He came, he saw and he conquered, would be an apt way to describe Peter Okoye, formerly part of duo singing group, PSquare, but now known as Mr. P. He was born on 18th November 1981, along with his twin brother Paul Okoye, a.ka.a Rudeboy, in Jos, the capital of Plateau State, though they hail from Anambra State, Nigeria. They grew up in a large family that includes other siblings, namely: Jude Okoye, Mary Okoye, Tony Okoye, Lilian Okoye, and Ifeanyi Okoye. Their parents were, Josephine Okoye and Mazi Moses Okoye, both late now. They spent the better part of their lives in the north, and even attended St. Murumba secondary school in Jos, where Peter and Paul joined the St. Murumba Secondary School music and drama club as young teens. They also sang and danced in the school social club, and from there they started pursuing music as an extracurricular activity, with particular interest in breakdancing or breaking. They revealed years later that their songs and dance steps were heavily influenced by American superstars like MC Hammer, Bobby Brown, and Michael Jackson. They formed their first music group an Acapella group with three of their friends, called MMMPP, consisting of M Clef a.k.a. Itemoh, Michael, Melvin, Peter, and Paul.
The group was changed to MMPP in 1997, after M Clef left. Then, to Smooth Criminals, which focused more on their idol Michael Jackson’s 1998 hit. They became household names in Jos and performed at school functions. In 1999, Paul and Peter Okoye took their music pursuit more seriously and attended a music school to hone their skills. However, their father insisted they should further their education.
In those early days, the twins recorded soundtracks for Nigerian films such as “Tobi”, “Mama Sunday”, “Moment of Bitterness” and “Evas River”. They eventually got admission into the University of Abuja to study business administration and continued to perform in school, while struggling to find a name for their music because the Smooth Criminals Group has dissolved following the exit of their Michael and Melvin, who had also left Jos for their schooling.
In their struggle to find a name that would stick, they initially chose Double P as their stage name, but later changed it to P&P, and then Da Pees and eventually PSquare. At the time, Bayo Odusami popularly called Howie T, was PSquare’s first manager. He was an experienced concert promoter and a talent scout. Howie T was also a DJ, and was famously regarded as the man who promoted PSquare to stardom’. The late Howie T, is credited as the person who discovered PSquare. Peter and Paul reportedly lived in his Illupeju house when they started their musical career.
In 2001, PSquare won the ‘Grab Da Mic’ competition, sponsored by Benson & Hedges, which bankrolled one studio album, that was how PSquare launched their debut album and they never looked back from there. Peter Okoye, as a member of PSquare, dropped his debut album in 2003. Double Trouble released in 2014, was their last album together, though Mr. P had gone ahead to release songs like “Cool it down” and “For My Head”, after their split.
These were the list of albums, Mr. P, as part of PSquare produced: Last Nite (2003), Get Squared (2005), Game Over (2007), Game over Re-Issued version (2007), Danger (2009), The Invasion (2011), Greatest Hits (2013), In Last Nite (2003).
They got nominated and won several awards, locally and internationally, and their 2009 song, Last Nite Reloaded was released on iTunes, and it featured a different album cover, but the same tracks as the original. Their “Get Squared” album reportedly sold over 5 million copies and also topped the MTV Base chart for four consecutive weeks. It was also the album that gave Aituaje Iruobe, known professionally as Waje, who was credited on the album for her vocal contribution to the “Bizzy Body” and “Omoge Mi” tracks, some popularity in the early days of her career. Their other albums, Game Over, Danger topped chats, sold millions of copies and featured both local and international artists (Akon, Rick Ross, T.I, Jermaine Jackson, Awilo Longomba, Dave scott). Jude Engees Okoye, directed all those music videos.
In 2018, Mr. P won his first award Best International Male Artiste as a solo artist, at the International Achievement Recognition Awards (IARA). He has other popular singles like “Ebeano”, “WOKIE WOKIE” (featuring Nyanda), “Zombie” (featuring Simi), and “One More Night” (featuring Niniola). Recently, he dropped the video for his single “Follow My Lead”, which features Wande Coal.
Net Worth
The PSquare group, was regarded as the richest music group in Nigeria and even Africa as a whole. The brothers were once estimated to be worth at least $26 million. They appeared on the Forbes list of 40 most influential celebrities. Other sources claimed that PSquare was worth about
$20 million in 2017. However, since the group dissolved, their wealth has been split.
The made good use of the fame they got at the peak of their career, they acquired properties and also went into philanthropy. They shared a duplex in Omole estate, Ikeja, then they moved to a triple-story mansion on Banana Island, which cost ₦1.5 billion. The mansion is simply heaven on earth, with 3 floors that consists of six en-suite bedrooms, a huge bathroom, and a master suite. Of course, the living rooms are decorated with the best gadgets and expensive sculptures, and a large TV screen for the whole family to enjoy together. It also includes a washroom, a gym, movie room, music studio, etc. In January 2014, the Okoye brothers bought mansions next door to one another in Atlanta.
The SUV’s they got from Globacom in 2015, were worth ₦37 million at the time. Peter got a G-Wagon 2015 model, while Paul received a 2015 Range Rover. The Okoyes also had a fleet of beautiful cars, and also had their extended family living together with them. In 2017, after the split, Mr. P moved into another mansion in Banana Island, with his immediate family and according to Private Property Nigeria, Peter Okoye’s current house is worth about ₦1.
5 billion Naira, which is equivalent to about
$3.8 million. As of 2020, Mr. P makes lots of money from brand ambassadorial deals with, Adidas, KIA Motors Nigeria, Olympic Milk, and Globacom. He also has a music recording deal with the American record label Empire.
Mr. P is considered among the top ten richest musicians in Nigeria, and he is still one of the most expensive artists you can call on to perform at your event. His net worth in 2021 is about $11.8 million (N5.6 billion)
