WITH preparations for the prestigious All Africa Music Awards (AFRIMA) already in full gear and only a few hours left to witness the finest of African musicians come together for a creative celebration, NaijaTimes takes a look at the acclaimed ‘Producer of the Year’ category to know whose beats has been strong enough to stir continent during the year.
Blaq Diamond (South Africa)
POPULAR music duo, Ndumiso Mdletshe and Sphelele Dunywa, professionally known as Blaq Diamond, are arguably one of the shiniest diamonds of Africa. The non-fraternal duo are not just one of the most vibrant voices in South Africa’s music scene, they are also prolific producers.
Both born in 1994 and bred in Ladysmith, KwaZulu Natal, the beat makers also known and referred to as Ndu and Danya met in 2010, while on a school trip where they participated in a rap cypher in the school bus.
They began spending more time together, participating in school functions which earned them recognition in the community and local surroundings. After the release of their debut album dubbed Inqola in 2017, under the imprint of Ambitiouz Entertainment, they have refused to snooze from the spotlight.
Their sophomore album titled Umuthi, which was released January 31, 2020, had three singles Memeza, Love Letter and Ibhanoyi with Love Letter and Ibhanoyi glimmering as Platinum-certified records respectively.
On June 4, 2021, they released a single titled Messiah, featuring Dumi Mkokstad. The song garnered three million views on YouTube. Their smashing record dubbed SummerYomuthi is up in this category and seven other categories including Best Male Artiste in Southern Africa; Artiste of the Year in Africa; Song of the Year in Africa; Best Male Artiste in African Inspirational Music; Breakout Artiste of the Year; Best Artiste, Duo or Group in African Pop, and Best African Duo, Group or Band. The song has also spent several weeks on SA’s top charts.
DJ Tarico (Mozambique)
DJ TARICO is a Mozambique disc jockey and record producer who is taking Africa by storm. His debut album, Moz Piano released in 2020, is inspired by the fusion of Amapiano and elements of Mozambican Pop music.
Born February 28 and christened Tárico Caifaz Samuel Simbine, the beat maker has always loved music, and he solidified this love by joining an all-boys group at 14, while in Secondary School.
Together with the group he would go to Reginald Studios, where he was taught how to produce, write and make music, while a neighbour taught him to DJ. In 2014, he took the music seriously and started to get noticed in 2016 as a producer.
He gained prominence with his international smash hit, Yaba Buluku, which is off his Moz Piano Vol. 2, released earlier this year. The self-produced jam has a remix with Nigerian Grammy-winning superstar, Burna Boy. The video has over one million views and it’s still going hard.
The song, which translates to ‘Something is hidden in your trousers’ is a sensual bop that flusters for its dance-conjuring capabilities. A magic on the dance floor, the remix gained buzz when a Nigerian radio station picked it up.
DJ Tarico is squared up against other heavyweight beat makers including Blaq Diamond (South Africa), Kolber Prod (Ivory Coast), Legendary Beatz (Nigeria), Lizer Classic (Tanzania), Napji (Nigeria), Olakira (Nigeria), P Primal (Nigeria), Telz (Nigeria) and Virgo Deep (South Africa) for this category.
Of the 400 songs from artistes in the 30 continental and 10 regional categories shared on Wednesday, September 22, 2021, DJ Tàrico’s Yaba Buluku (Remix) with Burna Boy featuring Preck and Nelson Tivane stood out as one of the most decorated on the list, only bested by Blaq Diamond’s SummerYoMuthi, Focalistic’s Ke Star (Remix) featuring Davido and Vigro Deep, as well as Wizkid’s Essence, featuring Tems.
Kolber Prod (Ivory Coast)
LE Gout De is the song of the season, especially in the French speaking Ivory Coast. Sung by the Ivorian superstar, Remy Adan, the song was produced by Kolber Productions (Kolber Prod).
The song received massive airplay and became popular on the video sharing platform, Tik tok with lots of dance challenges online.
Launched in 2005 by Oscar Amaman also known as General Kolber, Kolber Prod is an Abidjan based label, as well as a studio and a music school. The outfit has to his credit the production and the promotion of the albums of Chipper Konty and Valair Konty.
Legendury Beatz (Nigeria)
LEGENDURY Beatz is a Nigerian record producing, songwriting duo, founded in 2009 by siblings Uzezi Oniko and Okiemute Oniko. Their production style is deeply rooted to Afrobeats as well as in several other genres, including hip hop, reggae fusion, moombahton and electro house.
As lovers and listeners of Naija made beats, chances are that by now you have heard a song or songs produced by this duo, including rave of moment, Essence, by Wizkid and Tems.
Behind the drowned out chords, slow kicks and chops are two brothers, who are taking a cue from life to create a niche for themselves, especially with their towering impact on the Grammy award-winning Wizkid’s discography, from the days of the starboy’s debut album down to his latest offering.
Starting out, with no initial industry contacts, connections or recording studio, the duo’s production followed a simple system in which they created beats channeled to a certain artiste for whom they scouted for in clubs, award shows.
The system yielded little success until they met Weird MC, Nigeria’s foremost female rapper, songwriter and producer who heard their content in 2009. They created the singles Happy Day and Moving Up for her, and also created an album with her that is yet to be released.
In 2011, the duo produced Ara, the lead single from Brymo’s second studio album The Son of a Kapenta released in 2012. The song won Best Recording of the Year at The Headies 2012, while the music video for the song won Best African Pop at the 2012 Channel O Music Video Awards.
