Tar1q, styled TAR1Q and pronounced TAH-reek, is a Nigerian singer-songwriter signed to Chocolate City Music. Born Tariq Oluokun, he calls his sound “Afro-rhythm”, a mix of Afrobeats, pop, R&B and hip-hop. He started out as a rapper and turned to singing, and his love songs lean on confessional, real-life storytelling.
His debut EP, Son of the Moon, came out in 2022. Two more EPs followed, All I Felt in 2023 and Okada Airlines in 2024, along with a steady run of singles. The most recent solo single we could confirm is “Money” with Scottyolorin, released on 1 July 2026.
He is drawing fresh attention because of his debut album. In a May 2026 interview he said it was in its final stages, gave its title as I Saw the Sun and said it was due in the third quarter. We found no confirmed release as of 29 October 2026.
This AfrobeatKit profile relies on Tar1q’s own interviews, label announcements and streaming listings. Where outlets disagree or no source exists, we say so.
Tar1q quick facts
| Detail | What we found | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Real name | Tariq Oluokun, per Chocolate City’s announcement; his YouTube bio gives Oluokun Temitope Tariq | Confirmed; name order varies |
| Stage name | TAR1Q, with the “1” as a stylised letter | Confirmed |
| Nickname or alias | “Driew World”, his early rap name, and “Santos”, used briefly in Delta State | Confirmed by his own interviews |
| Date of birth | 1 May; the year is not published by the artist | Day and month confirmed |
| Age | The Guardian called him 21 in August 2022, which points to 2001 and an age of 25 | Inferred, not confirmed |
| Birthplace | Benin City | Confirmed by his interviews |
| Hometown | Based in Lagos; grew up between Benin City, Lagos and Delta State | Confirmed by his interviews |
| State of origin | Not stated; his bio says his father is Yoruba | Unconfirmed |
| Nationality | Nigerian | Confirmed |
| Occupation | Singer and songwriter | Confirmed |
| Genres | Self-described Afro-rhythm; also called Neo-Afro R&B and Afro-soul | Confirmed |
| Record label | Chocolate City Music (announced 12 March 2024); earlier NuTrybe Records | Confirmed |
| Education | Studied geology at the University of Lagos, per a 2022 interview | Reported by him; completion unknown |
| Debut project | Son of the Moon EP, 2022 | Confirmed |
| Notable songs | “Away”, “Emotions”, “Jigga” (feat. Khaid), “Bus Stop (Remix)” (feat. Young Jonn), “Pretty Like”, “Zuko”, “Sesi” | Confirmed as releases |
| @tariqforkeeps | Linked from his artist profiles |
Early life and background
Moving around. Tar1q says he was born in Benin City and grew up between Edo, Lagos and Delta states. In a 2022 Guardian interview he said he moved to Lagos before he was two, went to Delta State for high school and came back to Lagos in his final year, around age 17. He told Radr Africa he attended Holy Child in Asaba. In a later Guardian interview he put the move to Delta at around his first birthday, so the timeline differs between interviews.
Family. He says his father worked as a station manager at Okada Airlines in Benin City, where his parents met. His bio calls his father Yoruba, and in 2022 he said he could not speak Yoruba, though he now talks about learning Yoruba culture from his dad. He has three brothers and thanked his mother when he joined Chocolate City. A 2024 Guardian profile called his father “late”, but in a May 2026 interview Tar1q said he talks with his dad and once lived with him in Lagos. We do not state either way and flag it for checking.
School and university. In 2022 he described himself as a geology student at the University of Lagos, with a childhood fascination with gemstones. Whether he graduated is not on record.
Early interests. He recorded songs from TV on his phone and wrote the lyrics down, performed songs at school and wrote rap before singing. His own account says he borrowed friends’ phones for freestyle videos and rode several buses to get free studio time.
Stage name and identity
TAR1Q. The name is his first name, Tariq, written with a numeral “1”. The Guardian notes the stylisation and gives the pronunciation as Tah-reeq, while his YouTube bio writes TAH-reek. No source explains why he chose the “1”. He applies the same quirky lettering to song titles, such as “eMoTIONs” and “bAd IntentIons”.
Earlier names. He told the Guardian that he first rapped as Driew World, which is “weird” spelled backwards, because he saw himself as the odd kid nobody understood. He also told Radr Africa that he went by “Santos” for a while after moving to Delta State.
Son of the Moon. The title of his debut EP became a kind of brand. He explained that he records at night and that almost every song on the EP was made then. In a later interview he described the cover as him sitting behind the moon, with the moon standing for feelings and his head in the clouds.
For Keeps. His social handle, @tariqforkeeps, matches the 4Keeps (or For Keep) Festival, an idea he describes as a place for young people to be free, with a black-and-white dress code. We could not confirm that the festival took place.
