When the tune “Oleku, tell me something wey I no fit do…” blares, the attention of all Nigerians is immediately focused on Ice Prince Zamani. That is because the tune brought him into the consciousness of Nigerians and made him a popular figure across the country.
At the time he broke out, he was one of the few that seemed to break the North-South dichotomy in the entertainment industry and he was quite popular across the country. He was well-admired and on top of his game, to the extent that he was used as the lead singer by the campaign organisation of Akinwunmi Ambode, who eventually became Governor of Lagos State, for the campaign’s theme song, “Gbagbe”, which has the now-popular lyrics, Ambo n bọ, Ambo n bọ…
So, who is Ice Prince Zamani, the singer who defied the tribal sentiment, yet rapped his way into trouble with the opposite side of the law?
Table of Content hide 1Ice Prince biography 2Career 3Ice Prince songs 3.1Albums 4Controversy 5Awards 6Ice Prince net worth 7FamilyIce Prince biography
Panshak Henry Zamani, popularly known as Ice Prince, was born on October 30, 1984, in Minna, the capital of Niger State. Although born in Niger State, Ice Prince hails from Plateau State. He is of the Angas tribe of Plateau State.
Ice Prince and his family relocated to Jos, the Plateau State capital, when he was a toddler. He went to St. Murumba College for his secondary school education. He also attended Science Tutorial Niger State College in Jos.
He gained admission to the University of Jos to study Zoology. He, however, dropped out due to financial constraints.
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Career
Ice Prince started writing rap songs in 1999 and started performing them in front of his classmates. By 2001, he started recording his songs. He co-founded the ECOMOG Squad with a few buddies in 2002, but the group broke up after a year. He then became friends with M.I., Jesse Jagz, Ruby, Lindsey, Eve and Taz in 2004 and the group came to be known as the Loopy Crew.
He won the 2009 Hennessy Artistry Club Tour, a competition organised for budding artistes in the Nigerian music industry. The singer-cum-rapper came tops ahead of Mo’Cheddah and Bez. His performance at the event and his eventual win showed the world that he is a great talent to behold.
In 2011, he released his first single, Oleku, off his debut album. The song, which featured Brymo, transformed Ice Prince’s career and life as it had numerous positive reviews. The song did whet the appetite of Nigerian music lovers for his debut album, entitled: “Everybody Loves Ice Prince.” The album received positive reviews across Nigeria and was a commercial success for the artiste.
Speaking in an interview on the inspiration behind the album’s title, Ice Prince stated that he received a lot of love and care from across the world after his mother’s demise. He, therefore, felt there was no better title to give it than “Everybody Loves Ice Prince” because he had been shown love by the people.
A year later, he teamed up with Chopstix, a well-known producer, as he began working on his next album. He released Aboki that same year, which was accompanied by a video. The song came to be the biggest hit of the album and, once again, was lauded by music critics and fans for its melody, arrangement and message. He subsequently released More in 2012, Aboki remix and Gimme Dat in 2013. The aforementioned songs made it into his sophomore album, “Fire of Zamani”.
The Jos-raised rapper released his third studio album, entitled: “Jos To The World”, in 2015. It was the first independent album he released outside of the Chocolate City record label. He disclosed in an interview that the album was mixed and mastered by the US-based Universal Studio.
Since his debut in 2011, Ice Prince has had the chance to work with the best musicians in the business. Among others, notable names include DJ Neptune, Bez, Lola Rae, Eldee, Banky W, Wizkid, Jesse Jagz, Naeto C, Terry Tha Rapman, and others.
Ice Prince is currently the boss of a record label known as Super Cool Cat (SCC). His current single, Hustle, which he released in 2022, is dominating the airwaves at the moment.
Asides from singing, he tried his hand at acting and succeeded fairly well. He was featured in Shuga, an award-winning series; and House of Gold, a movie.
Ice Prince songs
Some of his popular songs include;
- Oleku
- Shakara
- Aboki
- Make Up Your Mind
- Superstar
- I Swear
- Hustle
- Boss
- Jambo
- Juju
- Whiskey
- More
- This Could Be Us
- No Mind Dem
- Magician
- Small Small
- Marry You
- Yawa
Albums
- Everybody Loves Ice Prince (2011).
- Fire of Zamani (2013).
- Jos to the World (2016).
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Controversy
Ice Prince was detained on September 2, 2022, by the Lagos State Police Command for allegedly attacking a police officer.
According to a post on Twitter by Benjamin Hundeyin, the Public Relations Officer of the Lagos State Police Command, the musician was arrested at around 3 am on the above-mentioned date for driving a vehicle without a license plate. The police claimed that the Oleku crooner initially cooperated and agreed to drive his vehicle with the police officer who effected the arrest to a police station, but he abducted the officer, attacked him and threatened to toss him into the lagoon.
He was subsequently charged before a Magistrate Court in Ajah on three counts of assault, obstructing a policeman from carrying out its statutory duties, and abduction. The artiste pleaded “not guilty” and Magistrate Taiwo Oyaniyi granted him bail in the sum of N500,000, as well as him providing “two responsible sureties”.
He was remanded at the Ikoyi correctional facility and was released only after his attorney, Folarin Dalmeida, confirmed on September 9, 2022, that his client had fulfilled the requirements of his bail.
Awards
Ice Prince took home the Hennessy Artistry Club Tour title in 2009. Additionally, he was the Best Rap Album winner of the 2012 Headies Award.
He received three Ghana Music Awards that year for African Artist of the Year, Best Rap Single, and Song of the Year.
Ice Prince net worth
The majority of Ice Prince’s fortune is derived from the royalties he gets from his music and from appearing at numerous shows all around the world. He owns shares in a network of small firms and is himself an entrepreneur.
Ice Prince’s net worth is estimated between N100 million to N400 million.
Family
Ice Prince has a son named Jamal Zamani. Jamal was birthed following his relationship with Bimbo Babatunde.
Eva Alordiah, Yvonne Nelson, Yvonne Nwosu, Maima Nkewa, and Anna Banner are some well-known women Ice Prince has reportedly dated in the past.
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