Given the variety of growing stars from Nigeria, the phrase “the future of Nigerian music is in safe hands” has persisted in musical discussions around the world.
The ongoing global invasion of Afrobeats is not solely fueled by the presence of known performers; its most effective weapon is the talented group of up-and-coming stars.
In terms of chart success and stream success, several of them have already eclipsed the majority of the so-called superstars.
arrival of young stars
The youth were not always the majority in the Nigerian music business.
In the 1970s and 1980s, when Fela, King Sunny Ade, Onyeka Onwenu, and other influential figures ruled, it was only open to mature men and women who were in their 30s and 40s.
Young, brilliant stars like 2Face, P-Square, and D’banj entered the Nigerian music business in the new century. Kids couldn’t figure it out until the 2010s, though.
In Nigeria, Wizkid is likely the first young artist to acquire Justin Bieber-like fame. He made his music debut in Nigeria in 2010 with the smash hit “Holla At Your Boy.”
The soundtracks to many Gen Zers’ childhoods were Davido’s “Omo Baba Olowo” and his 2011 debut album, aptly titled “Superstar.” The pair would go on to influence a generation of young Nigerian musicians.
Gen Z takes over
By the turn of the year 2019, it was fairly certain that Gen Z—the demographic of those born between 1997 and 2012—would rule the decade.
The emergence of Gen Z musicians in Nigeria has been fueled by their fusion of musical genres and sounds as well as their usage of cutting-edge platforms like Tiktok to gain viral popularity.
Thanks to the forethought of the Gen Z musicians who devised a fun approach to persuade their friends to consume afrobeats globally, Nigeria is witnessing a shift from analog to digital music marketing and consumption.
The newly released ‘Afrobeats: Journey of a Billion Streams’ report from streaming juggernaut Spotify revealed that since 2017, the genre has seen a spectacular rise of 550 percent on the site. Afrobeats received over 13 billion streams in 2022, with 35% of its listeners belonging to Generation Z.
These cutting-edge Gen Z musicians have continued to demonstrate that the future of afrobeats is unquestionable: They are game-changers in terms of their musical styles, fashion sense, and social media persona. They have done this by incorporating foreign sounds into their songs to appeal to a global audience and by hosting challenges on short video streaming platforms like Tiktok as a marketing strategy.
Leading Gen Z musicians’ faces
Rema
Rema, real name Divine Ikubor, made his 2019 debut on the Nigerian music scene with his self-titled extended play (EP) while dressed like a Disney hero and sporting a teddy bear and mask.
