Good read:

“If you are taking me to a club to listen to Western music, forget it, I wont go thereDon’t be deceived by this collabo[ration] thing, [be]cause they are trying to tap from usIf you don’t open the doors for us, we would shut our door.I don’t need to do a collabo[ration] with somebody before you can start playing my music thereWe play your songs in Nigeria, did you do a collabo with anybody?We don’t need no collaboration from no artist. We don’t need no Jay Z, we don’t need no Kanye West…”
– Psquare (Sept. 2011)


The above quote was made by Naija’s hip-hop duo Psquare in late 2011,just about same time Nigeria’s entertainment industry was basking in the euphoria of Mohit’s partnership with Kanye West’s G.O.O.D Music. At that time, some critics accused Psquare of trying to ‘biff’ Dbanj’s and Mohits’ breakthrough into mainstream American music, after all ‘e easy to sign music deal with a whole Kanye West?’
In January 2012, Akon (while in Nigeria) announced a surprise partnership between his Konvict music label and Psquare alongside two other Nigerian A-list Artistes. The buzz created by Akon’s announcement varied, many hailed it as a good development for Naija music, and others scorned Psquare, referring to their initial stance against foreign collaborations.
Fast forward to this day (April 22, 2012), the two distinct partnerships (Mohiits/GOOD music and Square records/Konvict) have begun to bear fruit.

Our Koko master D’banj has had a very rough ride with his Nigerian fans since the beginning of 2012. His first crime was his refusal to identify with the ‘masses’ during anti fuel subsidy protests; for that I cannot blame D’banj. As a Nigerian, D’banj has the right to support or not to support fuel subsidy removal, some of us including yours truly believe that the complete removal of fuel subsidy in Nigeria is inevitable on the long run, another discussion for some other day. Another crime D’banj committed or still commits (according to some fans) is his alleged hero worshiping of Kanye West, and his rumoured membership of Illuminati (if such a group actually exists). Nigerians, at least a lot of us are known to be very proud people, we still 'kiss Ass' though but there’s what I call ‘constructive Ass kissing’.

From my own point of view, Kanye West needed D’banj more than D’banj needed him. D’banj is a big star and a crowd puller in his own right, his fan base stretching from Nigeria to most of sub Saharan Africa and the diaspora. Even in the UK, D’banj’s hit track ‘Oliver’ was one of the theme songs used in ushering London’s New Years day celebrations. So what was our Koko master thinking? That breaking into America surpasses all that he has achieved thus far? Someone should have also advised D’banj on the ‘very subtle’ rivalry that exists between African Americans and native Africans. All ready some groups of African Americans are not happy that fellow educated ‘native black Africans’ are taking all their professional jobs and university spots. I once read an article which suggested that Nollywood (as crude as it may seem) is giving ‘black Hollywood’ a run for their money, especially in the Afro Caribbean markets. Modern Hip-hop music and certain sports seem to be an exclusive preserve of African Americans, did D’banj actually think that American Hip-hop music fans(mainly African Americans) will accept him with open arms?

As popular as Fela was globally, his more authentic international fans were not African Americans but rather ‘whites’ and other Europeans with a passion for world music. This is very similar to ... continue reading at: http://thestanleynwabia..com/2012/04/p-square-and-dbanj-youtube-verdict.html