Popular Nigerian singer Divine Ikubor, known as Rema, emphasized the importance of preserving afrobeats culture for Nigerian artists to maintain their leadership in African music.
Recently, there’s been a rise of the South African music genre, amapiano, in Nigeria’s music scene.
In an interview with Apple Music, Rema acknowledged amapiano’s appeal but stressed the need for Nigerian artists to uphold afrobeats’ influence across Africa.
He revealed that his latest album, ‘HeIs,’ drew heavy inspiration from afrobeats legends like Don Jazzy, Mo’hits crew, 2Baba, Olamide, P-Square, and Timaya.
“When creating my new album, I revisited the classics. I drew a lot from Mo’hits. You can instantly recognize a Mo’hits song in just the first few seconds. Don Jazzy’s production is phenomenal,” he explained.
“Olamide still drops those bangers that are instantly recognizable. P-Square, 2Face, Timaya—they all had their unique sounds. There was a time when afrobeats production ruled the clubs in Africa.”
“Amapiano is great, it’s hot right now, but we mustn’t stray too far from our afrobeats roots. We need to keep that energy alive.”
