We all know people that were made for the jobs they are currently into. This is simply based on how easy they seem to make specific activities look. OluwaMillar is one of those folks, and his wordplays are effortless.
It was during the 2020 Covid-19 lockdown I began to notice the banger boys, and one person that stood out was Millar. Most banger boys would cook original content that banged, but Millar took it a step further by creating wordplays/homophones/rhymes in the replies of unrelated tweets. His account must have been suspended 3-4 times, and I always asked around for his new handle to keep up with him.
I wasn’t even surprised when I finally found out he was a rapper in 2021. I looked forward to his first single Menu with Droxx, since he made bangers effortlessly, then his intentional writing should bang, ridiculously. The drill-themed hip-hop song was impressive enough to earn him a JJC spot on R&R®.
This is OluwaMillar‘s JJC.
Background
My name is Favour Joshua Oparemi. Born 12/12/1998. An indigene of Oyo, Oyo, Nigeria. BSc. Urban & Regional Planning from Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State, Nigeria.
Grew up in Oyo town. I had a typical Christian home upbringing. As a little boy, my introversion made me very self-conscious and timid. Music became my solitude and means of expression.
I was raised with Fuji and Gospel music. My old man was always playing Fuji, while mom played the Gospel. Artistes like Wasiu Ayinde, Saheed Osupa, Barrister, Pasuma, Remi Aluko, Bola Aare, Tope Alabi, Damilare Melody, Yinka Ayefele, Senwele Jesu, among others were my first introduction to music.
First Encounter with Hip-Hop
My first exposure to hip hop and other genres of music was from school – friends, classmates & seniors – and our street – parties, the game/viewing center, and barbershop. The first-ever song I got hooked on apart from the music at home was Gongo Aso by 9ice. I think it was a birthday party when I was 9 or 10. It came on and I listened raptly for minutes because it was unlike all the other stuff. In short, I found a way to follow 9ice‘s other stuff over the years. I loved all (still do) but the ones that particularly struck me were the hip hop songs where he was featured or featured people. For instance, Loni Ni with Dagrin, Le Fenu So with Lord of Ajasa, Kasa Final with Seriki, Legendary Hustler that Baddo (Olamide) and Reminisce spazzed on, among many others. Before you knew it, I started checking out the rappers, Dagrin, Ajasa, Seriki, Reminisce, Olamide, and more apart from the indigenous ones.
Writing Hip-Hop
I started writing hip hop around the same age. There’s this backstory. So, I couldn’t read and write Yoruba well as a kid. This teacher challenged me about it in JSS 2 or 3 and I appealed to my friends to teach me. In the end, I mostly taught myself with novels. I think that was the foundation of it all. Of course, I had been writing stuff before then, but it was mostly surface-level. Also, I had always wanted to use Yoruba the way 9ice did with the ìjìlẹ̀ stuff (Yoruba proverbs and all of that). Learning to read and write Yoruba helped with that.
Hip-Hop Head to Emcee
When I started rapping them? Good question, because tbh there’s a difference between writing it and rapping it. Everything still goes back to my secondary school and the street where my family lives. A bunch of my friends in school already rapped, while I just wrote raps because I was timid. But my street helped, some of my home friends would rap as well and we played football together, so I started rapping my little stuff for them. Time went on, it graduated to my friends in school. One time, I and a couple of friends rapped once at the end-of-the-year party. I was timid asf, but it was a good one, I think. Early music influences were the guys I mentioned earlier. From the Fuji to the Gospel to the hip hop guys. Mostly my rapping style was influenced by Dagrin, then Reminisce, and Baddo. I remember rapping for a guy once as a teenager and he went “Dagrin leleyi o.”
Most Underrated Verse/Song
Most underrated verse? It’s on VRSD‘s unreleased, LMAO. It should drop this month, Insha Allah. No forget us. There’s also this song on my SoundCloud. I made it with Delia from my Voice2Rep set, it’s good [good]. Room 306 is up there too, I like the story-esque cruise lyricism.
Worst Song/Verse
Worst song? E dey my hard drive, LMAO. I don’t think there’s one though, fr. You can have the worst draft song, not the worst song, I think. But then, music is subjective.
Plans
More music this year than ever. More features and other forms of collaborations too. I dropped MENU in February. About two more singles too & some collaborations and hopefully before the year ends, a body of work for my people. Let me use this opportunity to say thank you to everyone who fucked with me on MENU and everyone wey don dey fuck with me since. Appreciate.
Again, VRSD drops soon we’re ab to go cray cray, don’t snooze. Abeg.
