Is the Nigerian government still trying to suppress Afrobeat music?
Yeah, because you can’t support something that is against you. They know what Afrobeat stands for, so it receives no support from the government or police. They support all these Nigerian hip-hop bands. It’s very cheap low-quality pop. Do you feel at risk when you perform there? What can you do? The movement is bigger than any one person. I don’t want to be quiet and have my kids feel the same in the future—but very likely my kids will face the same kind of Africa. But I will not give up still. I’m happy my dad was not just local. He influenced people all around the world. It’s hard to stop Afrobeat. It’s no longer Nigeria. It’s global. How do you feel when you meet musicians who have never faced these kinds of threats? I normally think every artist should have one or two songs on their album that speak to something, but it’s not a criteria for artists when I meet whether they’ll be friends or not. Every artist has their own calling—their own comfort zone. If they don’t want to be poli
