ "Black Thought and Royce da 5'9" Join Tobe Nwigwe for 'Father Figure' " . November 29, 2020.
^ "TOBE NWIGWE - FATHER FIGURE FT. BLACK THOUGHT + ROYCE DA 5'9" . YouTube . November 29, 2020.
^ "Review: Penny and Sparrow push past Americana in 'Olly Olly' " . January 21, 2022.
^ "Tobe Nwigwe Bites Into 'Eat,' 'Try Jesus' at 2020 BET Hip Hop Awards" . Billboard . Retrieved December 9, 2020 .
^ "Alief artist goes back to his roots on EP 'Tobe from the SWAT' " . December 6, 2017.
^ "Tobe Nwigwe is a New Musician to Get Excited About" . April 23, 2018.
^ "Tobe Nwigwe" . The New Yorker .
^ "Tobe Nwigwe's Southern Raps at the BET Experience Are Marinaded with Purpose" . June 22, 2019.
^ "Tobe Nwigwe Talks 'Fouriginals' LP, Paying Homage to Houston, Family Life & More!" . October 21, 2019.
^ "Tobe Nwigwe is Bound to Make an Impact in Your Life - Untapped Sound" . July 19, 2021.
^ "Tobe Nwigwe releases new album 'Cincoriginals' " .
^ "Tobe Nwigwe reveals 'The Pandemic Project' " .
^ "Tobe Nwigwe delivers new "MOMINTS AT THE CRIB" visual" .
^ "Tobe Nwigwe Returns to Houston with His Monumintal Tour" .
^ "Tobe Nwigwe's moMINTS is What Homegrown Sounds Like" . August 19, 2022.
^ "Houston Entertainers Top the List for 2021 Emmy Nominations" . July 16, 2021.
^ a b c d e "Tobe Nwigwe - Awards" . IMDb .
^ "NEW Webby Gallery + Index" .
Awards for Tobe Nwigwe
Duo or Group (1979–2007) Duo, Group or Collaboration (2008–2019) Contemporary (2020–present) Traditional (2020–present)
Song (1971–2015) Contemporary (2016–2019) Traditional (2016–2019) Soul/R&B (2020–present) Hip Hop/Rap (2020–present) International (2020–present)