Meet the artistes redefining the sounds on the streets

Tunes that tingle the ears, tracks combining melodies and captivating stories of lore- poverty, hustle, drugs, love and lust and most of all Mama’s instructions and love, all these and more are the very basic surface of music that has travelled from the studio to radios in danfo buses to the ears of the street. Music has always and will continue to be auditory representation of the artist, the community it stems from and the persons listening to it and here in Nigeria no other genre defines what music is in that essence than Street Pop.

Street music unlike any other genre connects the listener to its origins, through street bred music the audience is made know the exuberance of street life, through lyrics bothering on parties, alcohol, women and the pursuit of pleasure whilst still reminding us that there are times where times are less vibrant, the melancholic times- tales of suffering and poverty, of a friend losing his life while trying to hustle for Mama, or of wrongs going on in the society. All these packaged in raw yet beautiful lyrics and delivered with sounds and melodies that can only be produced and found from the street. One of the major stars in Nigerian street scene represents the contrast well with songs like Party Next Door of his 2021 album High Tension 2.0 and World(Alternate Cut) both street anthems representing two sides of the same coin. The former, the artists sings about party and love while in the latter, he is more sober, more thought provoked as he wails about the numerous things wrong with the society he lives in and the signs of the end.

Street music in Nigeria goes far back, far back before Zino, before the Marlian craze, before Baddo and his red cup. It has been there since way back although in different forms. Acts like Danfo Drivers, African China, Baba Fryo amongst many others were in their own sense sampling reggae music and repurposing it for the Nigerian and at that time Ajegunle ear with a few extracts and of course adding a few ingredients that could have only been gotten from the background they had and the community they lived in. This style was “galala”. These artists stormed the industry with their galala style with lyrics inspired from being part of the poorest communities in Nigeria as well as the hardship they faced that was brough about by the government and the environment they lived in. The Eponymous track Danfo Drivers highlights many of these struggles laced with vivid and vibrant beats. However, the surge of these artists were hindered by the lack of higher infrastructures and access to better modes of operation and exposure, hence many could not go as far as their mates who at that time were living and making music in FESTAC, Lagos, which was then the creativity corner of Nigeria and just some kilometers away from Ajegunle, the abode of the then street artists. So although artists like African Driver and Danfo Drivers did not go as far as musical greats like 2Baba who was then known as 2Face Idibia and the radical Michael Jackson like prodigies, PSquare, they made their mark, their footsteps forever imprinted on the streets for many street artists to follow.

The daring move of the artist before them inspired many other uprising street artists, what led was a revolution like one had never seen in the Nigerian music industry. Street music had picked a new voice and that voice was hip hop. This era was marked by fast tempo beats, boisterous voices and indigenous raps and the headliners were the late but never forgotten Dagrin, Reminisce and the voice of the streets, Baddo, YBNL Mafia Olamide. These artists made a name for themselves with the use of rap to tell their stories. Bars that expressed their doubts, fears, dreams, hope and hustles and party jams that were extravagant and showed the lusciovness of street life, its hedonistic and self pleasing nature.

The tracks of these artists became street anthems, the way they dressed became the latest swag among their listeners-the red plastic party cups, the bandana behind the pockets, it was everywhere. Their slangs were on everyone tongues. Even people that normally were not raised on the street wanted to be a part of it, or at the very least observe this new phenom. They had the streets on a chokehold and rap was their weapon. The late Dagrin, was the leading voice up until his untimely death caused by a ghastly car accident. Using Yoruba and Pidgin, which was the common language that street artists employed in telling their stories. Albums like C.E.O by Dagrin and Olamide’s 2016 album named after his now successful record label, YBNL which had the track V.O.T.S where he became the self proclaimed and fan anointed new voice of the streets were monumental in the global acceptance of street music. Street music was going beyond the slums of Lagos and was beginning to cut across borders.

Then, like it always does and will continue to, music evolved, every genre was cutting new waves, finding and mixing both novel and already existing original sounds. Street music which represented the people could not and would not afford to get left behind. Rightly said, “Street music is what the people are listening to now”. This ushered an au courant and contemporary era of street pop, that although varied to an extent in its presentation from the former hip hop era, did well enough to stick to the beautiful and raw art of street music.

Marlian star-boy and verified hit maker, Zinolesky encapsulates what the new, more complete street artist in Nigeria is today. The talented singer and song writer since making a name for himself with freestyles, to quickly getting recognized by the Nigeria music audience and then a life changing label deal by fellow street artist and senior in the game, Naira Marley, who signed the then starlet to Marlian Records. Unlike his predecessor in the industry and label boss, Naira Marley and colleagues like Zlatan who rose to prominence with songs that survived majorly on their ability to spawn dance steps or how crazy the legworks would be ones or songs deep rooted in hustle culture or fraud like the duo’s colossal hit “Am I a Yahoo Boy” that was a catalyst for their insane rise to the top and sparked controversies regarding arrest by the EFCC, Zino was making a different path through party jams, insightful music, love and lustful themes, packed with soulful melodies and sounds from across Africa, especially the Amapiano, all these while still remaining true to the streets he came from.

Zino’s style and approach to his rendition of street music seems to be a common school of thought among numerous street artists in the industry today, with many opting for sweeter melodies and experimenting and fusing sounds from all over Africa rather than the then usual rap tracks used by the street artist a decade ago. Even icons like Olamide, notoriously known for his ghetto rap style, has to some changed the dynamics of his music. The switch in music released for public consumption can as well be attributed to a change in status. No longer the young Barigan hustler that needed to shout at the microphone to be heard, but now a Don in the music industry, still releasing hits and being charged with raising new and more exciting artists.

Street music has found its way from being a low class genre to a global music sensation. An ascension that has been brought about by the evident hard work and the hustler spirit in each of the artists, past and present who have continued to rep the streets no matter how far they go. With street pop starts continuing to develop and grab the reigns of the entertainment industry by the scruff of the neck, there’s no telling the limit of the reach of Nigeria street music. Artists like Asake and Olamide are already proving their worth internationally, with major concert sell outs, recognition and massive fanbases all around the world; it would not take too long for street music to be a major export for the Nigerian music industry.