What Upcoming Artistes Need To Do To ‘Blow’ In Nigeria

Nigerian music industry is arguably one of the most competitive and challenging entertainment industry in the country with loads of new artistes trying to register their name everyday.

You can imagine the kind of frustration one feels when you put all your energy into your music but then turns out fruitless or appears like you’re doing nothing.That’s mostly the kind of feeling upcoming artistes in Nigerian go through while trying to climb the spotlight.

With my little experience in the promotional part of the Entertainment industry, however, proves there are some things that upcoming artistes could actually do to increase their chances of reaching their potentials.

It’s not hundred percent guaranteed, but if followed carefully, will surely increase your presence as an upcoming artiste.

Join me below as I highlight the steps to be taken to counter why upcoming artistes will never blow in Nigeria (as I wrote in my recent article).

CONSISTENCY

As an upcoming artiste in Nigeria, consistency is one of the most important aspect of your career, it is the KEY! You need to have a clear plan on your materials; songs and music videos you plan on releasing on a yearly basis.

I know most of you must have been wondering how the likes of Olamide, Wizkid, Davido, 2baba, etc, all have been able to stay afloat and relevant over the years?! It’s nothing more than their consistency! These artistes are very hardworking even more than the way we see them.

According to a recent interview with Wizkid and 2baba, Wizzy made it known that he has over 300 songs recorded and only picked a few from it to make his Ep and his coming album. You can imagine!! So if an artiste as big as Wizkid is still very much hardworking at recording new music, what stops you as an upcoming from doing the same or even more?

HIGH SELF-ESTEEM

Imagine yourself as a guy who wants to toast a lady, if you do not have enough confidence to walk up to her or even have a conversation, you know you’re ‘gented’ as a popular slang says.

Your music career is the girl you want to toast, you have to build up enough confidence in yourself to make your transition as a music artiste a smooth one. Show confidence to your listeners that you have what it takes to be a superstar by appearing as one.

I’m sure you remember Adekunle Gold’s story on how he got signed by Olamide to YBNL? If the “Sade” singer had not believed in his craft, do you think he would have attracted the attention of Olamide? Similar stories with the likes of: Fireboy, Rema, Mayorkun, just to mention a few.

Remember, if you don’t believe in yourself, no one will!

YOUR UNIQUE STYLE

It’s normal as an upcoming artiste to have an A-list artiste you look up to, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you should do things exactly the way he/she does his/her thing. You need to create your own style which will make you stand out amongst others.

Let’s take Burna Boy as a case study. The self-acclaimed ‘African Giant’ had been working his way up for over 7 years now but only got the right recognition in 2019 when he was nominated for the Grammys. In Nigeria, Burna is one of the very few artistes with unique style be it their song deliveries, appearances and the style of song.

So as an upcoming artiste, you got to create your own style, something that will make your brand or music look or sound different from the ones who came before you.

GOOD MUSIC

You know I really love bringing names like Fireboy, T Classic, Kizz Daniel, etc to the table when topics that is based on good music is being discussed? These artistes are, for me, some of the most creative Nigerian artistes in recent time. Their lyrics are properly written and delivered with dope mixing and mastering.

We have enough bad songs flowing through our air plays already, why do you have to join the long queue instead of creating a better sound that no doubt has lesser people on the line?!

You need to give us some good music if you really want to create a career out of music and not just as a one season wonder.

RIGHT PROMOTIONS WITH YOUR LOW BUDGET

One of the biggest mistakes Nigerian upcoming artistes make when they want to release their songs is thinking they know it all.

The truth about music promotion is that you cannot do it all, but then you can still do some important ones. You need to make proper plans for your budget so you don’t just drain all your funds in one place that will not give you the right results.

We have radio, tv, online (trends, hypes, music blogs), e.t.c, as the popular ways artistes promote their music, but how do you do all the afore listed when you have a low budget? It’s planning! Which can only be done with an effective music promoter who is not only there to take your money, but to help boast your music career than its current position.

Your thoughts?

Written by HEP