Do2Tun: I made ‘Hype’ a commercial craft

Oladotun Ojuolape Kayode is a Hype Man, an on-air personality, video jockey, actor and media entrepreneur. Kayode, who is popularly known as Do2Tun (Pronounced D-O-To-The-T-U-N), pioneered a group called Xtreme Dancers while in the university and featured in music videos like D’banj’s Why Me and Same Ni by Dj Zeez. Do2Tun came to wider prominence as a TV and radio personality while hosting shows and concerts including Midday Oasis, Love Zone, Cool best 20 and Star music trek, COPA Lagos. Now known for creating a career path for Hype Men, Do2Tun speaks to IJEOMA THOMAS-ODIA about how what he does has shaped him.

Share with us your growing up and how it has shaped your career path?
I am from a family where my dad was a building engineer and my mum a retired nurse. I was born and bred in Surulere, Lagos. I attended Kemeesther Nursery and Primary School. I was an average kid who had dreams, I loved playing football at the time but my dad didn’t like it. He was very strict while my mum is a staunch Christian, a Deeper Life church member. So, I grew up in a home where it was necessary to have morning devotions, pray and read the bible, although my dad was liberal about it. The diversity was clear. I was a very playful child and I got a lot of it in my report cards, my dad didn’t like it. On what shaped my career path, my dad would buy a lot of newspapers and ensure we watch only educative TV programmes like Food basket, Gboromiro and Tales by Moonlight. For radio, my dad bought me a transistor radio as a gift so l listened to popular shows like Good Morning America by Shakazali and the late Tope Brown on Rhythm. Then, I grew up doing radio commentary which is what I am doing till date. We talk about social issues in music and entertainment. I grew up to love radio to the point where if I do anything wrong, when my dad is done beating me, he would take the radio away from me. My parents did a good job raising me and my siblings.

You are an on-air personality, video jockey, actor and media entrepreneur. How are you able to hone your skills?
I feel like I am one of the most hardworking media guys in Nigeria. I am on TV, radio and hosting shows. I work in Cool FM from November 1, 2004 and then starting a career that everybody has jumped on now, ‘Hype’ and making it a household name. I play as a boss at a content hub company called ‘Cloud Africa’. There is so much that has shaped me. I am grateful to God for how far I have come. A lot of people may not know that I started out as an intern, but I have worked through the ranks. I was a guy who could not speak properly when I started out on radio, but I made it a point to work on myself. Also, as much as I love radio, dancing was my first love.

I created a group while in school called ‘Xtreme Dancers’ and then I moved into mainstream dancing and met the likes of Ruggedman who embodied dance. I wanted to be everything I love and that is what being a Hype Man entails for me. Now hosting the biggest TV show, Pepsi Turnup Friday night, which brings families together, is a big deal for me because I have learnt them overtime. That is why I have always come out different and you can pull me out from the crowd, you will notice me because everything I have done, I do it well. For instance, radio show has always been hosted by women and I used to have a show called Sleep talk where people will call me, who are depressed, going through marriage challenges, depression and they hit me up. So, I grew up to understand people’s mind and human communication. This is a show no guy has ever hosted and I have been on it for years.

Tell us an interesting twist in your career path as not everyone in your line is rising like you?
When I started out with my stage name, I remember a broadcaster asked me ‘what kind of name is that?’ But years after, he called me ‘DO2DTUN’ and it cracked me up. So, for anything you do in life, if you want to grow, sometimes you don’t have a name until you back it with hard work. The twist, for me, was how I kicked off hype. I started a show on radio called the ‘Party club mix’. Any dancehall you see, there’s always a DJ and a man on the microphone. I replicated it on radio and it worked. So I started getting invitations to clubs at that time, there was no hype man in the club, but with me, I made it a commercial craft and that is how hype started to spread across Africa. There is no party where there is no hype man now.

What drives and motivates you?
It is the love for what I do and the inspirational messages I get that fire up in the lives of others. Also, being a dad and seeing through the eyes of my kids how they are proud of their dad and seeing who they can be. The fact that I can pull up a smile on people’s faces also inspires me. One time, I was on a show and I kept looking at this guy and asking if he was okay. He later told me he had planned committing suicide that night and was happy I reached out to him.

What key challenge would you say you have faced in the industry?
One of the key challenges I have faced in the industry is loyalty and how a career can grow big and be endangered. In my space of broadcasting, I have realised that we have presenters and no broadcasters. People just want those with great voices and not people with great minds. So, having to proof yourselves and get it done the way it should and maintain that standard is a struggle sometimes. Also, a lot of broadcasters work so hard and are not remunerated accordingly.

You are quite fashionable. What does fashion mean to you?
I realise that you are exactly the way you are, the way you present yourself. They used to think that radio broadcasters are not good looking and fashionable, but shout-out to a lot of guys like us who changed that narrative, the likes of Toolz, Gbemi and Toke Makinwa. It is because we realised that it’s not just going to be that – you have to come correct. Fashion, for me, is not about the quality or the quantity, it is about how you carry it.

What is your favourite fashion piece?
Right now, my favourite fashion piece is my palazzo pants. I like it flowing. Shout-out to Bradford and I love what he makes for me. Recently I’ve been getting watches from some guys ‘Raff Kristen’ I found on social media and I love their brand of watches. I love sneakers a lot as well. But ultimately, I love rocking Nigeria-made.

What key advice do you have for young people seeking to build a career path in the industry?
I want to tell a lot of young people, I think sometimes it’s still okay to be a bit traditional, as much as you want to be a millennial. I feel it keeps you grounded. I feel like people have lost their values and their norms to what is new. Be new but still be a bit conventional. I think that is what has kept me this long. What being traditional means is, I stay humble and respectful – that’s how it is these days. You have to be able to grow yourself and do it judiciously. So for the very young person out there, no man is indispensable, you are replaceable. But for you to have longevity in what you do, you must remain traditional. Still have to seek advice, listen more and always make sure you still have those values with you.

What is your life mantra?
Stay respectful and humble and don’t let anything get to your head.