Dio (Diorno Braaf) rocketed into his music career in 2007 at the age of 19 with his iconic feature on the hit single ‘Dom, Lomp & Famous’ by The Opposites. From that moment on, things moved quickly for Dio. His infectious energy, bravado, and undeniable talent swiftly earned him a prominent spot in the Dutch hip-hop scene. At the end of 2008, he released his debut studio album, 'Rock & Roll,' under the Top Notch label. The album was a massive success, featuring hits like ‘Aye’, ‘Baby’, and ‘Tijdmachine’. Dio won multiple TMF Awards and embarked on a successful album tour, finishing in a packed Alpha tent at Lowlands as the highlight.
In the following years, Dio released the albums ‘Benjamin Braafs Festival’ (2012) and ‘De Man’ (2015), as well as the EP ‘Venus’ (2017). He received a gold record for ‘We Zijn Hier’ and for his contribution to ‘Zulke Dingen Doe Je’ by I Am Aisha.
After 2017, things went quiet for a while, but a lot was happening behind the scenes. Dio overcame a writer’s block and created an album as an ode to rediscovering his creative freedom and unwavering confidence in his abilities. However, the album never saw the light of day due to an unfortunate incident where his car was broken into and his laptop, containing all the music, was stolen. With no backup, the album was lost. A long and challenging process of (re)production followed, resulting in various singles and the release of the ‘Opzij’ EP in 2023.
The release of ‘Opzij’ marks the beginning of a whole new chapter for Dio, showcasing his maturity as an artist and as a person. Still with the same bravado and energy, but now with a serious undertone and self-reflection as well, adding a new dimension of depth in his music.
