Nigerian rapper and singer Ycee has shared an emotional account of his struggle with bipolar disorder, revealing that the condition has shaped much of his life and career over the past six years.
The 33-year-old musician made the disclosure during an appearance on the Afropolitan Podcast, where he spoke candidly about being diagnosed in 2020 while living in London during the height of the COVID-19 lockdown.
According to the artist, the diagnosis marked the beginning of a long and challenging chapter that affected both his personal wellbeing and professional ambitions.
Diagnosis Came During COVID-19 Lockdown
Ycee, whose real name is Oludemilade Martin Alejo, explained that he was isolated in London when his health deteriorated.
He recalled spending several months moving between hospitals as doctors worked to manage his condition during one of the most restrictive periods of the pandemic.
The rapper admitted that before receiving the diagnosis, mental health was a subject he knew very little about, making the experience even more overwhelming.
Return to Nigeria Brought New Challenges
After his time in the United Kingdom, Ycee said visa limitations forced him to return to Lagos, where he continued receiving treatment.
Although he was back home, adapting to life with bipolar disorder proved far from easy.
He described the years that followed as a lengthy process of learning about mental health while navigating treatment in Nigeria.
The musician said his recovery involved medication, regular therapy sessions and multiple hospital admissions as he worked to regain stability.
Living Through Highs and Lows
Reflecting on the experience, Ycee said the journey has been emotionally unpredictable.
He explained that there were periods when life seemed to improve, only to be followed by moments of intense emotional darkness.
Managing the illness required patience, ongoing medical care and a willingness to accept that recovery was not always straightforward.
Despite the setbacks, he continued searching for ways to rebuild his life and career.
Music Career Put on Hold
Ycee acknowledged that his diagnosis played a major role in his reduced musical output over recent years.
He revealed that his 2021 project, Love Drunk, did not receive the promotion it deserved because he was struggling mentally at the time.
The same challenges also affected the release of a single in 2022, as he found it difficult to fully engage with his work.
The rapper suggested that fans may not have realised the extent of what he was facing behind the scenes while his public presence diminished.
Creativity Became the Hardest Casualty
Among the many effects of bipolar disorder, Ycee said the impact on his creativity was the most painful.
Music had always come naturally to him, but after his diagnosis, he frequently found himself unable to think clearly during recording sessions.
He described experiencing mental fog that disrupted the creative process and made songwriting far more difficult than it had once been.
For an artist whose identity has long been tied to making music, he said losing that creative spark was one of the darkest aspects of his illness.
Learning to Accept a New Reality
Ycee admitted that for years he tried to reconnect with the version of himself that existed before his diagnosis.
Eventually, however, he realised he could not simply return to the past.
Instead, he chose to focus on building a new future rather than chasing the person he once was.
He said signs of improvement finally began emerging toward the end of 2024, when he started feeling more comfortable with himself and noticed his overall wellbeing improving.
Publicly Naming His Condition
During the interview, Ycee confirmed that the mental health condition he has been battling is bipolar disorder.
His openness adds to a growing number of public figures speaking candidly about mental health, helping to encourage broader conversations around conditions that often remain misunderstood or heavily stigmatized.
From Breakout Success to Industry Challenges
Ycee first gained nationwide recognition with his hit single Condo, featuring Patoranking, which earned him two nominations at the 2015 Nigeria Entertainment Awards.
He went on to release several successful songs, including Jagaban and Omo Alhaji, establishing himself as one of Nigeria’s prominent rap artists and receiving nominations at major award ceremonies such as The Headies and the All Africa Music Awards.
His career has also included significant industry changes.
After signing with Sony Music in 2016, he departed the label two years later following a difficult relationship.
He subsequently ended his association with Tinny Entertainment in 2019, marking another turning point before the health struggles that would later reshape his life.
Today, Ycee says he is looking ahead with renewed optimism, hopeful that improved health will allow him to reconnect with his passion for music while embracing a new chapter in both his career and personal life.
