I never wanted to be a star—I've always been little brother, low-key. But I want to be a star now, because words have a gravitas when you are one. I need to be a living example to the kids. You can stand for something and you can do it with flair. But you've got to work for the platform to even have a voice. There are a lot of people with a voice and no platform.—Dave, The Sunday Times[1]
David Orobosa Michael Omoregie (born June 5, 1998), professionally known as Dave or Santan Dave, is an English rapper, record producer, and actor. Known for his socially conscious lyricism and wordplay, his music delves into topics of immigration, domestic violence, and racism. He has helped propel UK rap into the mainstream alongside artists like Stormzy, Central Cee, and J Hus, whom he has also collaborated with.
Dave credits his older brother who used to rap as an inspiration to create music. He garnered online attention from his freestyles that were posted across UK rap YouTube channels. One of them, "Warm Up Session", caught the attention of independent label, Neighbourhood Recordings. It also led to Canadian rapper Drake reaching out to collaborate, the co-sign serving as a launchpad to early stardom. Despite only being 17 years old with no album at the time, Dave was coveted by record labels and seen as the new face of the genre. His debut album, Psychodrama, was released in 2019. It charted atop the UK Albums Chart and won the Mercury Prize. His next two albums, We're All Alone in This Together (2021) and The Boy Who Played the Harp (2025), made him the first UK rap artist to debut three albums at number one on the UK Albums Chart. Outside of his music career, he has ventured into acting after being cast as the character Modie in the third series of Top Boy (2019).
Biography[]
1998–2015: Early life and education[]
Dave as a child.
I had spent my whole life communicating with adults in a way in which they had this mad authority over me. So coming straight out of college and never having a job, it really was part of the reason, I think, that I took everything so seriously.—Dave, British GQ[2]
Omoregie was born on 5 June 1998 in Brixton, South London, the youngest of three sons to Nigerian immigrants. His mother, Juliet, worked as a nurse, while his father, Frank, was a pastor. When Dave was just four months old, his father was deported due to visa troubles, unknowingly being issued a visitor's rather than a missionary visa.[1] In fear of deportation, Juliet fled with his two brothers; they reunited three months later. Being homeless, they slept in South London's buses.[3] His father wasn't around, and his mother would leave early in the morning and return home late at night.
Since the age of seven, Dave grew up in Streatham, where his family lived in a three-bedroom flat. As a child, Dave watched Japanese anime, drew pictures, listened to music, and immersed himself in films scores by Steve Jablonsky and Hans Zimmer. He played the piano at school and, at the age of fourteen, was gifted the digital keyboard by his mother. In October 2012, his older brother Christopher, whom he saw as a father figure, received a life sentence for being involved in the murder of 15-year-old Sofyen Belamouadden. In 2014, his other brother Benjamin was incarcerated for fraud, eventually released in 2018.[1]
At the age of sixteen, Dave turned to rap as a form of cathartic expression. He attended St Mark's Academy in Mitcham and matriculated at Richmond upon Thames College in Twickenham, where he studied ethics, law, philosophy, and sound design. His first freestyle was posted to the YouTube Channel BL@CKBOX in May 2015, recorded over the Eminem instrumental "No Apologies" that detailed his life story. It would also catch the eyes of Jack Foster and Benny Scarrs, founders of label and management company, Neighbourhood.[4] During this period, Dave's songs gained traction on YouTube, influencing the decision to pursue a musical career over studying law at De Montfort University.
2016–2018: Six Paths and Game Over[]
On 11 March 2016, he self-released his debut single "JKYL+HYD" to digital services, with its music video premiering to SBTV's YouTube channel earlier that year on 6 January.[5] His first extended play, Six Paths, met with considerable commercial success; released on 30 September 2016, it peaked at number 76 on the UK Albums Chart and number 7 on the UK Hip Hop and R&B Singles and Albums Charts. Following a slew of singles in 2017, he caught the attention of fellow rapper Drake, who released a remix of his song "Wanna Know". Dave expressed admiration for the Canadian's "ability to embrace different cultures within music", and urged the UK music scene to seize this opportunity by continuing to produce good output so as to not be passed off as a phase.[6]
His second extended play, Game Over, was released on 3 November 2017. It achieved commercial success, peaking at number 13 on the UK Albums Chart. Preceded by the two singles, "Question Time" and "No Words", the former ran for seven minutes long, critiqued the British government, and won the Ivor Novello Award for Best Contemporary Song.
