Ty

Benedict Okwuchukwu Godwin Chijioke (17 August 1972 – 7 May 2020), better known by his stage name Ty , was a Nigerian-British rapper. He released the albums Awkward, Upwards (2003), Closer (2006), Special Kind of Fool (2010) and A Work of Heart (2018). Upwards was nominated for a Mercury Prize. Ty collaborated with musicians such as Shortee Blitz, Drew Horley, Tony Allen, Roots Manuva and De La Soul. "so they could focus on work and study." His second album, Upwards, was released in 2003 and reached No.35 in the UK Independent album charts. The single from it, "Oh U Want More?", reached No.65 in the UK Top 100. Upwards was nominated for a Mercury Prize in 2004. His third album, Closer, was released in 2006,

He left the Big Dada label in 2007, saying "there's a time when you ... acknowledge that the people either have lost faith in what you're doing or are no longer interested in what you're doing" and experimented with spoken word for a period. His final album, A Work of Heart, was released in 2018 on the contemporary jazz label Jazz re:freshed. In 2019, he was joined by Blak Twang and Rodney P to form Kingdem, which The New York Times called a "supergroup of British rap elders". Several memorials were painted for him in and around Brixton to honour his legacy.

Discography Albums Awkward (Big Dada, 2001) Upwards (Big Dada, 2003) Closer (Big Dada, 2006) Special Kind of Fool (BBE, 2010) A Work of Heart (Jazz re:freshed, 2018)

EPs Kick, Snare and an Idea (2013) Collaborative EPs I.A.A.D. (I Am a Don) by Ty & Shortee Blitz (Wayward, 1998) The Kingdem EP by Kingdem (Rodney P, Ty and Blak Twang) (2019)

Singles "Oh U Want More?" (2004) – UK No. 65