Senegalese-American music mogul, Akon, has stirred massive reactions online after claiming responsibility for the early international rise of Nigerian Afrobeats superstar, Wizkid.
Speaking on a recent episode of the Bagfuel Brigade podcast, the Lonely hitmaker boldly stated that Wizkid was just a “local Nigerian star” before he signed him to his label in 2008 and helped polish his sound and image for global appeal.
According to Akon, his influence not only boosted Wizkid’s career but also helped shape what the world now celebrates as Afrobeats. He revealed that he invested time and resources into Nigeria’s music scene during the late 2000s, which he believes laid the foundation for the genre’s global breakthrough.
“In 2008, I spent my time in Nigeria developing what you see today as Afrobeats. And all of them can attest to it,” he said.
“Wizkid was the first [Nigerian] artist we signed officially at that time. And then we went on to sign a group called P-Square, which was the first [Nigerian] group that made it internationally.
“Wizkid was just the local Nigerian star before we touched him and it opened up to a bigger market,” Akon added.
While acknowledging he doesn’t want to take “all the credit,” the superstar maintained that without his input, the Afrobeats genre might not have seen the global explosion it currently enjoys.
“I wouldn’t want to take credit for all of it but I can tell you that if we didn’t do what we did, Afrobeats would still have been in the same position it was when we got there [Nigeria in 2008]. That I can tell you 100 per cent.”
Akon further claimed that beyond talent, many Nigerian artists at the time lacked the business acumen and structures necessary to scale globally.
“I brought the business side of music to Afrobeats because all they [Nigerian artists at that time] knew about was the creative [side of music]. There was no business, no infrastructure, none of it attached to it,” he explained.
The comments have sparked mixed reactions, with fans and music pundits debating Akon’s role in Wizkid’s rise and Afrobeats’ global evolution. While some acknowledge Akon’s influence, others believe the Nigerian music wave was inevitable, with or without foreign co-signs.
