Music and Your Community

I had just finished watching one of Tekno’s music videos when I decided to write this.  The video brought to mind the immense musical talent of the artist. I was compelled to recall a well-popularized fiasco when he performed in Kenya, sometimes in 2017, when I was left wondering how things went wrong for one who is so vastly talented.  

What often comes to mind, each time I recall that Kenya incident, is what a Kenyan fan had said while spitting his frustration. The guy posted on Facebook, that Kenyans do not wish to shape their music in the path of the Nigerian music industry. The statement could mean that he knows that Kenyan music was supposed to sound Kenyan. But since no Nigerian had asked Kenyans to design their music to sound Nigerian, the implication is that he is ignorant that music is supposed to mirror the community from which it is born.

Music is an art. Art is the creation of beauty. Art will never expect Kenyans to design their music to sound Nigerian. If you come to Nigeria, you will know that we listen to music from everywhere around the world. Even though we listen to all these forms, we only get inspired to create music that is ours, music in which you find the Nigerian character, notably in the parlance, dance, costume, and remnants of Nigeria’s music past.

So, what is expected from Kenyan music artists is for them to get inspiration by any good music, not minding where it comes from. The spin from the music would then trigger new songs, songs that would endure through generations. Yes, music that mirrors society from where it was created endures, as it makes the people proud, playing what they feel belongs to them. On the other hand, music that fails to reflect the community from which it comes is fleeting, like a candle in the rain.

To end this, I want to recount what I learned reading the history of Reggae. According to the article, Reggae is the end result of the mimicry of American pop. The music evolved to embody a Jamaican identity, a character in which there is only a small fragment of the American music culture. It is the same with Nigerian contemporary music industry. When it started, I was a strong critic of the music, asking why there is that constant effort to sound American. But just about a decade and a half later, we can confidently say that we have finally found our own music independence as well. If the Kenyan music industry is still uncharacteristic of Kenya, they should just carry on. Eventually, it will begin to reflect a Kenyan identity.

2Baba - Gaga Shuffle [Official Video]

Dismantling Tekno Miles into Bits

I knew about Tekno from one of his earliest songs, Dance, sometimes in 2013. The song was everywhere: underground, above the ground, in the sky, in rivers, and anywhere else.  

Then, I didn’t know his name. In time, I learned that his name is Tekno. You know a musician is creative even from the sound of his name. I told myself that this guy promises so much for the Nigerian music industry, that he was going to bring his contribution to the role Nigerian contemporary music is doing to the name of the country. 

Today, after hearing the brilliant pattern of rhymes in his song, Diana, on radio, I decided to look up the song on YouTube. I found and downloaded it. Then I went on to download the controversial Pana. Then I downloaded Rara, Samantha, Where, and, even the video to Dance. From this downloads, I saw that Tekno is, indeed, Avant Garde. There is always a new feel in every song, a feel that has never been heard in the history of Nigerian music. Thanks to the vast options presented by music software. But one has to know the worth of these options and know how to harness them. Tekno is one of such artists. 

In the video of Dance, Tekno is younger and full of energy, so much that one could feel a reserve of the energy, saved for the long future ahead.  His music is a mirror of the Nigerian character. He plays the new contemporary Nigerian pop in a way that satisfies. I want to call the style Azonto, but that name is becoming less heard. The music straddles to also include Afro-beat. 

I had been pessimistic that the young Nigerian musicians of today may not be able to play Afro-beat in a way that satisfies, because what I have heard in the past are artists trying to play up the inborn traits of Fela Anikulakpo Kuti, the inventor of Afro-beat rather than playing their own brands of Afro-beat. Just as Wizkid, Tekno proved me wrong. 

Listening to his music, The Nigerian feel is heard and seen in the Pidgin English that flows spontaneously so that originality is not lost. You hear it in elements of the music, and in the dance that is decorated with Igbo native dance effects.

The Nigerian music independence is with us, and, if you fear that there won’t be artists to continue the good works of Tuface, D’banj and the others who led the way, you are making a mistake. Tekno, the Bauchi born artists, is a reason for you not to fear.