The Nigerian rapper reveals how years of treatment, therapy and hospitalisation affected his creativity, mental health and music career before his gradual recovery
Nigerian rapper and singer Ycee has revealed that he has been living with bipolar disorder since 2020, opening up about a difficult six-year mental health journey that affected his creativity, personal life and music career.
The 33-year-old artiste made the disclosure during an appearance on the Afropolitan Podcast, where he reflected on his diagnosis, treatment and gradual recovery after years of battling the condition largely away from the public eye.
Ycee, whose real name is Oludemilade Martin Alejo, said the diagnosis came during the COVID-19 lockdown while he was living in London, a period he described as one of the most challenging chapters of his life.
“In 2020, I got diagnosed with a mental health condition, and that was during lockdown. I was in London, deep down into lockdown. I was in and out of the hospital for maybe 3 months,” he said.
The rapper explained that before his diagnosis, mental health was not a subject he had seriously engaged with, making the experience even more overwhelming.
“Before 2020, mental health was a statement that I hadn’t uttered before. Coming back to Lagos and getting into mental health in Nigeria, it was a very long six years,” he said.
According to Ycee, visa limitations eventually forced him to leave the United Kingdom and return to Nigeria, where he continued treatment through medication, therapy and repeated hospital visits.
The artiste described the recovery process as unpredictable, with periods of progress often interrupted by emotional setbacks.
“I was on medication, and I was hospitalised several times. I was dealing with therapy. So many things. Sometimes, it looked good. Sometimes, it just gets like really dark,” he said.
One of the most profound effects of the illness, he revealed, was its impact on his creativity and ability to make music, a skill that had always come naturally to him.
The rapper said the condition contributed significantly to his reduced presence in the music industry over the past few years and affected his ability to properly promote his projects.
“My last project was in 2021, ‘Love Drunk’, but I didn’t apply myself enough to push that because of the state of mind I was in.
The last single I released in 2022 as well, there was so much going on,” he explained.
The admission offers fresh insight into a period that left many fans wondering about the artiste’s relative silence following years of consistent releases and chart success.
Ycee rose to prominence in Nigeria’s music scene after the breakout success of his hit single, Condo, which earned him two nominations at the Nigeria Entertainment Awards in 2015.
He later consolidated his place in the industry with popular tracks including Jagaban and Omo Alhaji.
His growing profile led to a recording deal with Sony Music in 2016, although the partnership ended in 2018 following a turbulent period. He subsequently parted ways with Tinny Entertainment in 2019.
Reflecting on life after the diagnosis, Ycee said one of his greatest struggles was accepting that he could no longer return to the person he was before his mental health challenges began.
“The last four years have just been me trying to know who I used to be, but at a point, I just realised that that boy was not coming back, so I had to look forward,” he said.
The musician added that signs of improvement only became noticeable towards the end of 2024.
“I think by the end of 2024, things started looking up again, and I started feeling more like myself,” he said.
As a secondary but powerful highlight, Ycee’s candid disclosure contributes to ongoing conversations about mental health awareness in Nigeria, where discussions around psychological conditions have historically been limited by stigma and misconceptions.
The artiste said the darkest aspect of the experience was not necessarily the hospitalisations or medication, but the effect the condition had on his artistic process.
“The darkest part of everything I went through was how it affected my creativity. You know, because my making music is something I find quite naturally.
I would be in sessions, and my brain is just foggy,” he said.
When asked directly to identify the condition he had been battling, the rapper responded simply: “Bipolar disorder.”
The revelation marks one of the most personal interviews of Ycee’s career and provides context to a challenging period that coincided with a noticeable slowdown in his musical output.
For fans and fellow creatives, the disclosure offers a deeper understanding of the realities many people face while managing mental health conditions, even as they strive to maintain demanding careers in the public eye.
As Ycee continues his recovery and creative journey, his openness is likely to resonate with many Nigerians navigating similar challenges and contribute to broader conversations about mental health support, awareness and acceptance.
David Okere is a journalist and contributor to Freelanews.com, covering business, governance, public affairs, and human-interest stories with a commitment to accuracy, balance, and public interest reporting.
