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Who is Oslo Ibrahim, really? Even he had to pause and figure that out.
It sounds like a simple question, but for any artist trying to build something that lasts, it’s a loaded one. For Oslo, the past few years have been a blur of fast decisions, shifting public perception and learning how to pivot when plans fall through.
This year, though, he’s ready to answer. His latest EP, Top 5, feels like his way of reintroducing himself, not just as a content creator, but as a musician first.
“In terms of mentality, the real Oslo is still the same kid from Sumatra who moved to Jakarta to get his music out there,” he told me.
A shift in circumstance
Oslo first made waves in 2018, eventually landing on the map with I Only Dance When I’m Sad, his 2020 debut album. It earned him both an AMI Award nomination and nods from senior musicians, while also making alternative pop feel fresh again for local mainstream audiences.
Looking back, Oslo said the early hustle didn’t feel like much at the time.
“But now I realize I’ve been through a lot,” he said.
“You only really feel the weight of it after the fact.”
Then came what he calls a “shifting of circumstances”.
Just as his music was picking up traction, the world moved online, and then paused altogether. He’d imagined 2020 as a breakout year, only for the pandemic to derail his momentum.
“Every time I felt like, ‘This is it,’ something would happen and I’d have no control,” he said.
With live gigs off the table, Oslo leaned into social media. He grew an audience on TikTok through a quirky segment called “Top 5”, where he ranked everything from pop culture moments to oddly specific life observations.
Over on Instagram, his blend of offbeat captions and moody photos gave him even more visibility, but not necessarily for his music.
By 2022, Oslo was back onstage, performing at as many festivals as he could. But the comeback was short-lived. His second album, Head Head Head, was delayed and didn’t drop until late 2024. Meanwhile, the festival circuit that had exploded post-pandemic began to fizzle out.
“I don’t know why, but 2023 felt like I was stuck,” he admitted.
“It was the total opposite of the year before, and it happened fast.”
The reintroduction
That’s why 2025 matters. Oslo is still recovering his lost ground from Head Head Head, while also wrestling with a new reality: To many Indonesians, he’s now better known as a content creator than a musician.
Enter Top 5, the EP. With five tracks and a title borrowed from his viral series, it’s part tongue-in-cheek and part course correction. Oslo wants people to hear the music, and hear him, again.
“People get the best sense of who I am when I perform live,” he said.
“Not from social media, not even from streaming. Live is where it clicks.”
And sure, the tracks do sound built for a stage. The EP moves through a range of moods, anger, longing, love, with sharp guitar work, catchy synths and Oslo’s smooth, almost conversational vocals.
The standout, “Alone Together”, looks back on the simplicity of earlier days.
“I missed the time when I didn’t have to overthink everything,” he said.
“It’s a conversation between me and who I used to be.”
Right now, he’s preparing for a tour and already teasing a new album. And while Oslo might never fully define who the “real” Oslo Ibrahim is, he seems okay with that.
“I don’t know what that feels like,” he said with a grin. “Maybe that’s a good thing.”