2019–2022: Psychodrama and We're All Alone in This Together[]
His first studio album, Psychodrama, was released on 8 March 2019. A conceptual and largely autobiographical record, it is titled after his brother's therapy course and contains guest appearances from J Hus, Burna Boy, and Ruelle. The record positioned at number one on the UK Albums Chart with combined first-sales of 26,390 album-equivalent units. It went on to win the 2019 Mercury Prize and British Album of the Year at the 2020 Brit Awards. He made his first appearance at Glastonbury Festival on 30 June 2019, followed by the Reading and Leeds Festival on 23 August. His performance of "Black" at the Brit Awards generated controversy, calling then-UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson a "real racist" and called out the government over their treatment of the victims of Grenfell Tower and the Windrush generation. In August 2020, Dave collaborated with David Attenborough for a special episode of Planet Earth, with Dave playing the piano alongside Hans Zimmer.
On 23 July 2021, his second album We're All Alone in This Together was released. The artwork was based on the painting "Impression, Sunrise" by French artist Claude Monet, while the title derives from what Zimmer said to him over FaceTime, when the pair worked on Attenborough's Planet Earth.[2] Like its predecessor, the record debuted atop the UK Albums Charts with 74,000 album-equivalent units sold in its first week. It won Album of the Year at the MOBO Awards and was nominated for a second time in the category British Album of the Year at the 2022 BRIT Awards. Although it lost to Adele's 30, he won Best Hip Hop/Rap/Grime Act.
2023–present: The Boy Who Played the Harp[]
After a year-long hiatus, in January 2025, Dave appeared as a guest on "CRG", the eighth track from Central Cee's debut album, Can't Rush Greatness. He released his third album The Boy Who Played the Harp on 24 October 2025, marking his third consecutive number one album on the UK Albums Chart, moving 74,000 units in its first week. His worldwide tour of the same name commenced in February 2026.[7]
Legacy[]
I'm not the voice of reason, I've just said a few reasonable things. I'll just continue to try and express myself in a way that people can relate to.—Dave, Crack[8]
During a time where UK drill dominated the nation's rap scene, Dave adopted a more distinct approach with traditional sounds, leaning into backpack and conscious rap. This mixture of personal and political subjects earned him critical acclaim across his projects. His lyrics, born out of pain and frustration with racial disparities and everyday violence, were subject to public discourse. His song, "Black", highlighted these experiences, which drew complaints from individuals who deemed it "racist against white people". Dave responded that he focused on positive reactions and was satisfied with "put[ting] out a message and affect[ing] people". He added in respect to his peers Akala, Bashy, Ghetts, and Kojey Radical: "People have been doing it before me. People will continue to be doing it after me".[9]
NME wrote of his 2021 album, "Dave has always been the one to rap traditionally, using hip-hop for what it was intended to do: give a voice to the voiceless. He has always been able to show the inner-workings of many young Londoners in a clean and universal way that can perhaps help the whole world to better understand the Black British experience, especially that of Black men".[10]
Personal life[]
Dave is an ardent supporter of the football club, Manchester United. He worked with Marcus Rashford for a Beats by Dre animated advert. He grew up listening to J. Cole, Kendrick Lamar, Drake, Devlin and Kano, stating how "[his] favourite musicians […] ma[de] me feel like I wasn't alone in what it was that I was going through".[2]
Discography[]
Studio albums
- Psychodrama (2019)
- We're All Alone in This Together (2021)
- The Boy Who Played the Harp (2025)
Filmography[]
- Top Boy (2019)
Tours[]
Concert tours
- Game Over Tour (2017)
- Psychodrama Tour (2019)
- We're All Alone in This Together Tour (2022)
- The Boy Who Played the Harp Tour (2026)
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Dean, Jonathan (8 August 2021). "Dave, the Rapper and Voice of a Generation, on His New Album We're All Alone in This Together". The Sunday Times.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Thapar, Ciaran (6 July 2021). "Santan Dave: 'This New Album Is Self-Aware. There's a Magic to It. Less Concept, More Canon. It's a Whole Journey'". British GQ.
- ↑ "U.K Rapper Dave Shares His Journey Going from Living on Buses to the Red Carpet". AllHipHop. 24 February 2022.
- ↑ Jones, Rhian (12 August 2019). "'We Want to Work with Arotists Who Have a Great Vision and Direction for Themselves'". Music Business Worldwide.
- ↑ "SB.TV (@SBTV)". Facebook. 12 January 2016.
- ↑ Collins, Hattie (24 March 2017). "A Rapper Called Dave: The 'Normal' Streatham Boy Who's on Drake's Radar". The Guardian.
- ↑ Aubrey, Elizabeth (16 October 2025). "Dave Unveils Details of Huge 'The Boy Who Played the Harp' 2026 Arena Tour". NME.
- ↑ Harrison, Duncan (31 July 2017). "Dave's Got a Plan". Crack Magazine.
- ↑ "Dave Responds to Radio 1 Listeners' Offence at Black". BBC News. 4 March 2019.
- ↑ Williams, Kyann-Sian (23 July 2021). "Dave – 'We're All Alone in This Together' Review: Stunning Sequel Lives Up to His Debut". NME.
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