YBNL Nation is an acronym for the very popular phrase – Yahoo Boy No Laptop Nation. It’s an independent record label founded by Olamide in 2012. The record label is home to notable music acts including Lil Kesh and Adekunle Gold and a few others who refer to themselves as “YBNL Soldiers”.
It shouldn’t be forgotten that Olamide rose to limelight at Coded Tunes, the record label where he released songs like “Eni Duro” and “Omo To Shan”; the later song being the first of a few collaborations with Wizkid. Before the release of the widely accepted “Rapsody” album in 2011, Olamide went on to release a promotional single that ‘over-wet’ the ground for his album. He titled it “Yahoo boy, No Laptop” Remember it? “Yahoo boy no laptop, always pinging but my money dey pileup” The single remains one of Olamide’s most played single. Soon after, he left Coded Tunes as a ‘lone wolf’ and started YBNL Nation.
In 2013, in an interview with MTV, Olamide said the wide acceptance of the song wasn’t what prompted him to start a record label. He had the plan of starting a record label but couldn’t come up with a name. He wasn’t even sure how it’ll sound but he didn’t have a better idea and it wasn’t what he was ready to discuss with anyone about; so he just called it YBNL with a shrug and started working on an album to push the name into public acceptance – and it worked.
YBNL did not only become a reality, it is now an award winning record label with two really good producers and five artistes (including Olamide badoo himself) currently on board. Adekunle Gold, Lil’Kesh, Chinko Ekun, and Viktoh are artistes that prefer to be referred to as “YBNL SOLDIERS” although Chinko Ekun takes it a little to the edge by referring to himself as “YBNL Tiger”. Olamide in an interview on Cool 96.9 FM in Lagos said he didn’t sign big names to the label because he’s looking to create a platform for raw, upcoming talents and bring them up by grooming and mentoring them.
YBNL in 2015 was nominated for the City People Entertainment Awards’ Record Label Of The Year; but they lost it to Don Jazzy’s Mavin Records. The nomination according to Olamide is a sign that their hard work is getting close to where it’ll start to pay off. YBNL is currently looking for a female artiste and a few female vocalists, rappers and so on have begun showing interest in becoming the first female act to be signed by record label. A title Olamide tagged as the “YBNL First Lady”.
The Label is based in Lagos with a studio in Lekki and Bariga. Their official website: www.ybnlmovement.com is inactive due to unknown reasons but the CEO’s personal website: www.olamidebaddo.com is active. For bookings and inquiries you could send a mail to aokeke@gmail.com or call 08184702608 or 08186360343.