Offica

Tomas Adedayo Adeyinka (born September 2000), commonly known by his stage name Offica, is an Irish rapper of Nigerian descent. During a youth soccer career between 2016 and 2019, he released his debut single "No Hook" in 2018, going viral following the release of "Naruto Drillings" in 2019 and "Plugged In Freestyle" alongside drill collective A92 in 2020.

Offica
Birth nameTomas Adedayo Adeyinka[1]
Also known as
  • Obito
  • Tobi
BornSeptember 2000 (age 23)[2]
Lagos, Nigeria
OriginDrogheda, Ireland
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Rapper
  • Songwriter
Instrument(s)Vocals
Years active2018–present
LabelsMoves Recordings
Member ofA92

Early life

Tomas Adeyinka was born in Lagos, Nigeria in 2000. At the age of six, his family moved to Drogheda, Ireland, where he currently lives. Tomas' sister, Victoria, is a social media personality, and has been accredited by The Irish Times as "the most popular TikTok creator in Ireland".[3] He is a Christian, and is studying global business at Maynooth University.[4]

Prior to his musical career, Tomas played for Drogheda United F.C.'s under-17 team as a midfielder in the 2016–17 season; he appeared in 21 games. He joined its under-19 team in March 2018;[2] by 2019, he played as a substitute,[5] having appeared in 11 games (as well as one game for Drogheda United in the 2018–19 Leinster Senior Cup[6]) in the 2018–19 season.[2]

Career

Offica released his debut single "No Hook" in late 2018, at the age of 18;[4] the single gained over 100,000 views on YouTube.[7] In an interview with Hot Press, he stated that

"Around that time, I had college, music and football to juggle together...but I got a lot of injuries, and I was doing decent in music – which made my decision to pick music easier."[4]

In 2019, he released his breakout single "Naruto Drillings",[8] later releasing a remix with British YouTuber KSI, which gained 900,000 views the day after its release on YouTube.[9] He later released "Skiddibop", featuring Fizzler, a British rapper, in November.[10]

Offica released three singles, "Face Reveal", "Where's The Motive?" with Blanco and Reggie, and "Opor", in 2020. He was also featured on "Movie" by Evans Junior, which was released the same year.[11] Regarding "Opor", Ben Beaumont-Thomas, music editor for The Guardian, said in 2021:

"His accent, situated between his Irish and Nigerian heritage, gives his lyrics a mournful musicality, particularly on the standout 2020 track, Opor."[12]

In mid-2020, the drill collective A92, based around Offica's hometown of Drogheda, was formed, with Offica joining following its formation; its debut single, "A9 Link Up", was released in September.[13] The group would later rise to popularity following the release of its "Plugged In Freestyle".

In January 2021, Offica released "TAKE IT (YUCK)",[14] later starring on Versatile's "Babyproof", which was released in March.[15] In April, Offica announced that he would be going on tour in Ireland and the UK; he also announced that he would be releasing an untitled mixtape.[16] In May, Offica released "Obito";[17] its music video gained over 320,000 views in the three days after its release on YouTube.[18]

Discography

As lead artist
List of singles, with selected peak chart positions
Title Year Peak chart positions
IRE
[19]		 UK
[20]
"No Hook" [4] 2018
—
—
"Afrodrip"[7] 2019
"Naruto Drillings"
(Solo or remix featuring KSI)[8]
"Snakes and Scorpions"[21]
"Skiddibop"
(with Fizzler)[10]
"Face Reveal"[22] 2020
"Where's the Motive?"
(with Reggie and Blanco)[23]
"Opor"[24]
"Mad About Bars"[25]
"Fire in the Booth"[26]
"Plugged In Freestyle"
(with Fumez the Engineer and A92)
29
39
"TAKE IT (YUCK)"
(with Dbo)[14]		 2021
—
—
"OBITO"[17]
"Blue Bird"[27]
"D-Town Baby"
(with Dbo, Ksav, BT and Nikz)[28]
"Sharingan"[29] 2022
"Plugged In"
(with Fumez the Engineer)[30]
"Kolomental"
(with Dbo and Darkovibes)[31]
"—" denotes items which were not released in that country or failed to chart.
List of singles as featured artist, with selected peak chart positions
Title Year Peak chart positions
IRE
[19]
"Movie"
(Evans Junior featuring Offica)[11]		 2020
—
"Babyproof"
(Versatile featuring Offica)[15]		 2021
97
"Plugged In"
(as member of A92; Fumez the Engineer featuring Suspect, PR SAD, DoRoad, R6, A92, Pete & Bas, Kwengface and PS Hitsquad)[32]
—
"Oggy"
(Sello featuring Offica)[33]
"—" denotes items which were not released in that country or failed to chart.

