Hillary Dennis Udanoh (born December 13, 1999), known professionally as Odeal, is a British-French singer-songwriter of Nigerian origin. He rose to prominence with the release of the song "Soh-Soh" which peaked at 3 on the UK Afrobeats Singles Chart, peaked at 12 on the Billboard U.S. Afrobeats Songs, and peaked at 42 on the Nigeria Official Top 100 Songs.
On 2 September 2025, Billboard named Odeal as its African Rookie of the Year.
Early life
Hillary Dennis Udanoh was born in Germany to Igbo Nigerian parents. His early childhood was marked by movement across Europe and Africa: at the age of three, he relocated to Spain, and around age six, his family settled in the United Kingdom. He recalls that, even as a toddler, he preferred singing along to his mother's CDs over watching cartoons, and she encouraged his passion by gifting him a toy microphone that became an early creative tool.
At age fourteen, Odeal moved to Awka in Anambra State, Nigeria, to attend boarding school and live with his father. There, he discovered a local youth club recording studio and spent his free time crafting his earliest original songs, inspired by R&B rather than the mainstream African pop around him.
