Hip-hop in Nigeria is that Judas in the midst of genres, the proverbial black sheep in the family that is supposedly the voice of the streets, yet the people never give a listening ear. It remains that art-form that is seemingly always in the news, a frequent trending topic on social media, especially when one rapper outside Nigeria is buzzing and everyone is chipping in thoughts and half-baked opinions yet home to unheralded artists who have been told they will never be successful.
While in America, Nielsen Music recently revealed that hip-hop and R&B had overtaken rock music to become the dominant music genre for the first time in America based solely on music consumption and the profile growth of artistes like JAY-Z and Drake, the reverse is almost the case in Nigeria where, outside a select few who have grown to become really successful, the future is looking uncertain for the genre.
It is without doubt that we have adequate talent to make the genre a force within our shores, rap music has just somehow never caught up with mainstream audience and it is not looking like that will happen anytime soon. Even though rap has had its moments and success stories, they hardly ever last, and aided by an unstructured industry, those moments have been like the rainbow, occurring at random occasions.
So that brings in the question of ‘How best to make rap music in Nigeria’? The likes of Olamide, Phyno, Reminisce and Falz (to a lesser extent) have found an indigenous path that has led to success but is that really the only way? Does that imply that a Boogey, Paybac, Alpha, Poe who will probably struggle to put a sentence together in their local language stand no chance of commercial success?
The qualities of being a commercially successful rapper has always been a highly debated topic due to the varying dimensions that comes into play. Fans, industry observers and critics have overtime pushed different arguments as to the best route to success for a rapper in Nigeria. For some section of fans, as long as the rapper possesses a good balance of lyricism, relatable storytelling, rhyme skills and solid delivery, then they’re willing to put down money every time for the music. But for others, melody and language plays a major role, and some have even expressed outright unwillingness to give a listen to young Nigerians who spit in pure English even if they are doing it right.
Wetin go make them know where your music come from in the long run,
Na the fusion of grammar, your slang and your mother tongue.
Rugged Man (Ruggedy Baba)
A music enthusiast who goes by the name Ayo (@oneoth3r) is of the opinion that “The ‘culture factor’ and ‘market’ is always lost in this Naija Hip-hop debate. First a label has to make money to run the business and you will likely sell more ‘pon pon’ songs than rap songs at any given time in Nigeria. If you are going to sell rap songs, it is going to have to stand out so much or it has to infuse a lot of Naija pop, but definitely it just has to appeal to a larger audience for you to make profit. So it is easily understandable why these labels will have 5 Naija Pop artistes as against 1 or 2 rappers, that is what the market demands.
He also believes that, Rap in Nigeria has never been for everybody or even a large percentage of the listening audience, “It is like how these ‘SoundCloud’ artists that are so damn good today, they also have to face market forces pushing them to do stuff that are more acceptable. Hip-hop had its time in the light when everything seemed to be going good and everyone was a rapper, but not anymore, what is that song that rappers got now that 50 people can rock to once the beat comes on or when they get invited for shows? And then there is the ‘hip-hoppers’ who will say you ‘switched up’ the moment you make pop music, like it is a crime.”
Ayo continues, “And the industry has gotten so big and competitive, it’s now harder to even blow as a rapper than it was back in the day, forget the internet. What’s the population of ‘hip-hop heads’ in the country? Not the ones who only vibe with Hip-hop songs, those that will go ahead and download or buy your album? Or those that will even subscribe to your Soundcloud or YouTube channels. How many of these rappers who do indigenous rap are also trying to blow? But you see, we don’t mention them in hip-hop chats, even when they stand a better chance to blow, why? Local rappers? We have to redefine what we expect from rappers based on what our society is.”
Music curator and blogger Tosin Adeda also recently stated a stand he has held for many years on Nigerian Rappers, “Rap has really come of age in Nigeria, but there is still a lot to learn and there is still room for improvement. Rap music was really never accepted in Nigeria at a time, it was so bad that rappers couldn’t even make a living off their music. Since the bulk of Nigerian music listeners are not core rap fans, it is not so wise a decision to make rap albums, and get mad when the majority do not buy it. You cannot force stuff down the throats of people. He then advises rappers to “Diversify, explore your talent, and channel your rap talent into being a musician, that way you will appeal to a wider audience, and make rap more acceptable.”
From the late nineties, when hip-hop through its most popular form of expression, rap music enjoyed a spread from the margins to the mainstream with prominent names like Eedris Abdulkareem, Trybesmen, Swat Root, 2 S Gino, Thorobreds, Ruggedman, Sinzu, Naeto C, M.I and the likes becoming household names at different stages of their careers. There has always been room for diversity as long as the artist connects with the audience, we have been endless cases of rappers who have towed the indigenous path and failed at it and there are cases of English-speaking rappers who have broken the ice occasionally.
There is really no definite template to succeed as an emcee in Nigeria and like legendary rapper Ice T said,
You let them tell you what to say and what to write, your whole career will be over by tomorrow night
Hip-hop is a musical form and never just as a commercial trend so rappers should be allowed to express themselves in the best form that they know. Rappers should also understand that their audience range is pretty small, so instead of dreaming about stealing a percentage of Wizkid’s fan base who don’t necessarily go after the music because they are assured the blogs and radio will play it, their focus should be on the core fans who will support them and go in search of their music on their personal platforms, while the fans should support the ones that appeal to them and not dictate to others that you don’t even give a chance how best to make their music.