On the 8 of June 2023, the Nigerian social media got lit up with comments made by Global superstar Davido in an interview he granted as part of the promotion for his most recent project Timeless. According to Davido, it was he and Wizkid that were among the first young artists to blow up and Burna Boy is a new cat.
“Wizkid and I were the first young artistes to blow up and it feels good seeing new cats like Burna Boy, Rema, Fireboy, Mayorkun and Asake kllling it now”
— BASITO (@itzbasito) June 8, 2023
– Davido pic.twitter.com/qBf5SnKg3n
This did not go down well as fans, stans and critics gave their opinions and things got heated up with everyone having a filled day on the digital space, especially Twitter. It got much that it transcended from the Nigerian Twitter space to the Ghanaian Twitter space and beyond. This issue generated a lot of discussion among fans, critics and music heads both online and in mainstream media.
I shot this in 2012. Over a decade later he is so relavant that he's still a "New Cat". pic.twitter.com/N8dmHPUx9m
— The Adasa Cookey (@adasacookey_) June 8, 2023
@burnaboylive dm ur pin…. im a big fan g
— Davido (@davido) August 21, 2011
But before I dig into the current matter, I would like to take a trip down memory lane, as the past has a place in this and to enable us to have a better understanding of why these guys go way back in time.
It is pertinent to note that Wizkid, Davido and Burna Boy were all part of the 2010s music generation which many music aficionados tag as the golden year of Nigerian Hip-Hop, and also it coincided with the popularity of Nigerian pop music that Wande Coal preset with his contemporary pop defining ‘Mushin To Mo’Hits’ album which came in 2009 and popularized by Wizkid with his fabulous teen pop swagger ‘Superstar’ album which is now a guideline for creating finesse pop albums.
Well let’s focus on Burna Boy, after dropping out of the University, he came back to Nigeria in 2010. He then returned to Port Harcourt and took up a year-long internship at Rhythm 93.7 FM. He would reconnect with Leriq, a multi-talented producer who would help him develop his style and establish him as a leading figure in the Southern Nigerian music scene. This allowed him to sign with Aristokrat Records with the help of his mother, and they would aid in the launch of two excellent mixtapes, Burn Notice (2011) and Burn Identity (2012), which critics hailed as outstanding bodies of work.
"Burna Boy used to go from the radio station where he was interning to the recording studio with a generator in the trunk of his car"
— GoldMyneTV (@GoldmyneTV) June 8, 2023
– Mama Burna pic.twitter.com/orSN2zg9Cc
He then moved to Lagos, after he had conquered the Southern music scene, to work with other young rising stars at that time which were Olamide, Wizkid, Flowssick and Davido. I should point out that Olamide and Wizkid had already put out great materials that were rocking the nation while Davido was just at the early stage of his fame and many young acts including Shizzi, Flowssick, Wizkid, Asa Asika, Sina Rambo, BRed and Burna Boy made cameo appearances in his hit song music video ‘Dami Duro’ released on January 8, 2012.
Burna Boy’s song “Like To Party,” which served as the lead single from his debut studio album L.I.F.E, which was released in 2013, marked his huge climb to fame in 2012 and as you know the rest is history.
For a long time, the Nigerian music industry was dominated by Wizkid and Davido with Olamide as a near-third force. Burna during this time was plagued with controversies, problems with the industry, and conflicts with other well-known people like Mr. 2Kay and Uju Stella Johnson that led to a run-in with the Nigerian Police. He had to leave the country because of all the issues for things to calm down a bit. Then he started a run of touring. This helped him greatly because he was reasonably successful, especially in South Africa.
Burna’s major international breakthrough came in 2018 with the release of Outside which ranked third on the Billboard Reggae Albums chart, becoming the first to do so since L.I.F.E. The album’s lead hit “Ye” finished the year as the most popular song in most Nigerian media’s year-end lists. So far, he has released great bodies of work like ‘African Giant’, ‘Twice As Tall’ and ‘Love, Damini’, his latest project. He has won numerous awards including a Grammy, recognitions and he recently just sold out the 80, 000 capacity London Stadium, the home ground of English Premier League side, West Ham United.
According to popular OAP, Victor Velmo, Davido was right to call Burna Boy a ‘New Cat’ on the global scene but he was wrong to put him in the same category with Rema, Fireboy DML, Mayorkun and Asake. As that was a big disrespect to Burna Boy.
Sharing more insights on this, music journalist and host of the Afrobeats Intelligence podcast, Joey Akan in an interview with Ghanaian media personality Kwadwo Sheldon broke down the history that Burna, Davido, Olamide and Wizkid all share and the implications of Davido’s statement. He also highlighted how Burna Boy became the official third force in the Nigerian music industry and the major global ambassador for Afrobeats.
In a not-so-surprising move, other celebrities used this as an opportunity to bear their minds on the matter. These celebrities included Iyanya, Yung6ix, Samklef, BRed, Cynthia Morgan and Burna Boy’s sister Nissi Ogulu reacted to the ‘New Cats’ comments.
“It was Wizkid, Olamide and Young6ix before it was you. We were the youngins of that time”
— BASITO (@itzbasito) June 9, 2023
– Young6ix pic.twitter.com/yuM9YPBnYL
The two streets kids that started the game. Others joined them. Samklef dey talk am as e be. pic.twitter.com/UUGkhjLdoM
— EVERYTHING SAMKLEF 💎 (@SAMKLEF) June 8, 2023
“The first time I met Burna Boy, he was in Port Harcourt, he was running after me and Davido’s car”
— BASITO (@itzbasito) June 9, 2023
– B Red pic.twitter.com/rw7gCEbENW
Nissi Ogulu reacts to ‘New Cats’ comment.
— 🐬 @𝗼𝗻𝗲𝗷𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗯𝗼𝘆 (@OneJoblessBoy) June 8, 2023
She is Burna Boy’s sister. pic.twitter.com/I95GXjA6dk
Well, Controversies and beefs have always been a big part of what makes the show, in the world of show business pop. It unintentionally merged with the industry’s culture and way of life. Due to our inherent competitive nature, people will always try to outdo one another in any given circumstance or endeavour. It has in some ways helped the human race endure and advance. However, it is amplified in entertainment. It encourages creativity, creates opportunities for rivalry and notoriety, and most importantly it keeps things interesting in the world of glitz.
I am happy, for how far we have come as people and culture, in the world of music. But as we celebrate all this bliss and greatness we should not forget to remember those who did not make it to the global stage. Joey Akan elaborated more on this via his tweet.
As we celebrate and fight over the ones who survived to this era and have led the Afrobeats expansion.
— Joey Akan (@JoeyAkan) June 9, 2023
I hope we also celebrate those who didn't lead, but ensured that our music culture stayed rich, layered, flavourful, and enduring.
Shouts to the ones who didn't do it first,…
Till then, enjoy…
Well detailed. Weldone