Runtown, whose real name is Douglas Jack Agu, is a Nigerian singer, songwriter and producer with a diverse musical style mix of hip-hop, R and B, reggae and rap. The singer, who hails from Enugu State came into limelight after he collaborated with Davido on his song ‘Gallardo’ and recently his latest track, ‘Mad Over You’ has been a hit. Runtown’s debut album, ‘Ghetto University’, was also a runaway success and has made him, according to industry watchers, one to watch in 2017.
Early Life
Runtown was born on 19 August 1989 in Enugu, but grew up partly in Abuja and Lagos, where he finished his primary education. After the death of his father, he moved to Abuja with his mother who was working in the Ministry of Health. In 2005, he relocated to Enugu after his mother developed interest in politics; he went on to finish his secondary school education in Enugu State. Runtown is said to be currently studying Fashion Management at a fashion school in New York City.
Career
In 2007, the ‘bend down pause’ crooner moved from Enugu to Lagos alongside his long time friend Phyno, and in order to penetrate the music industry in Nigeria, began doing underground collaborations with the likes of Timaya and J-Martins. Runtown released his first single titled ‘Runtown’ which was produced by Soge in 2007.
In 2008, he partnered with Phyno to form a record label called Penthauz during which he released his first two singles ‘Party Like It’s 1980’ and ‘Activity Pikin’. His 2010 single titled ‘Forever’ had a video directed by IvanEdd. J. Martins featured Runtown on a song off his ‘Elevation’ album titled ‘Tonight’; he also worked with Phyno on a song titled ‘Anam-Achi Vers-Achi’ which was produced by WizzyPro.
On 29 January 2014, Runtown collaborated with Davido to release a song produced by T-Spize titled ‘Gallardo’ which brought him to limelight. Runtown’s career took a huge step after he signed a recording contract with Eric-Manny Entertainment through his friend, releasing ‘Successful’ and ‘Domot’ which received frequent airplay.
Runtown was featured on WizzyPro’s ‘Emergency’ song which also featured Skales and Patoranking. The song was produced by WizzyPro. On November 23, 2015, Runtown released his debut studio album titled ‘Ghetto University’. Ghetto University featured appearances from DJ Khaled, Phyno, Wizkid, Uhuru and Anatii. The album made him listed in the Top five Most Streamed Artist” in Nigeria, generating over N35 million turn over on MTN Music Plus. Runtown then dropped ‘Mad Over You’ in November 2016 and the Dancehall track instantly became a hit on local and international airwaves, earning him a spot on Billboard Twitter Top Tracks in the first week of 2017 at 38th position.
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