ID Cabasa, the Nigerian music producer, has dismissed the Jamaican reggae icon Buju Banton’s deprecatory view of Afrobeats.

Last month, Banton, who is one of the well-regarded artistes in Jamaican music, described Afrobeats as a “shallow and unsubstantial music genre”.

The 51-year-old, born Mark Anthony Myrie, argued that despite its global recognition, the genre does not spotlight the struggles of Africa, unlike the politically charged and culturally rooted messages of Reggae and Dancehall.

In a chat with TheCable Lifestyle and Nigerian Guardian, Cabasa, 49, addressed Banton’s criticism of Afrobeats, suggesting the Jamaican “lacks understanding of the genre’s language and style”.

The music executive highlighted the genre’s depth and substance, citing the quality of music from artistes like Burna Boy, BNXN, Olamide, and Asake.

Cabasa, the founder of Coded Tunes, the record label that brought Olamide, 9ice, 2Shotz, Reminisce, Lord of Ajasa, Ajayi Brovas, 2Phat, Seriki and Banky W to the limelight, also taunted Banton, saying his disapproval might have stemmed from the fact he got carried away with the “genre’s beat”.

“Buju Banton does not understand… can he speak our language? No,” he said.

“You know, when you go online, Nigerians are the most sarcastic people in the world. So when you don’t understand our sarcasm, when you don’t understand how we tell our stories, you will think there’s no story to it.

“Now, these guys, they present truth in a very simple way now… and because your (Banton) own generation sang and you were saying so many things, you think you are deeper than them.

“For me, depth is actually your ability to understand what’s supposed to be complicated and to break it down.

“I think one Kenyan proverb said that ‘if it takes you so many words to explain something, probably you don’t understand it’.

“So, these guys, they say stuff. You listen to Burna, you listen to BNXN, that we call Buju. You listen to Olamide, you listen to Asake. Are you going to tell me that there’s no substance in what Asake is doing?

“So, a lot is coming in. That you don’t understand it doesn’t mean that you should just criticize it. I think he is falling in love so much with the beat, which was why he said what he said.

“But we know when people say there’s no substance to it, we know it’s a fallacy. There is substance to it but people need to understand what these guys are saying.”

Cabasa spoke on Thursday at the memorial lecture of Denis Joseph Slattery, the late cleric, in Lagos.

The Slattery memorial lecture was organised by the Old Boys’ Association of St. Finbarr’s College at the Civic Centre in Victoria Island. The music executive is a member of the association.

The memorial was attended by notable persons including Donald Duke, former governor of Cross River, ex-footballer Segun Odegbami, and actor Patrick Doyle.

Earlier this month, Tems, the Grammy winner, also stressed that Afrobeats is meant for “vibes and enjoyment”, adding that “the climate of Nigeria calls for it”.

Testimony Jaga, the Nigerian gospel singer, has given Portable a three-day ultimatum to apologise to the preacher he slapped.

The ‘Zazoo Zeh’ hitmaker was heavily criticised on social media on Monday for slapping the man who he claimed was preaching close to his bar.

Jaga, while joining the chorus of condemnation against Portable, said he should have reported to the right authorities if the preacher’s actions were wrong.

In a video shared on his Instagram page, the gospel artiste claimed to have received divine instruction to advocate for the preacher.

He also warned Portable to issue a public apology within three days or face consequences.

“I’m giving you three days to apologise to that man,” he wrote.

“If that man Portable slapped is doing something wrong, can’t he call the law enforcement agencies to arrest him?

“Even if he does not like what the man was doing, he could have easily chased him away not slap him. That is somebody’s father, husband and uncle.

“If the pastor was a famous person who uses security guards, would he have slapped him? It is because the man has no one.

“I’m not against Portable, he might have done it out of pride but if he realises what he did, he should go and apologize to the man and make a video.

“That’s a mockery of someone’s God. Telling the man to go and call his God, is mockery. He has called his God and that’s why someone like me is talking now.

“God has told me to fight for the man. Who are we to judge anyone?”

Dammy Krane has petitioned Kayode Egbetokun, the inspector general of police, over his lingering dispute with Davido.

The feud between the pair started in October 2023 after Krane called out Davido on social media, claiming he owed him for songwriting contributions.

Krane also accused the ‘Assurance’ hitmaker of sabotaging his record deal with Sony Music.

In response to the allegations, Davido labeled Krane “ungrateful” and claimed he received no payment for their collaborations. Davido also mentioned that he provided shelter and support for Krane when he was homeless.

Since then, Krane has continued to attack Davido on social media; even accusing him of being involved in the death of his friend Tagbo Umeike. Tagbo died from alleged alcohol poisoning in October 2017.

Davido dismissed claims and threatened to sue Krane for “defamation of character and cyberbullying”.

In a letter posted on his social media pages, Krane accused Davido of several wrongdoings while addressing five key concerns.

The singer alleged that Davido and his allies are threatening his life. He also called for the re-opening of Tagbo’s death case.

Krane pleaded with the inspector-general to help lift the restrictions on his bank accounts, which he claimed made it difficult for him to access his funds.

The singer also appealed to Egbetokun to get Davido to “pay me all the money he owed for the song ‘Pere’”.

He claimed Davido agreed to pay him $500,000 for their collaborative song but has refused to pay him.