Music career beginnings
Tar1q began by writing out other artists’ songs, then wrote his own raps, then moved to singing once he was back in Lagos. In his 2022 Guardian interview he said rapping did not let him express how he really felt, which pushed him toward R&B.
His route to the industry ran through social media. He posted a freestyle on Instagram every weekend, borrowing friends’ phones to film them. Someone then reached out and asked whether he had management and watched him perform at Sao Cafe in Lagos in December 2020. From there he joined NuTrybe, Chocolate City’s talent academy.
The sources disagree on the exact timeline. His YouTube bio says he took up music as a career in 2020 after moving back to Lagos from Delta State. The African Music Library says he began in 2018 with trap rap. Music in Africa says the label discovered him in 2021. These can all be partly right, since discovery, signing and a first public release are different milestones, but we cannot reconcile them without a statement from Tar1q or the label.
NuTrybe is where he made his public debut with Son of the Moon, and he moved up to the main Chocolate City roster in March 2024.
Breakthrough songs
“Emotions”, “Bad Intentions” and “Signal”. These came from Son of the Moon. Music in Africa lists “Signal” and “Bad Intentions” among his well-received early singles. Tar1q told MoreBranches that “Emotions” is about having feelings for different people, and he named “Dear Insecurities” as the song where he opened up the most.
“Away”. From All I Felt, and named by Music in Africa as one of his standout singles. He says it is about being far from home.
“Pretty Like”. Listed by the African Music Library as a successful single and discussed with “Bad Intentions” on a podcast with Simi and Feyikemi.
“Jigga” (feat. Khaid). His YouTube bio calls it his 2024 hit single. He described the making of it to MoreBranches as unplanned: he recorded his verse after finding the beat again, then went to Khaid’s place and Khaid added his own verse.
“Bus Stop (Remix)” (feat. Young Jonn). Tar1q said the feature was impromptu. Young Jonn saw a video of him working on the song and messaged him, then joined even while on tour. He told Radr Africa that fans have sent him videos of a baby dancing to the song.
“Sesi” (24 April 2026). Released on 24 April 2026 by Chocolate City Music, per Apple Music. Tar1q told Mixtape Madness that he made it in January 2025 and nearly did not release it, and that it is a Fuji-influenced record.
“Money” (feat. Scottyolorin). Released 1 July 2026 and listed as produced by BMH by MPMania.
Albums, EPs and mixtapes
Tar1q has three EPs and no studio album yet. He has no confirmed mixtapes.
Son of the Moon (2022)
His five-track debut, about 15 minutes long, came out on NuTrybe. The Guardian described it as just released on 6 August 2022, and the aggregator RecentMusic dates it 29 July 2022. The Native called it a debut with a cohesive feel.
- “Emotions”
- “Bad Intentions”
- “Be Mine” (feat. Blaqbonez and Ria Sean)
- “Dear Insecurities”
- “Signal”
The five titles are confirmed, but the order is not: The Native says the EP opens with “Emotions” and closes with “Dear Insecurities”, while the Guardian says it opens with “Bad Intentions”. Check a streaming tracklist before publishing.
All I Felt (2023)
A four-track EP, described in a 2024 Guardian interview as his project from “last year”. RecentMusic dates it 30 October 2023.
- “Away”
- “Near”
- “In My Feelings”
- “Kupe”
Tar1q told MoreBranches the cover shows him behind a door, representing home and being away from the people who made him feel at home.
Okada Airlines (October 2024)
An eight-track EP, published by Album Talks on 24 October 2024 and billed as his third studio project. Guests are Young Jonn, Ugandan artist Killa, Khaid and Bola BMH. The title honours the airline station in Benin City where his father worked. He told Radr Africa that “Living Soul” came first, and the Guardian reports that it samples Zule Zoo’s 2005 hit “Kerewa”.
Tracks we can name: “Living Soul”, “Bus Stop (Remix)” with Young Jonn, “Jigga” with Khaid, “Step”, “Italy” and “Zuko”. We could not find the complete eight-track list. Afromixx reports that it entered the Nigerian Apple Music albums chart at No. 12 within 24 hours and rose to No. 9.
Singles after Okada Airlines
Apple Music confirms “Zuko” (2025), “Salam” (2026), “Sesi” (24 April 2026), “Money” feat. Scottyolorin (1 July 2026) and “Know You” (2026). RecentMusic also lists “Road” with Paulo Chakal (22 January 2026), the “Jigga Remix Pack” (5 September 2025) and several 2025 singles, but its dates are unverified. He also appears on the label’s “Aromatherapy” with Young Jonn, Noon Dave and Major AJ.
Debut album
I Saw the Sun is the title Tar1q gave Mixtape Madness in May 2026, with 13 or 14 songs planned. We found no release.
