From Juju Music To One Dance: Nigeria’s History With The Billboard Charts
by Phil Chard
Wizkid's meteoric rise over the past couple of years finally culminated in a feature with the biggest rap superstar of the moment, earlier in April this year. Drake's One Dance features both Kyla and the Nigerian prodigy; and has been sitting atop the charts for a steady run, now past 11 weeks. The success of the song is testament to both Wizkid's talent and an affirmation of how African artists have the ability to capture the imagination of a global audience.
The impressive chart dominance of One Dance has a range of people crediting Wizkid as the first Nigerian artist to be featured on the Billboard Charts. This serves as a great opportunity to revisit chart history and gain some much needed perspective on whether this is accurate. To delve into Nigerians' success on the charts requires us to ask an important question: Do we consider artists in the diaspora as representative of the continent's achievement; or do they owe their success to their adopted homes. This is essential because there are a string of artists either born in, or of Nigerian descent who have graced the charts before this momentous run.
Wale, The Washington, DC. born rapper was birthed by Nigerian parents and is a self-identifying Nigerian. He even had a scheduled appearance at The One Africa Festival that was recently streamed through Tidal. He unfortunately had to pull out owing to the birth of his daughter though. His tracks such as the Rick Ross and Meek Mill featuring Motivation (81 on Hot 100), Lotus Flower Bomb ft Miguel (70 on Hot 100) and most recently the Usher-assisted Matrimony (70 on Hot 100) have all been successful on the US Billboard Charts.
On the other side of the pond Joseph Junior Adenuga, popularly known as grime artist Skepta, was also born to Nigerian parents. Skepta's rise as leader of the grime artists trying to break the American market is well documented. His album Konnichiwa has served that purpose well with a feature form A$AP Nast on Ladies Hit Squad and production from Pharrell Williams on Numbers testifying to his cross-over appeal. His album entered the US Billboard 200 at Number 160... notching up another accolade for an artist of Nigerian descent. His association with Drake has also increased his following and their relationship was the catalyst behind Drake's involvement in Wizkid's Ojuelegba Remix. That collaboration eventually sprung into the creation of the dominant One Dance that has been atop the UK Billboard Hot 100 for over 11 weeks.
From one certified classic to the star of the 2015 breakout hit Classic Man; Jidenna managed to top the US Hot 100 at number 22. The American-based Nigerian crooner also recently held his first performance in South Africa to much fanfare. Tinie Tempah, another Wizkid collaborator on Mama Cita... is perhaps the most successful crossover artist from the UK of his generation. The artist, also of Nigerian heritage, peaked at number 12 on the US Hot 100 with Written In The Stars. In the same year his Wiz Khalifa-featuring Till I'm Gone reached number 90 on the charts, capping a great 2011 off for him.
From the commercially successful, to the more soulful and socially conscious come singers Nneka and Asa. Based in Germany and France respectively, they have both also seen their names on the Billboard Charts. Asa's album Beautiful Imperfection of 2011 peaked at number 3 on the World Album Charts. Her self-titled release of 2009 marked a splendid debut by also reaching number 3! In between these two releases Nneka's Concrete Jungle, of 2010, touched an impressive number 57 on the R&B/Hip Hop charts.
Moving onto one of Wizkid's fellow countrymen by birth: in 2014 2Face Idibia was featured on the World Music Chart making it at number 12. D'banj also had a stint on the charts with his contribution to Kanye West's posse cut Mercy that featured Big Sean, Pusha T and 2 Chainz and peaked at 13 on the US Billboard 100. D'banj had minimal input in the production of the track and doesn't make a lyrical appearance though. Coincidentally, much has been made of even Wizkid's negligent contribution to the final version of One Dance. An army of Nigerian fans took to social media to express disappointment in the artist not showcasing his talents with his own verse. For D' banj that solo moment of glory came when he charted with the energetic Oliver Twist. This song made onto the The Official U.K. Singles Chart, peaking at number 9.
Just in case this list of Wizkid's peers doesn't prove the relative success of his fellow countrymen on the Billboard Charts, harkening back is worth the effort. Seal was born in the early sixties to a Nigerian mother and Brazilian father in London, England. Fast forward to 1995 and his song Kiss From A Rose became a chart-topping sensation after featuring on the Batman Forever Soundtrack. This was definitely worth the celebration, but also left room for a specifically Nigerian-born artist to eventually make it to Number 1 on the Billboard. And if you're thinking that's where Wizkid comes in... yes, you're right. A glance at previous generations of artists also shows a long history of Nigerian-born musicians featured on the charts. Neither of these artists reached the summit of the charts though. The oft forgotten case of Dr Alban further cements Nigeria's long relationship with the Billboard Charts. Although born in Nigeria, he gained success in Sweden and later had his songs making waves in the UK. His cult classic It's My Life reached Number 88 on the UK Billboard Hot 100 in 1993 for example. There was someone who had paved the way even before this breakout hit though.
Sade first graced the Hot 100 charts in 1983 with her sultry Sweetest Taboo (Number 5), since then she has had repeated success with tracks such as, Smooth Operator, (Number 5) No Ordinary Love (Number 28), By Your Side (Number 78)and most recently Soldier of Love, which peaked at number 52, off her last album by the same name. Also debuting the same year as Sade; King Sunny Ade gained popularity and a steady following through the release of his debut album Juju Music. Incidentally, he is also responsible for the original track that serves as the basis for Moelogo's rendition of Penkele. This song came off Ade's album Synchro System, which peaked at number 91 on the UK Billboard 200... jointly setting the tone for artists from the West African nation to follow suit from 1983 onwards.
The Kuti family has also held a proud place on the charts with appearances across two generations by Fela, Femi and Seun respectively. Fela Kuti initiated the musical dynasty by appearing on the World Music Chart in 1986 with Live In Detroit. Femi Kuti followed suit firstly with his 2011 project Africa for Africa, and subsequently with 2013'S No Place For My Dreams peaking at number 12 and 7 on the World Album Charts respectively. Seun, the youngest son of the legendary icon Fela, made his debut on the same charts as Femi with his 2011 Egypt80-assisted release From Africa With Fury: Rise. The passing of the baton in the Kuti family is a blueprint with which Nigerian music can continue to thrive, without sacrificing its very essence.
The capacity for Nigerian artists to push boundaries in terms of musical accolades and crossover appeal is commendable. Wizkid's success is a timely reminder of the depth of talent the nation possesses. Though there have been several appearances before, Wizkid can be accurately credited with being the first Nigerian-born to go Number 1 on the Billboards. Hopefully more names will be added to this list in the coming months and years. With Tiwa Savage's recent alignment to mogul Jay Z's Roc Nation, Davido’s singing to Sony/RCA and Ayo Jay’s new deal coupled with the emergence of artists such as Moelogo and Tunji Ige, we're intrigued to see what the future holds!