Divine Ikubor, known as Rema, emphasized the importance of Nigerian artists maintaining afrobeats’ cultural influence to uphold Nigeria’s dominance in African music.
In an interview with Apple Music, Rema acknowledged the growing popularity of South African genre amapiano in Nigeria’s music industry. Despite recognizing amapiano’s appeal, Rema stressed the necessity for Nigerian artists to sustain afrobeats’ impact across the continent.
Rema revealed that his latest album, ‘HeIs,’ draws heavy inspiration from afrobeats legends such as Don Jazzy, Mo’hits crew, 2Baba, Olamide, P-Square, and Timaya.
“When creating my new album, I revisited the roots. I drew a lot of inspiration from Mo’hits. You instantly recognize a Mo’hits song within the first four seconds. Don Jazzy’s production was just phenomenal,” he commented.
Rema highlighted past hits from artists like Olamide and noted, “There was a time when their songs defined a moment. Amapiano is great and it’s hot, but there was a time when Afrobeats production dominated African clubs. We shouldn’t lose that essence; we need to nurture it.”
He concluded, “I don’t want us to stray too far from that path. We need to keep pushing it forward.”
