If Patrick Okogwu seemed overwhelmed by his success, he has every right to be. The past two years have seen him move from an unknown rapper to an arena-filler, picking up Brit awards and Mercury nominations along the way.
He didn't so much take the stage as land on it – shot up from a trapdoor, neon tentacles dangling down his back. Behind him, a full live band added a rockier dimension to Let Go, one of many tracks to be aired from his debut Disc-overy.
Hardly lacking in self-belief, Tinie was soon telling the crowd "I wanna be like Jay-Z; I'll be rapping to you lot when I'm 60." You wouldn't bet against him, either. While other rappers are busy bragging about how many times they've been shot, he was thanking his mum and dad for bringing him up properly. 50 Cent, he ain't.
An acoustic session, performed from a stage in the centre of the crowd, provided a welcome change of pace but little to suggest that 'Tinie Unplugged' would be a wise career move.
Chris Martin is on a speed dial. The Coldplay frontman regularly calls with advice on crafting the follow-up to Tinie's Brit Award-winning debut album, Discovery, which sold 1.3 million copies since its release a year ago. He has even entertained royalty.
Prince William and Kate Middleton went backstage after Tinie played Radio 1's Big Weekend, signaling that the performer has most definitely left the UK underground for the international pop A-list, parlaying grime club culture into a multi-platform brand whirlwind with a Nike footwear collaboration in the works and (already) an autobiography, My Story So Far.
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Not that A-lister approval is Tinie's priority. Respect closer to home matters more. 'I've definitely done something that's made my mum and dad forever proud,' says the 22-year-old, whose God-fearing Nigerian parents named him Patrick Chukwuemeka Okogwu Jr. His father, formerly a barber, now a social worker, and his mother told their four children that they had a '20-year start' on their immigrant parents' generation, so they best not squander the opportunities afforded them.
They are justifiably thrilled by the triumphs of their fiercely ambitious eldest. With a middle name that translates loosely as 'God is Great', and educated in a succession of Catholic schools (Tinie has nothing but good things to say about his time in academia), he is the well-tailored, well-mannered, well-brought-up exemplar of modern British music.
'I don't want to achieve less than my mum and dad,' says Tinie, who marked signing his EMI record deal in October 2009 by presenting his parents with an outsized, lottery winner-style cheque. His sister Kelly has just completed a sociology degree at Brunel, Marian is in her final year studying law at Leicester's De Montfort University, and Kelvin, six years younger than Tinie, has started college. 'Every generation that comes from this family has to do better than the last,' says Tinie.
Discovery
*Tinie released his debut single "Pass Out" with Parlophone on 28 February 2010, with it entering the UK Singles Chart at number 1. Selling just over 92,000 copies, making this his first number 1 which it remained for two consecutive weeks.
*Tinie would later perform "Pass Out" on 25 June 2010 at Glastonbury on the Pyramid stage with Snoop Dogg. Tinie then announced his second single, "Frisky", which was released on 6 June 2010 entering the UK Singles Chart at number 2.
*Tinie supported Rihanna for four dates in May on her 10-date UK tour with Tinchy Stryder and Pixie Lott.
*Tinie released his third single "Written in the Stars" on 19 September 2010. This again charted at number 1 in the UK Singles Chart selling over 115,000 copies in its first week, making it his biggest-selling single to date. The song also went on to chart in a number of other countries.
Tinie went on to team up with Swedish House Mafia for his fourth single "Miami 2 Ibiza" which was released on 1 October 2010. This went on to reach a peak of number 4 in the UK Singles Chart and his first number 1 in the Netherlands Mega Single Top 100 chart. He released his long-awaited debut album, Disc-Overy on 4 October 2010 which featured all his previous charted singles.
*On 11 October 2010, he kicked off his first UK tour which was supported by Chiddy Bang. He went on to win his first 2 MOBO Awards in October. Tinie also featured on the Tinchy Stryder single "Game Over" which was released on 15 November 2010. This reached number 22 on the UK Singles Chart.
*On 25 December, Tinie released his fifth single "Invincible" featuring Kelly Rowland, which peaked at number 11 on the UK Singles Chart. "Wonderman", featuring Ellie Goulding, was released and was the fifth official single.
*Tinie joined Usher on the European leg of his OMG Tour in January 2011. Tinie was also nominated for 4 Brit Awards making him the most nominated artist at the awards.
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