Veteran Nigerian music producer and record label executive, Olumide Ogunade, popularly known as ID Cabasa, has revealed that late rapper Oladapo Olaonipekun, known as Da Grin, had planned to work with Olamide before his death.

Cabasa made this known during a recent interview with Yanga FM, where he reflected on his career, the artistes he has worked with, and his approach to talent discovery. He said his focus has always been on identifying raw talent rather than chasing already established names.

“Every producer likes to work with people that are famous and blown, but if you check my own trajectory, I always look for people that are talented that are not known,” he said.

According to Cabasa, this approach shaped his early involvement with artistes who later became major figures in Nigerian music. As the founder of Coded Tunes, he is credited with discovering and nurturing acts such as 9ice, Lord of Ajasa and Olamide.

While speaking on artistes he has worked with, Cabasa revealed that Da Grin had shown interest in collaborating with Olamide before his untimely death in 2010. At the time, Olamide was still an emerging artiste and had not released any official song.

“Olamide and Da Grin were supposed to work on a song before Da Grin died,” Cabasa said. “I met Da Grin at a show in UNILAG, and I was telling him about a guy I was trying to bring into the industry. Olamide had not released any song then.”

Cabasa described Da Grin as a dominant force in the music scene whose humility and work ethic earned him widespread respect.

“Da Grin was like a force. He came up and everybody wanted to work with him. Even me that he respected so much wanted to work with him,” he said. “He was so respectful that everybody wanted to work with him. He just wanted to make music.”

Cabasa eventually introduced Olamide to the industry between 2010 and 2011. Olamide was signed to Coded Tunes, where he released his debut single Eni Duro in 2010 and his debut studio album Rapsodi in 2011.

Cabasa said he recognised Olamide’s potential long before his mainstream success, adding that the rapper’s growth has only confirmed what he saw early on.

“Everybody is just seeing Olamide now. I know what I saw in him when I discovered him at 13,” he said.

More than a decade later, Olamide has grown into one of Nigeria’s most influential artistes, known for his consistency and hit records.

In 2025, he achieved another career milestone by selling out a solo concert at the OVO Arena Wembley in London, with thousands of fans in attendance.

Beyond his success as a performer, Olamide has also built a strong reputation as a label executive. Through his YBNL label, he has signed and nurtured artistes such as Lil kesh, Adekunle Gold, Fireboy DML and Asake. Many of these artistes have gone on to sell out shows across Nigeria, Europe and the United Kingdom, while also collaborating with major international acts. Their success has helped position YBNL as one of the most influential record labels in Nigerian music today.

Cabasa, who has consistently spoken highly of Olamide over the years, described his journey as a reflection of his belief in spotting and nurturing talent early.