Ghostpoet

Obaro Ejimiwe (18 January 1983) is a British singer, songwriter and musician better known by his stage name Ghostpoet. His first album, Peanut Butter Blues & Melancholy Jam, was shortlisted for the 2011 Mercury Prize. His 2015 album Shedding Skin was also nominated for the Mercury Music Prize.[1] Following release of his fourth album, Dark Days + Canapés, on 18 August 2017. His fifth album I Grow Tired But Dare Not Fall Asleep was released on 1 May 2020.

Ghostpoet
Obaro Ejimiwe (Ghostpoet) in 2017
Background information
Birth nameObaro Ejimiwe
Born (1983-01-18) 18 January 1983
OriginLondon, England,
United Kingdom
GenresAlternative rock, electronica
Years active2009–present
Labels
Associated actsMica Levi, Massive Attack, Kwes, Mélanie De Biasio, Leo Abrahams, Nadine Shah
Websiteghostpoet.co.uk

History

In June 2010, Ghostpoet self-released his first EP The Sound of Strangers and was later featured in The Guardian's "New Band of the Day".[2]

Ghostpoet's first single "Cash & Carry Me Home" was released on 24 January 2011, followed by the debut album on 7 February 2011, Peanut Butter Blues & Melancholy Jam. His single "Survive It" was launched in Rough Trade East Record store, on London's Brick Lane on 9 May 2011.[3][4]

In 2011, he supported Metronomy[5] and Jamie Woon[6] on their tours and performed at Glastonbury, Sónar, Latitude, Secret Garden Party and Bestival among others.

Ghostpoet was among the nominees for the 2011 Mercury Prize.[7] The winner, PJ Harvey, was announced on 6 September 2011.

Ghostpoet's second album Some Say I So I Say Light was released on 6 May 2013. The album was preceded by the single "MSI musmiD", made available as a free download from SoundCloud in late February. Ghostpoet premiered "Meltdown",[8] the first single taken from his second album, on Zane Lowe's BBC Radio 1 show on 20 March 2013.

His third album, Shedding Skin, was released on 2 March 2015. The album featured guest appearances by Nadine Shah, Etta Bond, Mélanie De Biasio, Lucy Rose and Paul Smith. The album was shortlisted for the 2015 Mercury Prize.[9]

Ghostpoet's track "Finished I Ain't" appeared in the soundtrack of Sleeping Dogs.

Ghostpoet was featured on Massive Attack's song "Come Near Me", the B-side to "The Spoils".

In 2016 Ghostpoet curated the West Balkans edition of the British Council's interactive music project Mix The City, travelling around the region to record samples with various local musicians, and creating his own mix for the region.

In April 2017 Ghostpoet released the single "Immigrant Boogie" released via Play It Again, Sam. The track was produced by Leo Abrahams and mixed by Leo and Kristofer Harris. The track is the first from the album Dark Days + Canapés.[10]

Genre

Since the beginning of his career, Ghostpoet has avoided identifying his music as belonging to a particular genre. In March 2018, during his European tour, many venues started listing Ghostpoet as "hip hop" or "trip hop". Ghostpoet promoted the events via Twitter, always including a declaration along the lines of "I am not Hip Hop".

On 7 March 2018, when challenged by a fan via Twitter with the question "WHAT are you?", Ghostpoet responded: "So Interesting. Why is it so important for me to be part of a predetermined genre with its parameters and rules? I'm just an artist who experiments with sounds and loves guitars. It's ok to be confused, not everything in life needs explanation, sometimes we just have to go with it".

In recent times Ghostpoet has grown more comfortable with his increasing connection to the alternative rock and electronica genres.

Discography

Albums
Year Album Released Label UK peak chart position[11]
2011 Peanut Butter Blues & Melancholy Jam 4 February 2011 Brownswood Recordings 119
2013 Some Say I So I Say Light 6 May 2013 Play It Again Sam 73
2015 Shedding Skin 2 March 2015 Play It Again Sam 52
2017 Dark Days + Canapés 18 August 2017 Play It Again Sam 39
2020 I Grow Tired But Dare Not Fall Asleep 1 May 2020 Play It Again Sam

Singles
Track Released Label Length
"Cash and Carry Me Home / Cash and Carry Me Home (feat. Kano)" January 2011 Brownswood 3:35
"Survive It" (feat. Fabiana Palladino) May 2011 Brownswood 4:21
"Liiines" September 2011 Brownswood 4:51
"Meltdown" April 2013 Play It Again Sam 5:05
"Off Peak Dreams" February 2015 Play It Again Sam 3:18
"Immigrant Boogie" April 2017 Play It Again Sam 2:40
"Concrete Pony" January 2020 Play It Again Sam 4:07
"Nowhere To Hide Now" May 2020 Play It Again Sam 3:11

EPs
Year EP Released Label
2010 The Sound of Strangers 1 June 2010 Self-released

Remixes
Year Artist Track Label
2011 Entrepreneurs "Fuck Tactics" (featuring Foe) Fear And Records
2011 Metronomy "The Look" RCRD LBL
2011 CocknBullKid "Asthma Attack" Moshi Moshi Records
2011 Birdy "Skinny Love" Warner Music UK Ltd.
2012 Alt-J "Matilda" Infectious Music

Guest appearances
Year Artist Track Label
2007/8 Micachu Filthy Friends Mixtape Rough Trade
2009 Micachu & Kwes Kwesachu Mixtape Vol.1 Self Released
2011 DELS "Trumpalump" (Quiet Remix) Big Dada Recordings
2011 The Streets "Tidy Nice and Neat" Self Released
2012 Micachu & Kwes Kwesachu Mixtape Vol.2 Self Released
2013 Africa Express "Season Change" Transgressive Records
2016 Massive Attack "Come Near Me" Virgin Records
2017 Lost Horizons "Reckless" Bella Union
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References
  1. "Mercury Prize 2015 shortlist". BBC. Retrieved 16 October 2015.
  2. Lester, Paul (2 June 2010). "New band of the day 799: Ghostpoet". Guardian.co.uk.
  3. "Disorder magazine Ghostpoet Interview at Rough Trade East Album Launch". Journalist Jameela Oberman. 16 June 2011. Archived from the original on 5 November 2011.
  4. Kennedy, Adam (2 February 2011). "An early contender for 2011's finest out-of-leftfield long-players". BBC Music.
  5. "Ghostpoet unveils new single and support slot with Metronomy". Blindfun. 12 April 2011. Archived from the original on 27 March 2012.
  6. "Jamie Woon/Ghostpoet". Soundlab. 22 February 2011.
  7. "2011 Barclaycard Mercury Prize Announced". Mercury Prize. 19 July 2011. Archived from the original on 29 February 2012.
  8. "Ghostpoet – Meltdown (Zane Lowe Radio 1 Rip)". YouTube. Retrieved 4 June 2013.
  9. "Mercury Prize 2015: The nominees". BBC.
  10. "Ghostpoet returns with menacing new single "Immigrant Boogie"". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
  11. "Ghostpoet | full Official Chart history". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 26 August 2017.
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