Belfast’s Jordan Adetunji ready to take the music world by storm after signing record deal

Jordan Adetunji

Kurtis Reid

June 29 2022 01:50 PM

An up-and-coming east Belfast musician hailed as the “next star” by Snow Patrol’s Gary Lightbody has said he wants to “carry the torch for Northern Ireland” after signing to Sony’s RCA label.

Jordan Adetunji (23) is on his way to global success after a viral video on TikTok led to the record deal.

He said: “I just started uploading on Facebook and I was getting a lot of support from my friends and the local community, who were all praising my videos and my songs.

Inspired by the positive reaction, Jordan then formed a band made up of friends who helped inspire his genre-bending style of music, which includes influences from punk to hip-hop.

However, it was a clip posted on TikTok that changed everything and put him on the course for stardom.

"Just after lockdown, I posted the video of me singing and it caught a lot of attention. It was noticed by Ollie Sykes, the lead singer of Bring the Horizon, who then sent it across to Sony’s RCA label and I ended up signing a record contract with them in March,” he said.

“Before lockdown, I kept thinking about how I am going to expand music and now I have the same management as Ollie, it’s crazy. It has changed my life.”

Jordan’s music has now been played on BBC Radio 1, 1Xtra, and BBC Radio Ulster. His songs average 23,000 monthly listeners on Spotify and he has over 300,000 likes on TikTok.

Last year, he was selected as part of the Class of 2022 at the MOBO Awards in London, highlighting artists to watch this year.

Even though Jordan is fast becoming a success, he said he hasn’t forgotten his roots and believes Belfast helps influence his music to this day.

“I want to put Northern Ireland on the map for this kind of music, it’s something I’ve always wanted to do,” he said.

“Living here widens your ears to all different types of music – who knows what I’d be listening to if I lived in London?”

Despite facing some pressure about his goals, Jordan said he never let go of his dreams to follow a career in music.

“Throughout school and university, I always knew this is what I wanted to do. Consistency is key, no matter how many times you try, it only takes one moment and I’m so grateful it has happened.”

And due to the power of social media, people living here don’t have to travel to the likes of London or other major cities to pursue their careers, Jordan notes.

“I still live in Belfast, I travel back and forth to London, and it’s good to travel to work in other studios. But the platforms, reach and engagement of the likes of TikTok is changing everything. I can reach people every day that I would have never reached before by uploading my tracks onto these platforms, there isn’t an issue being based here anymore,” said Jordan, whose inspirations range from Kendrick Lamar and Skepta to Luther Vandross.

He adds that opportunities for new artists whose music is outside what would be considered mainstream genres are very good.

“The support has been amazing, especially after the lockdown which affected a lot of musicians, so it’s great to be in a place where lots of different artists are getting support, there is a great scene bubbling here.”

It’s often the case that having so much success at such a young age can be overwhelming, but Jordan says he is just “riding the wave”.

“It all feels fantastic. I’m ready to just get to the next level, that’s all that’s in my head at the moment. I’m getting ready to shine for Belfast in more shows, more performances across the world,” he said.

Jordan said he plans to release new music “very soon”, adding that he’s hopeful his first single with his new label will be out in the next few months.

Belfast’s Jordan Adetunji ready to take the music world by storm after signing record deal

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