Nigerian Music In 2011

By Emem Ema

As we rolled into 2011, the usual expectations, uncertainty trepidation and all hovered; I got asked severally what I thought the New Year would hold for the Nigerian music industry.

I felt an inexplicable excitement whether it was due to the fact that we had just ‘survived’ the millennium decade with a lot of pleasant surprises and I eagerly anticipated what this new one would hold or maybe there was something a few of us in the industry knew that we couldn’t wait to see unfold.

The year 2010 had been an interesting one by all standards; new music, new talent, new platforms, we lost some, the first ever world cup on African soil which music played a huge role in, certain sectors in the industry were beginning to rise from the dead (event production anyone?), and of course the promise; $200 Million Entertainment Fund!

Watching the trends in the music industry globally, you didn’t need a crystal ball to tell what the next frontier to conquer would be. So when I expressed my sentiment to the colleagues that asked what my thoughts were, I saidthe world’s eyes would be on Africa next in terms of music.

The music industry has in the last decade, grown in leaps and bounds starting with the younger generation creating a niche for themselves (check: Remedies, Plantashun Boiz,and Maintain) to the upgrade in music content quality, videos, packaging, paradigm shifts (KUSH, Trybesmen) and all; we have learnt to almost mirror the American (yes, I am being specific) music climate but infuse our own style and culture without missing a beat! This metamorphosis has led to our being called the music hub of Africa! Little wonder seven out of the ten biggest African acts out there now are Nigerian!

Lest I digress, notice how most hit songs on air now have heavy beats and bass lines? To be specific, heavily influenced African beats. Beyonce confessed that some songs on her new album ‘4’ had Fela’s influence in it; her first visit had some South African dance in its choreography, Nas and Damien Marley’s ‘Distant Relatives‘ album had some influence in it as well.

So, what would it take for an African talent to be ‘discovered’ by the Big 4? I’ll tell you:

Have a firm hold on your immediate market: After the recession and due to the fact that record labels started losing money when they focused on sales of plastic (compact discs) alone, the labels won’t spend so much money on ‘developing’ an artiste let alone one that is at least 8,000 miles away. If you can prove you are relatively popular, they know they have something to work with…a ready market, what this means is a huge following, presence or popularity. How many chart topping hits do you have? If they ‘googled’ you, what would pop-up (it had better be worth hitting that enter button after your name).

The Diamond amongst thorns: Do you have an interesting story; do you bring a different sound to the entire music landscape? Could you be the next Seal or Sade? Why is an Anjelique Kidjo/Nneka/Youssour or Baba Maal exciting to discuss and why are they getting rave reviews?They’re different! Most labels pride themselves in being able to identify the next best thing, how well have you made yourself standout from the flurry crowd? Case in point: 2face Idibia (he can easily be sold as – think Bob Marley meets R. Kelly) K’Naan, Amy Winehouse, Adele.

How Social are you? Any artiste who is worth their salt will be foolhardy to ignore the social media. In the last 5 years we’ve seen superstars emerge from YouTube etc. You doubt me? Justin Beiber! (50,000 views of a youtube video of your home made video recording, 20,000 followers on twitter won’t hurt either). Case in point: Justin Bieber, Greyson Chance (YouTube),  Lily Allen, Sean Kingston, Arctic Monkeys, Dane Cook (MySpace)

The Land is Green! Yes we are the most populous black nation in the world, we have amazing talent, and we know how to turn water into wine when it comes to our creativity however that’s not enough! The Big 4 (major labels) won’t dine with us with us just yet if we haven’t learnt table manners (if we don’t get our act together) fast. Have they been snooping around? Yes they have and from experience,as they have been here before they won’t jump headlong into this market without analyzing it and weighing its viability.Until we are able to create a conducive environment to nurture a proper industrydon’t expect to be signed to a XYZ (put the name of your desired major label) Records Africa just yet.

I ‘prophesied’ that we will see more collaborations between Nigerian acts and their western counterparts this year as well…we’ll talk about that later!

*Emem is a creative entrepreneur whose passion is to contribute sanity and expand Nigeria’s economy through an oft perceived ‘confused’ industry