Musical style
Genre. Music in Africa reports that Tar1q describes his style as “Afro-rhythm”, which his bio explains as Afrobeats, pop, hip-hop and R&B. In 2022 he called it Neo-Afro R&B and said he did not want the “emo” label. He told MoreBranches he would call his sound Afro-soul. The Guardian has described Okada Airlines as emo-pop.
Songwriting. Writing is his strongest skill by his own account. He says his songs come from real situations: love songs from people who made him smile, heartbreak songs from people who hurt him, and songs about his brothers, friends and hustle. He records a lot at night, and says he often assembles an EP from songs that stood out rather than starting with a concept. He says some Okada Airlines songs began as freestyles.
Influences. His official YouTube bio names Sade, KWAM 1, Chris Brown, Wizkid, J. Cole and Davido. In the Guardian he also credits E.M.E. All Stars, Drake, J. Cole and Kendrick Lamar. African Folder quotes him naming Post Malone, Frank Ocean and The Weeknd, and he names Kanye West as a dream collaborator.
Sound. Critics point to his smooth, emotive vocals and confessional lyrics. BMH recurs in his credits, with Bola BMH as a guest on Okada Airlines and as the credited producer of “Money”. “Sesi” draws on Fuji, a style he says is an exception on the coming album.
Record label and collaborations
Chocolate City. Chocolate City announced Tar1q’s addition to its roster on 12 March 2024, according to Music in Africa. The label named him alongside Young Jonn, Candy Bleakz and Blaqbonez on its roster. His recent singles carry a Chocolate City Music copyright line on Apple Music.
NuTrybe Records. Before that he was an incubator artist at NuTrybe, Chocolate City’s talent academy. In his announcement quote he thanked NuTrybe for taking chances on his dreams. He told MoreBranches that NuTrybe built his fanbase before he had released anything and that some people wrongly see him as a new signing.
Signing date. Music in Africa dates the announcement to March 2024, while a MoreBranches profile says he signed in March 2023. We use the 2024 announcement as the documented date.
Management and team. He says his manager was already talking to the head of Chocolate City about him before NuTrybe, but names no one. He mentions working with different A&Rs.
Collaborators.
- Blaqbonez and Ria Sean on “Be Mine”
- Young Jonn on “Bus Stop (Remix)” and the label cut “Aromatherapy”
- Khaid on “Jigga”
- Ugandan artist Killa and Bola BMH on Okada Airlines
- Scottyolorin on “Money”
- Paulo Chakal on “Road”, per RecentMusic
- NATIVE Sound System, named in his YouTube bio
Achievements and career milestones
| Milestone | Detail | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Debut EP | Son of the Moon released in 2022, with a Guardian profile on 6 August 2022 and an Essentials review from The Native | Confirmed |
| Chocolate City signing | Announced 12 March 2024 | Confirmed |
| Okada Airlines chart run | Reported at No. 12 on the Nigerian Apple Music albums chart within 24 hours, then No. 9 | Reported by Afromixx |
| Campus show | Says a LASU performance drew a large crowd even though school was not in session | His own account |
| 2025 tour | A debut solo tour across Europe and Africa, per Mixtape Madness | Reported by the outlet |
| Podcast appearances | A Simi and Feyikemi episode and a Creators Connect episode | Confirmed episodes |
| Awards and nominations | None found | None confirmed |
| Streaming totals | No verified totals found | Unverified |
African Folder also mentions a semi-viral clip of him with South African rapper Nasty C, which we could not date or verify.
Tar1q’s age and net worth
How old is Tar1q? His official YouTube bio and the Music in Africa directory give his birthday as 1 May. Neither gives a birth year. The Guardian described him as a 21-year-old in August 2022, which fits a 2001 birth year, and the third-party site The City Celeb lists 1 May 2001. If that is right, he turned 25 on 1 May 2026. This is an inference, not a confirmed fact, so AfrobeatKit should present the year as unconfirmed until he or Chocolate City states it.
What is Tar1q’s net worth? No verified figure exists. We found no financial disclosure or credible reporting on his earnings, and we did not use estimates from biography sites. His income presumably comes from streaming, performances and brand work, but that is a general observation, not a number.
What’s next for Tar1q
The biggest open item is the album. In a May 2026 Mixtape Madness interview, Tar1q said his debut album was in its final stages, would carry 13 or 14 songs and was due in the third quarter. He called it I Saw the Sun, a nod to Son of the Moon, and said it would capture who he is now as a young Nigerian, with Yoruba culture woven in and no Fuji outside “Sesi”. The third quarter has ended, and we found no release or announced date, so readers should check his official channels.
Other threads to watch are his live plans and label projects. He has talked about touring and about a festival of his own, and he appears on Chocolate City’s collaborative output alongside Young Jonn. He also released “Money” with Scottyolorin in July.
We make no forecast beyond what he and the label have said. AfrobeatKit will update this profile when the album or any new project is confirmed.