The rapper Tinie Tempah has said he will finally visit Scunthorpe – 16 years after he announced to the world that he had never been to the town in his number one hit Pass Out.

His decision follows a campaign by fans, led by Ben Johns, a Scunthorpe resident, who carried a cardboard cutout of the artist around the Lincolnshire town and encouraged people to pre-save Tempah’s new album.

Johns had contacted Tempah on Instagram asking “what it would take” to get him to visit his home town, and the artist replied saying “I’ll do you a deal brother”, adding that he would pay a “long awaited visit” in return for 5,000 pre-saves of the album The Night’s Not Dead.

On his TikTok account, Johns said it would be “an iconic moment in British music history, bringing Tinie Tempah to Scunthorpe”.

The 2010 single, with the lyrics “I been Southampton but I’ve never been to Scunthorpe” spent 65 weeks in the charts, with two weeks at number one.

Johns’s cardboard cutout – with a QR code link to pre-save the album – toured Scunthorpe, visiting Scunthorpe United’s ground, John Leggott sixth form college, and going on a night out on the town, drumming up pre-saves along the way.

In a video posted to social media, the London-based artist, whose work is a mix of rap, hip-hop and grime, said he would be holding up his end of the bargain and would be heading to Lincolnshire soon.

“I can’t wait to come down to Scunny, and meet the wonderful people of Scunthorpe,” Tempah said. “It’s been long overdue, see you soon guys.”

He also credited Johns for leading the campaign, saying: “First and foremost I want to give a massive shoutout to my brother Ben. I’m so grateful for all your hard work. Pass Out might have put Scunthorpe on the map, but you’ve made sure that no one ever forgets Scunthorpe.”

Speaking to BBC Radio Humberside, Johns said: “I think it’s really going to be a special night when Tinie Tempah turns out and he performs in the town and he gets people excited.”

He added: “To see everybody get involved with it, from Scunthorpe United to John Leggott college, loads of different people around the town, as well as people on the internet who aren’t even from Scunthorpe but want to see it happen, it’s just been amazing to see.”

In a statement, Tempah’s management said: “We are looking forward to planning something special for the incredible fans based in Scunthorpe.”