Joeboy, a well-known performer from Nigeria, disagrees with Burna Boy on his claim that most afrobeats musicians don’t write music with meaningful lyrics.
Burna Boy claimed that the majority of Nigerian musicians create songs “without substance” in a recent interview with Apple songs’s Zane Lowe, as reported by DAILY POST.
Joeboy, who recently appeared on the Zero Conditions podcast, refuted the Grammy-winning singer’s assertion.
In response to Burna Boy’s comment that [afrobeats musicians] lack substance, the presenter questioned: “For you as an afrobeats artist, how much balance do you do with living life? How much experience do you try to garner as an artist?”
Everyone has substance, Joeboy said in response. It simply depends on what resonates with individuals. People may think you are just having fun when you create a fast-paced, danceable music. or if your singing isn’t in English.
“I used to notice certain comments [on social media] when people would say things like, ‘Ah pinging!’ when someone was singing in plain English. What is the ping? because of his English singing?
“Every musician out there, just write in clear English if you want people to think you are an excellent songwriter. I guarantee that when they hear this, the fans will exclaim, “Oh, this guy is the best songwriter ever.” And they [fans] would say, “Ah! This one dey do lamba,” when someone sang in Pidgin.
There is no lamba. In reality, it’s still connected. It makes sense to me that not all types of music will appeal to you. But I can assure you that whoever has the capacity to conjure anything from nothing has substance.
