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Ghostpoet
Ghostpoet
	Obaro Ejimiwe (Ghostpoet) in 2023
Background information
Birth name	Obaro Ejimiwe
Born	18 January 1983 (age 41); London, England
Genres	alternative rock; electronica;
Years active	2009–present
Labels	PIAS; Brownswood;
Website	ghostpoet.co.uk ; obaroejimiwe.com

Obaro Ejimiwe (born 18 January 1983) is a British singer, songwriter and musician better known by his stage name Ghostpoet.^[1] Ejimiwe is based in Berlin.^[1]

About

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.^[2] His fourth album, Dark Days + Canapés, was released on 18 August 2017. His fifth album, I Grow Tired But Dare Not Fall Asleep, was released on 1 May 2020. Since 2021, Ejimiwe has expanded his artistic practice into installation, photography, and sound art. He lives and works in Berlin, Germany.

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".^[3]

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.^[4]^[5]

In 2011, he supported Metronomy^[6] and Jamie Woon^[7] 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.^[8] 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.^[9] The album was preceded by the single "MSI musmiD", made available as a free download from SoundCloud in late February. "Meltdown", with guest vocals by Woodpecker Wooliams, was released as a single in April 2013.^[10]

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.^[11]

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" 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.^[12]

Ghostpoet released his fourth studio record, Dark Days + Canapés, on August 18, 2017. His fifth album, I Grow Tired But Dare Not Fall Asleep, was released on 1 May, 2020. In 2023, he was invited to perform on a new version of Massive Attack's "Paradise Circus" for the feature-length film Luther: The Fallen Sun.

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".

Visual art

Since 2021, Ejimiwe has expanded his artistic practice into photography, installation, and sound art. In 2022 Ejimiwe premiered, in collaboration with artist Luiza Prado de O. Martins, the large-scale installation and performance series "Blacknuss! Technologies of Joy, Care, and Intimacy" at the Kampnagel Summer Festival, in Hamburg.^[13] In his work, Ejimiwe explores themes related to African spiritualism, colonisation, masculinity, identity, and Black joy.

Discography

Albums

Year	Album	Released	Label	UK peak chart position^[14]
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" (guest vocals by Woodpecker Wooliams)^[10]	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
2022	Federico Albanese	"Feel Again"	Mercury KX