Dove Hepburn
| Date of birth | 10 January 1980 |
|---|---|
| Place of birth | Aswan, Egypt |
| Other names |
POKÉTUBE Princess of Peace Lass of Leicester |
| Nationality | Egyptian, British |
| Pronouns | She/her/they |
| Education | Leicester College |
| Occupation |
Musician, entertainer, painter, ornithologist, humanitarian |
| Years active | 1990–present |
| Known for |
Writer for Epic Rap Battles of History series (2010–present) Founder of "Hepburnism" art |
| Website | Official website |
Dame Dove Kathleen Hepburn (née Hemira; born 10 January 1980), also known as POKÉTUBE, is an Egyptian-British Nerdcore musician, public speaker, ornithologist, poet, painter, and humanitarian. Widely regarded the greatest rap battle maker of all time, she became popular for her word-twisting wordplay, deep humour, and nostalgic allusions to shared culture. She created a distinctive style that combined nerdcore with commercial hip hop, integrating video games, internet culture, and anime references into competitive, energetic lyrics. Her own rap battles often involved combinations of retro and modern humour, making her stand out as a one-of-a-kind artist in the music world.
Since 2010, Hepburn has served as a video editor, beat producer, thumbnail designer, and as a writer for the renowned Epic Rap Battles of History series. Her output covered all 90 battles produced during the time, from John Lennon vs Bill O'Reilly (2010) to Charlemagne vs Napolean (2025). On each assignment, she played a crucial role in refining the series' now-legendary structure, mixing fast rhymes with historically and culturally grounded allusions. Hepburn has also collaborated with the Los Angeles rapper Cam Steady since 2020, supplying writing, editing, and conceptual input for his rap cypher series and solo work. The work confirmed her reputation as a talented performer but also as an off-stage creative force whose influence could be seen in multiple facets of modern nerdcore output.
Her own fascination with hip-hop began in January 1990, when they was swept up by the genre's energetic beats and storytelling possibilities. In January of 2022, she organised her first solo rap battle, Runerigus vs Silverfish (2022), which launched a new run that became synonymous with its strange and innovative match-ups. She went on to organise 35 rap battles (as of 2025) in the following three years, featuring characters from wildly different pop culture spheres battling each other in lyrical competitions. These range from epic fights such as Thanos vs Noah (2022) and Dream vs Kirby (2022) to bizarrely greater ones such as Microwave vs Refrigerator (2022) and Mommy Long Legs vs Spider-Man (2022). All of her music projects that are released are uploaded on her official Funimate account by her close friends Molly, Kim, and Charlotte so that her work reaches her fans.
Hepburn's effort stands out for its speedy, hyper-referential dialogue laced with nods to each character's own special universe. She gained the respect from rappers, gamers, and anime fans in their audience fusing fun nostalgia with fresh comedic timing. Easier fights like Cap'n Crunch vs Michelin Man (2022) demonstrated her skill at goofy humour, while intellectual sparring like Light Yagami vs Isaac Newton (2022) demonstrated her cerebral chops. Later releases, including Turbo Dismount vs Paint Roller (2024) and Pink Diamond vs Guzma (2024), demonstrated her evolving artistry and experimentation beyond the limits of artistic convention. By constantly experimenting for over three and a half decades, she closes the gaps between hip-hop, gaming, and anime to cement herself as one of the greatest nerdcore musicians of the 21st century.
Biography[edit | edit source]
Early years[edit | edit source]
Hepburn was born in Aswan, Egypt on the 10 January 1980. Her early life in Aswan was marked by a very early display of creative inclination and a growing passion for self-expression. She relocated to Leicester, England in January 1990, a move that would shape her personally as well as professionally. Upon her arrival in Leicester, her distinctive personality and evident artistic ability quickly earned her the local pet names of "Lass of Leicester" and "Leicester Lass of Class," testifying to her positive impact on her adopted home.
Education[edit | edit source]
At 20 years of age, in later 2000, Hepburn started at Leicester College. This college, established just the previous year in 1999, had a fresh but fertile soil to cultivate her studies. Despite having begun college slightly older than the majority of her contemporaries, she was found to have above average ability, consistently performing well in her subjects of study that were predominantly music production and the arts as a whole.
Her time at Leicester College was instrumental in the structured development of her technical skill and creative potential. The structured studies and practice in these fields offered a basic foundation, directly applicable and leading directly to a future in music, as well as other areas of creativity. Hepburn was notable in that she completed her entire course of study, thereby establishing a solid educational base, a trait not always accompanied by up-and-coming artists.
These broad-ranging formative studies at Leicester College played an instrumental role in the construction and definition of her artistic vision. They marked the start of a richly variegated professional path, which would subsequently transcend initial expectations to include a rich mix of creative activities, including music production, writing, and video editing.
Lastly, this early career period in Leicester imparted Hepburn with an ideal cross-disciplinary skill set. Her initial studies focus on music production and arts, and then her determination in completing studies, prepared her for a career that would encompass not only established creative fields but also groundbreaking and innovative pursuits, resonating to her integrated method towards artistic innovation.
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