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‘You lack understanding of Afrobeats’ — ID Cabasa replies Buju Banton

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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”.

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Phyno rejects Olamide comparison, says they’re brothers

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X (formerly Twitter) users every so often pit artists against each other to drive engagement or ignite a popularity contest.

On Friday, October 4, 2024, a user with the handle @TheDamiForeign posted images of Nigerian indigenous rappers, Olamide and Phyno with an open-ended question thrown to the public.

The post read, “When it comes to rap, who’s the GOAT? Phyno, Olamide.” Not long after, it began to attract comments from netizens. Some argued that both acts are relevant and phenomenal in their own way. Others pitched their tent with either of the two.

However, the ‘Do I’ crooner was displeased on seeing the post and wasted no time in expressing his disapproval.

Responding to the post, he wrote, “Yo!!! Tf is wrong with u guys for God sake .. stop putting me up against my brother or anybody else for that matter . Do your banter with someone else .. na ala adi agba unu.. wtf.”

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Wizkid, Davido’s feud, strategy to remain relevant, says Portable

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Controversial Nigerian singer, Portable, has weighed in on the ongoing feud between music stars Ayodeji Balogun a.k.a Wizkid and David Adeleke a.k.a Davido, accusing them of using their rivalry to stay relevant in the industry.

The recent clash between Wizkid and Davido began on October 1, when Wizkid posted a cryptic tweet that many interpreted as a dig at Davido this was after Davido teased a snippet of his first single for 2024.

The feud escalated quickly, with both artists exchanging insults and personal attacks on social media.

Wizkid had also planned to release the first track of his highly anticipated “Morayo” album on the same day.

In a twist, Davido’s associate, Kayode Yajaur, popularly known as Black Tycoone, took a jab at Wizkid, seemingly mocking the delay in his album drop. He tweeted, “Tell your Daddy to drop an album already.”

Unfazed, the Grammy award-winning singer responded by throwing shade at Davido’s camp, writing on X, “P***y boys dropping mid again,” before adding, “Una don tire! Make una go rest small!”

Although Wizkid refrained from directly naming Davido, fans were quick to interpret the post as a clear shot at the ‘Fem’ crooner.

In an Instagram post, Portable criticized the duo saying “using your brother to shine” instead of focusing on their own music.

He opined that their songs are no longer selling well, and they are relying on social media drama to promote themselves.

“Don’t use your brother to shine, shine yourself. Una songs no dey market again, na fight una dey use do promotion,” Portable wrote.

The singer also distanced himself from the feud, stating that he is not aligned with either Wizkid or Davido. “Me, I no dey for Davido. Me, I no dey for Wizkid. I dey for myself. That’s why I dey for those who dey for me,” he added.

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Davido shuns Wizkid’s rants, unveils second Puma collection

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Davido, the Afrobeats star, has unveiled his second collection with sportswear giant Puma at the brand’s flagship store in New York.

The partnership, announced last year, has yielded two successful collections — the first in April — with the latest featuring sportswear items such as t-shirts, sneakers, jackets, and bags.

At the launch event, hosted by Rolling Stone reporter Mankaprr Conteh, Davido shared his humble beginnings, saying his initial goal was to have his music played on Nigerian radio.

On the second collection, the singer said: “You know the first collection, we were just testing the waters. Because it was a risk for them. Yes, people love my music, but it is different from people love your music and people buy your products”.

The development comes at about the same time when Wizkid reignited their rift — after Davido announced his first single of 2024.

The ‘Made In Lagos’ hitmaker also taunted Ademola Adeleke, Davido’s uncle who is governor of Osun state.

Responding to one of Davido’s supporters, Wizkid claimed he declined the deal Puma offered him because “they could no longer afford to pay me”.

”U idiot! I turned down Puma cos they could no longer afford to pay me cos I wanted more! Don’t need dat! Way bigger than every artiste u just mentioned! Not jealous ! love em all…With ur dirty ass shirt! Idiot!” Wizkid wrote on X.

Wizkid argued that rejecting the offer showed he was bigger than the ‘Unavailable’ hitmaker.

Davido, who has been active on social media, appeared to have ignored Wizkid, with the former failing to respond to the latter’s tweets.

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Bodex F. Hungbo, SPMIIM is a multiple award-winning Nigerian Digital Media Practitioner, Digital Strategist, PR consultant, Brand and Event Expert, Tv Presenter, Tier-A Blogger/Influencer, and a top cobbler in Nigeria.

She has widespread experiences across different professions and skills, which includes experiences in; Marketing, Media, Broadcasting, Brand and Event Management, Administration and Management with prior stints at MTN, NAPIMS-NNPC, GLOBAL FLEET OIL AND GAS, LTV, Silverbird and a host of others

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