Nigerian Music - The Relay

I've always wanted to write about the Nigerian Music Industry & the musicians that make up the industry with a focus on a genre I call the "Nigerianized" Hip-Hop. If you are an observer like I am, you'll notice that there's some kind of ongoing relay race in the music industry, complete with baton and laps. You successfully receive the baton, your lap begins and you become the next star. You feature in shows all over the country sponsored by such giants as Nigerian Breweries, This Day, BAT, etc. Your songs are on top of the charts and they get played in every nook and cranny of Nigeria (including but not limited to Obalende, Ikeja "Under Bridge", Mile II, Ojota, etc). Unfortunately just like a real relay race, you must finish your lap and hand over the baton, at which point you fade away and the next star shines. It's as simple as that.

The prelimnaries of the race started around 1998. A group called "The Remedies" had started a musical revolution with the popular "Mi o shako mo" single and other artists like Plantashun Boys, Paul IK Dairo (Now Paul "Play"), Trybezmen, had followed suit with their albums & singles. There was a new feel to Nigerian music. Hip-hop beats, Rap and R&B were being blended with Nigerian languages and styles and Nigerians loved it. I shall not cover those early days. I shall break into the scene sometime in 2002, when the real relay race started.

At that time, the Nigerian music industry had already revolutionized and was looking promising. Co-incidentally, as was usual then, there was a nationwide ASUU strike and students were sitting at home. Invariably, there was many an unfavorable thought towards ASUU and lecturers. All these events set the stage. The timing couldn't have been better for the first lap & the first athlete/musician. Eedris Abdulkareem was on the tracks and the baton was the hit single "Mr Lecturer".

This song was an immediate success. Everywhere there were shouts of EEDRIS. All shows had the name "Eedris" as a star attraction and the song received massive airplay. It's appeal to students was further fueled by the ongoing ASUU strike. The video (viewable here) was released and it was just as good. Critics however had other things to say. His songs lacked melody, had no structure and his raps had all the "effizzy" but no skill. I agree with them, to an extent. Eedris was an "anything goes" kind of artist (which was probably his style). Now he could be rapping, next singing, next talking. Well, the finish line was in sight, and he had to hand over the baton - to RuggedMan

This guy came in with yabs and jabs. His primary targets were Eedris and Maintain. I don't blame him ... he felt they lacked talent and a reform was necessary. He was bold and didn't care about whose ox was gored. He even dissed the CEOs of Kennis Music (The autocratic Godfathers of the music industry at that time). Much of what he said was true, and the best part of it was he was a good rapper. I believe he's one of the best rappers produced by Nigeria. He suddenly became a hero and Nigerians loved him, but he had more enemies than friends, and so unfortunately, he did not have too long a hold on the baton ... and he didn't pass it to anyone in particular. The baton was left hanging for some time. Suddenly, in late 2003, the baton was claimed again ... By... Styl-Plus who debuted with their single "Olufunmi" (viewable here).

Now I've got to give it to these guys. They were good. Their blend of harmony and lyrics was a masterpiece. Stations jammed endlessly, request shows were filled with requests for "Olufunmi". Ladies named "Olufunmi" suddenly became popular. This was a much needed break in the industry. Just like "Mi o shako mo" set the old standard, "Olufunmi" set a new standard. I think Styl-Plus held onto the baton longer than anyone else in the industry. It was well deserved. They had set a standard so high it would be hard for other people to strike up a counter-attack. Not long after, they released a 4-track album and set about working on their next single "Call my name" to be released in Mid 2004. Around this time however, another artist had summoned courage to claim the baton. His name - 2Face Idibia.

2Face is probably one of the most natural & real musicians I've seen come out of Nigeria. No unnecessary "Phoneh", he spoke pidgin without "sending" anyone. No extravagant dressing or over mocked up scenarios for his videos. He was the kind of guy who would do his videos in the streets without any finesse. He was real. His trademark "Nothing dey happen" caught on everyone like Hay Fever, everywhere you went you heard "NOTHING DEY HAPPEN". He debutted with a full album "Face 2 Face", which was a plus for him. The hit track "African Queen" (viewable here) became immediately popular and received massive airplay. The height of his stardom was the MTV Music Video award which he received for "African Queen". A friend of mine who travelled to Uganda was thrilled when he heard the song playing and being sang by dozens of Ugandans. 2face was the star. The baton was his, and run with it he did. But he was not alone in his desire to run with the baton, and sometime in 2004, he had to pass it on. His lap was over, and P-Square came into the scene.

P-Square debuted with the single "Bizzy Bodi" (viewable here) which was released to radio stations. The song became an instant hit. Not only did it have all the musical excellence displayed by Styl-Plus, it had an up-beat party groove making it a natural for club and party DJs. It was jammed nationwide. Another hit song was "Get Squared". In addition, the guys could dance (something which Styl Plus didn't do much). Another plus was the fact that unlike Styl-Plus their release was a full album and the songs were all tight. The playlist was well arranged and their videos were good. P-square became the household name and they were heard far and near.

At this point Stylplus was in the close background wondering how the baton slipped out of their hands in the first place. Critics had said their songs were love songs with no real party groove. In addition they had not yet released a full album. Their first album was just a collection of 4 singles & 4 instrumentals and couldn't really be referred to as an album. I guess they got the message, and with these points in mind, they hit the studio again ... and out came their album "Expressions". Expressions was packed full. The hit song was "Imagine that". The album was well rounded, had enough groovy songs and was backed up with their great musical ability... For a while, the baton co-inhabited with two groups. Wherever you went, it was either P-square or Styl-plus. Radio shows even carried out polls to find out who was more popular. Websites ran with such titles like "Who would you prefer, Styl-Plus or P-square?" They deserved it. They had the tightest beats and songs. But all good things are bound to fade away. Gradually, they did and along came D Banj.

Now, frantically, I don't know what happened when this guy came in. He entered the scene with "Tongolo" (viewable here) and immediately became popular with his charade of slangs which ranged from "No long thing, kokolet, koko, run down, etc". In reality, his songs really couldn't stand up to his predecessors (PSquare and Styl Plus) in terms of musical ability and voice talents. He lacked the harmony of StylPlus and the precision of P-square. But what he lacked, he gained from other things. He prided himself in his ability to attact women and he didn't waste words in letting people know. "I don get degree for womanology" was the second line in his first song. He was also an excellent stage performer, and his friend and producer Don Jazzy's playboy style added more effizzy into his performances. He released a first album and then a second containg a remix of the first hit single "Tongolo" and his new single "Why me". Right now, "D Banj" is the name everyone is saying. Like a friend of mine once said, "D banj has banjed everybody". I agreed with her. Anyway, the baton is still with him.

Right now, the baton is getting warm, and it needs to change hands. The next star could be you. Hurry up. Nigeria is waiting for you!