NEW GENERATION NIGERIAN MUSICIANS, KNUCKLE HEADS? - an article by Vicky Awuzie.

What in the world are those knuckle-heads of new generation Nigerian musicians singing? Has anyone listened to the new breed of Nigerian Hip-hop artists lately? If you have, have you really paid attention to their lyrics? The fact is the lyrics are so vulgar and so much in your face that you could not have avoided hearing the bold idiotic words. These new breed of musicians have completely abandoned their accents, social ills in Nigeria, their names and so much more to emulate American “gangsta” rap. The more I listen to their music, the more rattled I become. Don’t get me wrong. I’m definitely not ancient, but the nonsensical unacceptable lyrics they sing must be brought to their attention. They are copying American rap stars without really knowing what the culture in America is. Some of them have never lived here in America, yet they sing in American ghetto slang.

The new wave for them is that they now refer to themselves as Niggas. Do they really know what Nigga means? I bet you if they did they would NEVER utter that word. Do they know that even though the rap musicians in America refer to themselves as Niggas it is partly because of a historical reason and that will take an entire page to explain before one could begin to make sense out of it? Do they know that people are taken to court for calling someone a Nigga in America? Are they aware that the DJ’s don’t allow that word (Nigga) on the airwaves, it gets bleeped out? Please STOP the use of that word in your songs. You don’t know the history behind it.

As I ponder about these new bone-head musicians, the only thing I can think of is that this generation of musicians are non-educated and are exposing their ignorance in their music. One of them proudly named himself Dat-Nigga-Raw. What in the hell was he thinking? Did his mama or papa call him Dat Nigga Raw when he was a little boy? Dat Nigga Raw, please change your name. If you have any relatives in America they would advise you the same. Do all of you realize that your song with the bad words does not get played in our social scenes here in America? When I first received Dat Nigga Raw’s CD, I was taking my two boys to a basketball game, while in the car I decided to play the CD. As the song began and the Nigga words came on, my son asked me if he heard right or was it a Nigerian word. I told him that he heard right. He was disappointed that a Nigerian musician could say such word. He asked me if he knew what it meant.

D’bang is another one who uses the "F" word as if that’s all there is in his brain. In one of his songs, he says “I like the way you’re f**k me". What is wrong with all of you, even the rappers in America who you are emulating will not say such things on a record. By the way, who is 9ice, that’s another one something is wrong with? What’s up with the hooded sweatshirt on the cover of his CD? It wasn’t cold in Nigeria that day or was it? Was it 20 or 30 degrees in Nigeria? Take it off; it’s too hot to wear such outfit in Nigeria. Also, if you want to throw or shower money on your video, please use Nigerian currency (Naira) not dollars. And the fake jewelry all of you are wearing? Give me a break. It is a “gangsta” statement in America and it means something. It signifies a gangsta’s wealth. It also signifies how many records a gangsta has sold and much more. Duncan Mighty was wearing one on his CD cover. P-L-E-A-Z-EEEE. What does yours signify, sir?

One annoying observation that I encountered is the fact that the music from this generation lacks originality. Almost all the beats sound American. I’m really surprised that Nigerian journalists have not hammered on the lack of originality of this generation of musician. What is also surprising is that the songs get played on Nigerian radio stations with the vulgar words on them. Common, DJ’s bleep them out before you play them. We have young people listening and you can’t corrupt them like that. Would you be happy if your child said the “F” word because they heard it on the radio?

Fela, Sunny Okosun, One World, The Wings, Bongos Ikwe, The Apostles, Victor Uwaifo to mention but a few were all originals. They acknowledged the social ills in Nigeria and the rest of the world, but their beats remained true to African flavor. Fela Kuti and Sunny Okosun(RIP) were world famous because of their originality. I gave a radio DJ friend of mine a CD from Nigeria to play on his show to give this nameless artist some American exposure. After listening to it he called me and said – “Vicky, there’s no originality, it sounds like any music an American rapper could have sang.” So, there goes the exposure I was counting on for this youngster. Listen, people in America want to hear that African touch in African music. They are not interested in you if you sound like 50 Cents, The Game or Beyonce.

The point is, stop following American rappers sheepishly. Be true to yourself. The same goes for all of you wearing long boots, hooded sweatshirts and much more in Nigeria. That line of clothing is made for very cold climate. Do you understand? P-square, 2 Face, African China, Jeremiah gang, Timaya are ok. I haven’t heard any of the rubbish I hear from the other artists in their songs. For instance, when P-square says “do me, I do you” he did not use profanity, but we all knew what he meant and that is how it should be. I’m watching out for Desperate Chicks, Yahoozy and so many more. The Desperate chicks tried to drift, but they are ok. Ladies, as long as you stay classy, you will be ok. Just never cheapen yourselves. As I said, I’m very civilized, as a matter of fact, I’m a DJ and I’m happening. So, I know what I’m talking about. These new generation of musicians must come to their senses or risk not having their music played on the radios and social events.