Our Man crush for this week is the legendary Nigerian singer who recently got “Fortyfied”, Innocent Ujah Idibia. Born in 1975 in the city of Jos, Tu-Baba as he chooses to be called now, is one of the most decorated and successful Afro-pop artists in Africa.
Why do we love him?
This handsome and down to earth musician has done Nigeria proud by bringing home so many awards. With one MTV Europe Music Award, one World Music, five Headies (Hip-hop World awards), four Channel O music video awards, BET award, MTV Africa Music Award and more, Tuface Idibia is definitely one of Nigeria’s best musical exports in this 21st century.
His untiring dedication to quality music can be seen since his days with male group “Plantashun boyz” in the late 90s and early 2000s. He launched his solo career in 2004 with the album Face 2 Face with hit songs that established him as an enviable artist. His second album Grass 2 Grace which was launched in 2006 had the award-winning hit African Queen. African Queen is an evergreen song which is still being played up till date across the world.
He recently turned 40 and this milestone was celebrated in a massive concert dubbed “Forytified”. The concert was attended by lots of dignitaries to celebrate his influence in the Nigerians music industry. There were performances from various notable artistes also.
Apart from being a successful artiste, Tuface is also a philanthropist. He established an NGO called 2Face Idibia Reach-Out Foundation. In 2009, he was appointed as an ambassador by National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control. He released a song “Man Unkind” to raise awareness on the menace of fake and sub-standard food and drug products in Nigeria. In 2009, he was presented with the prestigious International Youth Ambassador for Peace Summit and the Nigeria Youth Merit Award by the National Youth Council of Nigeria in recognition of his contributions to youth development in Nigeria.
Another thing we love about our MCM today is his sense of style. Tu-Baba’s fashion sense can be classified as classy. He loves to keep it simple without the blings and other attires which many artistes adorn. He usually serves Men outfit inspiration on red carpets and also while performing on stage.
He is married to his long-time love Annie Macaulay now Idibia. They got married in 2012, in a private ceremony in Dubai. The couple have two children together, but Tuface has seven children in total from previous relationships.
His undeniable good looks, His visible hard work in the music industry and his success therein, his classy sense of style, his cute family, amongst other things, are some of the reasons why Tuface Idibia is our Man Crush this Monday.