Limoblaze
As an urban Christian artist between Afrobeats and Hip-Hop, his creativity knows no limit.
Biography
Nigerian born, UK based award winning musician, singer songwriter, Limoblaze born Samuel Onwubiko, shares his unique experiences on his forthcoming album, Sunday In Lagos. The project’s colorful sonics and themes of joy bring listeners a taste of what it is like to be in Nigeria’s capital city on a day of celebration.
Despite growing up in a predominantly Islamic part of the town, Limo and his family were Christians. He spent most of his formative years in church and when he wasn’t in church, he was in the streets sharing his music dreams with his friends who would often laugh at him in disbelief. “I grew up in the street, but my parents didn’t let the streets raise me,” shares Limo. “Most of the time I was performing in talent shows and at free local events, often with a live band which made my performances unique.”
Limo lists his earliest musical influences as Eminem, West Life, and Michael Jackson. His first foray into music was in 2014 where he recorded his first song, a rap record. Of his earliest recordings he says, “I had a false sense of loyalty to rap back then, so that’s what I was solely doing. Then, I realized more people around me were more receptive to Afrobeats after one or two afrobeats tracks I made, so I knew I had to switch it up if I wanted to truly reach people with my message.” He made this intentional switch in 2018 and since then he’s been focused on that sound.
He is a two-time winner of the African Gospel Music and Media Awards (2018, 2019), Crystal Awards Best International Act Award Winner (2019), and Premier Gospel Best International Act award winner.
In 2022, he announced his arrival to the London music scene with an AfroGospel showcase hosted by Reach Records, featuring UK artists Asha Elia, Becca Fowlkes, and Anna Toria.The showcase was an instant success selling the initial 200 cap room in 2 days, then moving to the XOYO nightclub in Shoreditch selling out at capacity in a span of two weeks after the show was originally announced.
On the same evening of his first headline appearance in London, he released the leading single from this EP, “Jireh (My Provider)” ft. Happi and Lecrae. The song was created after identifying a viral social media clip posted by Happi that featured an Afrobeat flip on the Popular Maverick City Music single. The song became an instant viral hit across all short-form social media platforms with over 110,000 Instagram Reels, and thousands of videos created daily on TikTok reaching over 80,000 on the platform. The internet success led to a surge of streams that placed the song on Billboard’s US Afrobeat song chart peaking at #31, Billboard’s Hot Christian Songs chart peaking at #41, and Billboard’s Gospel song chart peaking at #15.
Shortly after announcing his signing with Reach Records, Limo released Sunday in Lagos, his first commercial body of work with the label. The EP features the previously released singles “Jireh (My Provider)”, “Desire”, and “Gold” ft. internationally recognised Gospel Music Artist Ada Ehi. Fans will be delighted to see a guest appearance from label mate 1K Phew on “I Believe” where both artists trade melodic praise to God and reaffirm their belief in Him. Speaking to his vision for the project and new label partnership, Limo said, “This moment is the beginning of something special. I believe I am uniquely positioned within Christian Music to inspire the world to see the potential in putting God at the centre of their lives and chasing their dreams.”
Limo also said, “My vision is to use music as a platform to build systems that help young Christians gain the tools and guidance that empower them to share the gospel and chase their dreams.” “This moment is the beginning of something special”.
With several bodies of work over the years including 5 albums; Blind (2016), Before Now (2018), Afrobeats Rap and Jesus (2019), Bridges (2020), and God’s Favourite Baby (2021). Limoblaze has also collaborated with Christian music staples such as Lecrae, Travis Greene, Ada Ehi, Da Truth.
As an urban Christian artist his preferred genres are Afrobeats and Hiphop, but his creativity knows no limit.