For those who don’t know him, Tobe Nwigwe is a fast-rising MC from a small Houston suburb. The SWAT, as its known, is an acronym for Southwestern Alief, Texas. For the past two years, Nwigwe’s climb can be credited to his YouTube and Instagram series, #GetTwistedSundays. The videos find Tobe crouched on the floor of his home in the same long white socks and activewear he wore during his days as an NFL hopeful playing football for North Texas, getting his hair twisted by his now wife, Fat. As the GetTwisted visuals roll on, Nwigwe sits solemnly between Fat’s legs and spits about faith, family, fortitude, and functioning through life in the ‘hood over original instrumentals from in-house producer, LaNell Grant.

Nwigwe has been dropping videos for nearly four years, even before the current series. In recent videos, Tobe has escaped the confines of his living room sofa and transformed his visual content with intent. He and his team have the uncanny ability to combine heritage and hometown into unique, artisan craftsmanship on the screen. Visuals for single, “Tobe From The SWAT” from his 2017 album of the same name, is case in point. Just last year, Nwigwe released two exceptional projects, The Originals. and More Originals. Many of the singles from the two releases were brought to life in outstanding fashion. With his wife Fat as the choreographer, and producer Nell on the boards, Tobe utilizes all of the talent and natural beauty of his surroundings into exceedingly high-quality music videos through expert execution and planning.

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While Tobe’s videos are stellar, it’s his vision and voice that propel the stories to life. Nwigwe’s freestyle on Sway In The Morning from nearly one year ago is another studious example of his skills behind the mic, pulling up on listeners for a solid seven minutes. Capitalizing on a guttural voice, infectious cadences, and sideline to sideline storytelling, Tobe Nwigwe is here to stay. The Texas MC’s latest visual for his loosie, “Bountiful,” is yet another example of Tobe’s excellence.

“Bountiful” opens up with a bird’s eye view over a tribal dance and drum-line interpolated between a young boy getting bullied over a bludgeoning, bass-heavy instrumental from producer LaNell Grant. Tobe enters, sitting on his throne to tell the story of youth, “Ouu, I’ma just rap / Aight, truth be told I was only lame / Until ’round about, mmm, fourth grade / Then I dropped a bully, and they began to treat me like I was King Arthur with the sword raised.”

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As Tobe continues, the motive behind his message is revealed as the 31-year-old raps about who he is writing to, and for. “Aye, look, blessings came when the storm raged / My message low key be ordained / I spit it for slaves who adore chains / But find it hard to recognize the door frame / To every exit to the mindset subdued by impoverished customs / I’d assume now they’d be reluctant / To show and prove they moves counterproductive.”

Tobe’s preachings are tied between, the historical relevance to both his Nigerian and American roots. As the video continues, Tobe trades in his traditional African garb for a cruise session in a Houston hoodie and a red Cadillac to match. Now, both his lyricism and the visuals become an effective collision of these two worlds. Tobe extrapolates, “Live by the G-code / Since I was wee old / I stay true to principles / Plus I grew up with gangstas / that had more lean on ’em / than Mike Jack’ in ‘Smooth Criminal’ / I seen murder / I seen a pimp take a lost thot and convert her / I seen the servers / I don’t want problems, but if it’s beef, I’m a burger.”

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Rolling in between shots of Tobe’s two worlds, the Houston-area MC is now featured predominantly next to his wife, Fat, as the video rolls on. His relationship with his wife can be found in lyrics throughout Nwigwe’s work, and none more powerful than his most recent, beautifully executed effort, “Ode To Fat,” featuring David Michael Wyatt. “Bountiful” continues the tradition of keeping it close to home, as Nwigwe delves into details about Fat, his mother, and faith’s role in keeping all of his worlds together.

Tobe spits, “Every flow be a sermon / I got raps like a turban / Me take a loss with the bars is something that y’all will not see like Germans / I be in the hood like churches / Mama got us out the hood with nursin’ / Never spit a bar that’s uncertain / ‘Cause I talk to God / He make every word connect / Feel like I’m speaking in cursive / I tend my garden for the serpents / Me and Fat be cleaner than detergent / Started posting pictures of my Fatty / My DM had all these lil’ harlots emerging / And I see you boys like Fat pics on IG / Just know she look better in person / And she mine, mine, mine though.”

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Tobe Nwigwe shows why he is one of the most exciting artists that belongs on more radars.