Lanre Dabiri (born May 23, 1977), better known by his stage name Eldee, stylized as eLDee, is a retired Nigerian-Americanrapper, singer, and record producer based in the United States.[2][3][4][5][6][7][8]
He is a member of the band Trybesmen, which was started in 1998 with rappers KB and Freestyle. He has made five solo albums. In 2019, he said he does not regret quitting music as the path his career was going would not make him have time for his family.[9] On October 1, 2016, Netng longlisted him on its list of 56 greatest Nigerian entertainers of all time, for his contribution towards the music industry, and for founding the first official Nigeria airplay chart, known as Playdata, for monitoring music consumption on radio.[10]
eLDee is credited as one of the pioneers of the afrobeats music genre. In 1998, he started a band called Trybesmen which went on to be one of the music groups that popularized the fusion of hip-hop, highlife, pop and traditional afrobeat music. Trybesmen were a continental hit by the year 2000 and played a pivotal role in the shaping of the new music genre.
eLDee signed a total of 16 artists to his Trybe Records label and named the collaboration of all said artists Da Trybe. They produced the singles "Work it out" and "Oya" in 2002, and the album BIG Picture in 2005.
After moving to the United States in 2002, eLDee recorded a solo album titled Long Time Coming (2004). He followed it up with Return of the King (2006), which contains the single "I Go Yarn". Return of the King won "Best International Album" at the 2007 Nigeria Entertainment Awards in New York City.[11] His subsequent albums are Big Boy (2008), originally titled Evolution,Is it your money Vol.1 (2010) and Undeniable (2012).
eLDee has worked as an artist, producer, director and an interactive media consultant.
Personal life
"Lanre" is a derivative for the Yoruba name "Olanrewaju" (which translates to "Wealth is moving forward").[12]
eLDee and his long-term partner, Dolapo Latinwo-Bello are married and together they have 2 daughters, Temi, and Toke. He has been based in Atlanta, USA since 2002.
In December 2013 he posted a message on his official Twitter page to voice his support for gay rights, saying that hopefully one day soon Africa will realize that anti-gay sentiment is no different from racial or religious discrimination.[13]
