HEAUX HOPERA
YOU ARE INVITED TO AN EVENING OF THE UNEXPECTED
About
Babatunde HipHopera is an internationally celebrated baritone and the creator of Hip Hopera, a genre he pioneered by fusing the grandeur of classical opera with the rhythm and culture of hip-hop. Born in Nigeria and raised on Dr. Dre before discovering opera at 16, Tunde came to classical music as an outsider and never lost that perspective. It is what makes him singular.
In 2018, a video of Tunde blending Rossini’s Largo al Factotum with Kendrick Lamar’s HUMBLE went viral, amassing over 10 million views and earning coverage from TIME, Classic FM, Billboard, BET, ABC News, and more. What started as a moment became a movement. Hip Hopera is now a recognized genre, and Babatunde is its architect.
A classically trained opera singer, Tunde has performed with Los Angeles Opera, Detroit Opera, Utah Opera, and Portland Opera in standout roles including Matias Reyes in the Pulitzer Prize-winning opera The Central Park Five, Escamillo in Carmen, and Valentin in Faust. He has also appeared on Britain’s Got Talent, bringing Hip Hopera to a global television audience.
As a touring artist, Tunde has headlined sold-out tours across the country, and his shows are part concert, part storytelling, and a live experience unlike anything else in music today.
Off stage, Tunde has built a social media following in the millions by pulling back the curtain on opera and sharing its history, its Black pioneers, and his honest take on the industry. He has given audiences permission to love classical music on their own terms, and in doing so has brought thousands of people back to instruments that had been sitting in their attics for years.
Babatunde HipHopera is not just changing who listens to opera. He is changing what opera can be.
King Noire-
King Noire is an accomplished and award-winning writer, porn performer, artist, Master Fetish Trainer, MC and global activist using the proceeds of his album ‘Music Is My Weapon’ to build a school, fresh water well and medical clinic in Guinea Bissau, West Africa. He has used his position in the adult industry to develop an ethically sound molded toy in partnership with Lust Arts, raise consciousness around kink safety for people of color, and offer sex education to audiences ranging from college students to medical providers.
King has taken the Adult Entertainment Industry by storm, partnering with Jet Setting Jasmine to form Royal Fetish Films. The company has celebrated three industry Fetish Awards for Orally Yours (2016), Collared in Shadows (2017), and Sacred Sex (2018); and King winning the esteemed award of Male Fetish Performer of The Year(2022) & Best Male Cam Model(2022). King has also added Best Pansexual Performer for UrbanX(2023 & 2024). King brings his directorial and editing skills to each set, creating art and beauty in spaces that have been long neglected for people of color in Kink.
King Noire has appeared on The Daily Show podcast with Roy Wood Jr., has been a repeat guest on Whoreable Decisions, and made a cameo on Netflix’s series Bonding. King will also be featured on 2 episodes of Fuse’s Sex Sells.
King has been featured in articles for GQ, Esquire, Ebony, PaperMag, The Huffington Post, Business Insider, and Playboy. He also penned a piece on Black Love in the footsteps of one of his heroes, James Baldwin. King has been called a Renaissance man and a Renaissance fornicator. He brings his art to both in profound, prolific, and profane ways.
King is also very proud of his contributions to the music industry. His start in entertainment, as a hip-hop artist under the name Hasan Salaam, achieved Best Underground Song of the Year and Best Live Performance for the Underground Music Awards. He has also been featured musically on MTV UK, Fuse, NBC and CSPAN. He has performed internationally with music veterans, Outkast, Damian Marley & Redman and continues to add to his music catalogue with the launch of The Royal Fetish Experience.