Afrobeats
[9] David Drake writes about popular Nigerian music noting it is "Picking up on trends from the U.S., Jamaica, and Trinidad, they reimagine diasporic influences and—more often than not—completely reinvent them.
"[10] Afrobeats began to experience widespread global mainstream acclaim in the late 2010s, with artists achieving success across Africa, Europe, and North America.
[32] The beat in Afrobeats music is not just a base for the melody, but acts as a major character of the song, taking a lead role that is sometimes equal to or of greater importance than the lyrics and almost always more central than the other instrumentals.
So that's what I call it when I put them on my mix tapes.Afrobeats is less of a style like Afrobeat is, and more of an overarching term for the contemporary sound of African pop music and that of those influenced by it.
Prior to this, groups such as Trybesmen, Plantashun Boiz, and the Remedies were early pioneers that fused modern American influences from hip-hop and R&B with local melodies.
[49] However it was not until the launch of Choice FM's new Afrobeats radio show birthed and presented by DJ Abrantee in April 2011 that the genre gained traction and saw 'Afrobeats' trending for the first time in history.
DJs and producers like DJ Black, Elom Adablah, and C-Real, were also crucial in spreading afrobeats, often giving songs a burst of popularity after being played on their shows.
In 2011, Fuse ODG travelled to Ghana where he discovered the Azonto dance, and became inspired by hip hop-influenced Afro-pop and Naija beats.
[9] Such songs, and the Azonto dance craze, helped encourage Black Brits to embrace their African heritage rather than, as was the norm before, attempting to fit into British-Caribbean communities.
[56] “Shekini”, off of P-Square's “Double Trouble” album (released in 2014), played a role in increasing the visibility of afrobeats in the Middle East and North Africa.
[70] In 2014, a genre derivative of afrobeats known as afroswing emerged in the UK, which fused the sound with influences from road rap, grime, dancehall, trap, and R&B.
[104] In 2016, Nigerian Popstar Ayo Jay enlisted the help of American artists Chris Brown and Fetty Wap to release a remix to his single "Your Number".
[105][106] In 2017, Wizkid linked up with Chris Brown for a single titled "African Bad Gyal.”[107] In 2018, Swae Lee and Drake released "Won't Be Late", produced by Nigerian artist Tekno.
The album featured artists such as Burna Boy, Mr Eazi, Wizkid, P2J, Yemi Alade, Maleek Berry, Tiwa Savage, and Shatta Wale.
[114][115] Afrobeats artist Rema was the first Nigerian musician to land a song on former US president Barack Obama's yearly summer music playlist.
The song later became certified Gold in Canada and the U.S.[86][120][121] Nigerian artist Burna Boy also saw some success, performing to over 9,000 people in Brooklyn, and gaining over 11.2 million streams from the US on his single "Ye".
Lyrics of the song include “Twentieth of October 2020 / You carry army go kill many youth for Lekki / Na so water o, water runaway my eye / Nothing you go talk wey go justify the case of their murder.”[132][133] The political nature of these songs highlights how Afrobeats has been used as a political tool to express community distress and gain awareness for issues facing contemporary Africa, particularly Nigeria.
[137][138] A range of new artists, such as Rema, Fireboy DML, Tems, Joeboy, and Ayra Starr began to gain widespread popularity around the early 2020s, with a defining sound of R&B-infused, and sometimes trap-influenced, afrobeats music.
In January 2022, Fireboy DML was the first Nigerian artist to reach the number two position on the UK Singles Chart with his "Peru" remix featuring Ed Sheeran.
[141][142][143] In September 2021, Ckay became the second Nigerian pop artist to debut on the Billboard Hot 100 with his song "Love Nwantiti" which peaked at number one in India, the Netherlands, Norway and Switzerland, and gained popularity across TikTok.
[147] In March 2022, the United States Billboard announced it would be creating an 'Official U.S. Afrobeats Songs Chart' to track the sales and streaming data of afrobeat songs in the U.S.[148] In the year prior, Wizkid had spent a collective 27 weeks on the radio domination Chart with Essence, after which Kodak Black's "Super Gremlin" claimed the number one spot.
[154] Afro-Adura, also known as Afro-Trenches,[155] is a subgenre of afrobeats with a lyrical focus on spirituality and uplifting messages that emerged in 2022,[156] while also containing references to the harsh realities of street life and escaping poverty.
[160] Artists associated with the genre include Seyi Vibez, Tope Alabi, 9ice, Oritse Femi, Jaywon, Dotman, Barry Jhay, Bella Shmurda, Zinoleesky, MohBad, Asake, T.I Blaze, Magicsticks.
Other songs include "Mad Over You" and "For Life" by Runtown, “Away” by P-Square, "Medicine" and "Odoo" by Wizkid, "Gaga Shuffle" by 2Baba, "Mama" by Mayorkun, "Ma Lo" by Tiwa Savage, "Jeje" by Falz, and "Ur Waist" by Iyanya.
[187] Gospel singer and songwriter Isaac Blackman and DJ Derek "Slaughter" Pereira have both criticised the name and the implication that it's a new sound, particularly due to the fact that the origins of soca are African music to begin with.
[71] Producer Steel Banglez stated the key elements of afroswing were happy or dark chords that "make you feel a certain way", and that "drum pattern is the most important thing about this whole sound, it's the snare that comes on the third.
[198] Martin Connor, an expert in vocal melodies and rap analysis, described the characteristics of the genre as being "[..] technically in 4/4, what you will hear over and over again is this recurring pattern made up of three notes that are still repeated in the framework of a 4/4 time signature [..] You can hear the inspirations of Jamaican music in the rhythm except Jamaican music doesn't have a bass kick and the snare – that's hip hop, that's traditional rap.
[212][213] The German variation of the genre has been criticized by Ghanaian Stallion for the lack of actual African influences, with the only thing remaining being a dancey rhythm.
[214] The late 2010s saw the emergence of a new commercially successful Nigerian genre, Alté, which fused a wide array of influences from Afrobeats, rap, R&B, soul, dancehall, and others.
"[217] Other Alté artists and pioneers include Cruel Santino, Odunsi (The Engine), Zamir, Tems, Lady Donli, Nonso Amadi, Tay Iwar, 66ixx and Amaarae.