Guest appearances
List of non-single guest appearances, with other performing artists
Title Year Other artist(s) Album
"Dumb Flex (Remix)" 2021 Miss LaFamilia, Ivorian Doll, Poundz, Dbo Non-album single

Filmography
Year Title Role Ref.
2022 Terms & Conditions: Deeper Than Drill Himself [34]

Awards and nominations
Year Award Nominated work Category Result Ref.
2021 Black & Irish Awards Himself Male Artist of the Year Won [35]

References
  1. Kaguako, Filomena; Boladale, Zainab (5 July 2020). "Faces of the future: Some of the rising stars of Ireland's black community". The Irish Times. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
  2. "Tom Adeyinka". extratime.com. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
  3. O'Connor, Amy (25 October 2020). "The Irish teenager with more TikTok followers than Miley Cyrus and Ellen DeGeneres". The Irish Times. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
  4. O'Toole, Lucy (2 February 2021). "Interview: Offica and A92 On Drill & Drogheda". Hot Press. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
  5. "Dundalk stunned by Drogs". Drogheda Independent. 24 August 2019. Retrieved 10 May 2021. On 80 minutes substitute Tom Adeyinka finished the ball to the net from close range after Clarke produced a brilliant cross from the left.
  6. "Live Updates – 2019 Leinster Senior Cup Fourth Round – Sheriff YC -v- Drogheda United". extratime.com. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
  7. Coffey, Cailean (17 May 2020). "Offica – Interview". GoldenPlec. Retrieved 9 May 2021.
  8. Archibald-Powell, Naimah (18 May 2019). "Offica drops "Naruto Drillings"". grmdaily.com. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
  9. O'Toole, Lucy (22 July 2019). "Drogheda drill artist Offica shares video for 'Naruto Drillings' Remix featuring YouTube sensation KSI". hotpress.com. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
  10. O'Toole, Lucy (22 November 2019). "Irish drill prodigy Offica teams up with Fizzler for new single 'SkiddiBop'". Hot Press. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
  11. "Evans Junior and Offica Unveil 'Movie'". imro.ie. Irish Music Rights Organisation. 18 November 2020. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  12. Beaumont-Thomas, Ben; Snapes, Laura (1 January 2021). "Irish drill, jazz violin and supermarket musicals: 30 new artists for 2021". theguardian.com. Retrieved 1 October 2021.
  13. "Offica's A92 Make Their Collective Debut with A9 Link Up". imro.ie. Irish Music Rights Organisation. 18 September 2020. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
  14. "Offica Kick Starts the New Year with Single 'Take It (Yuck)'". imro.ie. Irish Music Rights Organisation. 18 January 2021. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
  15. Lewis, Andrew (8 March 2021). "Versatile unveils brand new track 'Babyproof' ft. Offica". musiccrowns.org. Retrieved 9 May 2021.
  16. Murphy, Dylan (21 April 2021). "Offica announces mixtape and UK & Ireland tour". District Magazine. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
  17. Boshell, Lorraine (18 May 2021). "The Return of the Mask, Mr.O aka Offica Shares New Single 'OBITO'". imro.ie. Irish Music Rights Organisation. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  18. "Offica clocks up over 300,000 views on 'Obito' video in three days". Hot Press. 18 May 2021. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  19. "Discography Offica". irish-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
  20. Peaks in the UK:
  21. Burrell, Edward (16 October 2019). "Offica embraces three nationalities on one Drill Track". finesseforeva.com. Retrieved 28 July 2021.
  22. O'Toole, Lucy (8 May 2020). "PREMIERE: Irish drill prodigy Offica shares new single 'Face Reveal'". Hot Press. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
  23. "Offica Joined by Drill Royalty and Founder of Harlem Spartans Blanco on New Single". imro.ie. Irish Music Rights Organisation. 24 July 2020. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
  24. "LISTEN: Offica returns with new single 'Opor'". Hot Press. 21 August 2020. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
  25. Bolarin, Ore (18 October 2020). "Offica steps up to offer a new 'Mad About Bars' Freestyle". grmdaily.com. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  26. W, Courtney (22 October 2020). "Offica Joins Charlie Sloth For 'Fire in the Booth' Session". grmdaily.com. Retrieved 21 July 2021.
  27. Archibald-Powell, Naimah (26 September 2021). "Premiere: Offica drops off bold visuals for "Blue Bird"". grmdaily.com. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
  28. "Premiere: Offica & A92 Deliver More Lively Drill Vibes On 'D-Town Baby'". grmdaily.com. 2 December 2021. Retrieved 16 February 2022.
  29. W, Courtney (17 February 2022). "Premiere: Offica Unleashes Jumpy Naruto-Inspired Drop 'Sharingan'". grmdaily.com. Retrieved 23 February 2022.
  30. Archibald-Powell, Naimah (2 June 2022). "Offica Reps Ireland On New 'Plugged In' Session With Fumez The Engineer". grmdaily.com. Retrieved 4 June 2022.
  31. W, Courtney (10 June 2022). "Premiere: Offica Switches It Up On Upbeat Track 'Kolomental' With Dbo & Darkovibes". grmdaily.com. Retrieved 10 June 2022.
  32. W, Courtney (25 June 2021). "Fumez The Engineer Delivers Special 'Plugged In' Season Finale With Kwengface, Pete & Bas, DoRoad & More". grmdaily.com. Retrieved 27 June 2021.
  33. "Sello & Offica Connect In "Oggy" Visuals". grmdaily.com. 10 September 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  34. "WATCH: Drogheda rapper Offica stars in YouTube Originals documentary Terms & Conditions: Deeper Than Drill". Hot Press. 5 May 2022. Retrieved 18 May 2022.
  35. Henderson, Chelsea (6 December 2021). "Tolü Makay, Offica and more honoured at inaugural Black & Irish Awards". Hot Press. Retrieved 16 February 2022.
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