Street-hop artist Portable has opened up about failing in school and being written off by his own family before music turned his life around, saying he now provides for the same people who doubted him.
The Zazu crooner made the disclosure during a candid interview that has since circulated widely on social media, where he described his early years in blunt, unfiltered terms. He said his teachers and relatives considered him the least likely to succeed among his peers.
Portable Recounts Years of Struggle Before Music Breakthrough
Portable said he was regarded as the family’s worst academic performer, a label he carried through his childhood in Ogun State. He did not shy away from the description, repeating it himself in the interview.
He told his interviewer he sat in class without understanding what was being taught and that no teacher expected anything from him. Rather than dwelling on that period with bitterness, he framed it as the foundation of what drove him into music.
The singer said music was not a plan he had mapped out. He gravitated toward it because nothing else was working for him, and he found he could hold an audience in a way he never could hold a textbook.
Portable did not provide a specific timeline for when his fortunes shifted, but his mainstream breakthrough came after his 2021 collaboration with Poco Lee and Olamide on “Zazoo Zehh,” a track that exploded across Nigerian street music circles and social media before crossing into mainstream radio. His real name is Habeeb Okikiola.
His Family, Education Struggles, and the Reversal of Fortune
What has drawn the most attention from this interview is Portable’s claim that the same family members who dismissed his prospects now depend on him financially. He said this without apparent resentment, presenting it instead as proof that the conventional path is not the only one.
He stated plainly that he feeds them all, in his words, referring to relatives who once saw him as a liability. He did not name individuals or specify how many people he supports.
The comment taps into a wider conversation in Nigerian society about education as the sole measure of a person’s worth. Many people from low-income backgrounds have heard versions of the same story. School performance is often used as a proxy for intelligence, and those who struggle academically are written off early.
Portable’s trajectory, from Ogun State street corners to headlining concerts and accumulating multiple vehicles and properties, has made him a reference point in that debate, whether he intends it or not.
Street Credibility Remains Core to His Public Identity
Part of what has kept Portable relevant is that he has never distanced himself from his origins. His interviews consistently return to the same themes: poverty, rejection, and survival. This one follows that pattern.
He has built a fanbase that responds precisely because he does not sanitize his past. His records, his speech, and his public behavior all carry the texture of someone who came up without safety nets.
That authenticity has come with controversy. Portable has faced public criticism multiple times over his conduct, including altercations and statements that drew backlash. None of that has permanently dented his commercial standing.
His music career has continued to generate income through performances, streaming, and brand partnerships, though he has not publicly disclosed figures from any of those streams.
The Zazu movement he built around himself remains one of the more recognizable microbrands in Nigerian street pop. His influence on the sound and energy of that genre is visible in how younger artists position themselves.
Portable closed out this portion of the interview by saying he harbors no ill feelings toward anyone who underestimated him. He described his current position as God’s doing, not personal vengeance against those who doubted him.
The interview has continued to generate commentary online, with many viewers citing their own experiences of being underestimated in school or at home. No official statement has been issued by his management in response to the reaction.