Not resting on their oars, the duo in 2012 produced Baddest Boy, the lead single from Empire Mates Entertainment’s compilation album Empire Mates State of Mind (2012).
They also produced Chidinma Ekile’s Emi Ni Baller, which won the Kora Awards winner. The song broke a record for Chidinma, as she became the first female musician to peak at number one on the MTV Base Official Naija Top 10 chart. The song Drop with vocal contributions from American rapper, Wale and Wizkid has their production imprint
In 2013, the duo produced the song Caro, which was included as a bonus on Wizkid’s second studio album Ayo released in 2014. In the same year, the duo produced That Could Be Us by rapper Ice Prince. They also worked with other notable African artistes, including Banky W, Seyi Shay and Efya.
The duo has solidified their name as one of the leading beat makers piloting Afrobeats’ sonic shift and global expansion by creating several viral records, including Wizkid’s Ojuelegba, Ginger, Caro, Talk, Eledumare, Number One Lover, Juru and Won Gbo Mi by Shaydee,
Their first single Oje had contributing vocals from Wizkid, they collaborated with Simi on Ayo, the third single from her third studio album Omo Charlie Champagne, Vol. 1 (2019).
Lizer Classic (Tanzania)
FOR every few hits that have come out of Tanzania, odds are one or two of them have been produced by the talented Wasafi Records act, Iraju Hamisi Mjege, better known by his stage name Lizer Classic.
The 30-year-old East African record producer, who began his music production journey 10 years ago in Burundi has produced songs for people like Mr. Blue, Matonya and the likes who were big in Tanzania then. Within years of working there, he worked with big regional artistes like Sat B, Big Fizzo, Lolilo, Emery Sun and Rally Joe.
In 2014, he won the Producer of the Year award in Burundi, and has since produced hit songs like, Sikomi, Eneka, Hallelujah, Waka, Kijuso, Kwangwaru, Show Me, Tuachane, Zilipendwa, Jibebe all by WCB artistes and A Boy from Tandale, an album by Diamond Platnumz, all of which have made him one a well-known and sought after producer in East Africa and beyond.
His production imprint in Diamond Platnumz’s smash hit dubbed, Waah, featuring Koffi Olomide, is currently gaining ground across Africa. Though a low key sound engineer, Lizer Classic evidently has mastered the art of keeping up with quality and needs that keep arising as the music world continues to evolve.
Napji (Nigeria)
ONE jam that really stood out last year across Africa is Davido’s Fem. The statement song, which also sound tracked the #EndSARS protests of 2020, became the first song by any Nigerian to hit one million views on YouTube within seven hours.
The song which was Jerry Jurbe Jethro Babawo, professionally known as Napji, a talented music producer from Kaduna state, ushered him into the limelight as one of the fast rising sound makers in Nigeria.
Discovered by the Davido Music World (DMW) boss, David Adeleke also known as Davido or Omo Baba Olowo (O.B.O), who is consolidating his empire with fresh talents during the COVID-19 pandemic, and it instantly became a marriage of artistic brilliance.
Napji also produced Jowo, Sunlight, two of Davido’s other major records, as well as A Better Time, his third studio album, which was released on November 12, 2020.
Olakira (Nigeria)
NIGERIAN Afro-pop singer, songwriter, producer and instrumentalist, Ebenezer Adelusola Adefemi better known his stage name needs no much introduction as his In My Maserati stood out as a front liner among the league of love rhythms that ruled the Africa music scene last year.
The remix of the song, which features Davido, peak the song’s popularity across prestigious continental streaming charts. Prior to his official dive into singing, Olakira had a successful career as a producer and has worked with several Nigerian artistes, including Patoranking. As a producer and singer, he has mastered the art of embracing the originality of African culture and sound.
He began making music in 2007, when he released a song, but later abandoned singing for production. He officially began his career in music in 2015, when he met with the executive of U&I Music and got signed to the label as a producer
The release of his two debut singles Hey Lover and Flirty Signal in June 2018 marked his introduction as an artiste in the music industry. He cemented his status as one of contemporary afro-pop’s defining voices with In My Maserati, which has popped him up for the ‘Producer of the Year’ award.
P Prime (Nigeria)
PEACE Emmanuel Oredope, professionally known as P.Priime is a perfect example of ‘small body big engine’, a street slang in Nigeria for ‘small but mighty’.
Though young, P.Priime can be referred to as one of Nigeria’s maverick record producer given his production imprints in songs like Like I Do by Fireboy, Money Devotion by Gbasky, Gelato by DJ Cuppy and Unripe Paw Paw, Egungun by Zlatan featuring veteran indigenous singer Abass Akande Obesere, and more.
He kicked off his career in music as a drummer, veered off into graphics designing and disc jockeying before becoming beat maker after his tutelage at the Sarz Academy.
The 19-year old wunderkind has now started soundtracking some of Afro-pop’s biggest tunes. His contribution in shaping sounds brewing underground in Nigeria comes in full display via Olamide’s latest album, Carpe Diem.
Having produced seven out of 12 records on the album that debuted at Number 11 on Billboard’s World Album Chart, the producer is believed to have carved a niche for himself as a sound maker par excellence. Hence his nomination in the ‘Producer of the Year’ category among heavyweight beat makers across the continent.
For the entertainer, his young age is not a factor in determining his output, as he captured it this way: “Age means nothing to me. If anything, I consider myself privileged. I feel like the universe has put me on a pedestal and as a result of that, I am a voice for the next generation. I am well-brought up and very disciplined. I am also very much in touch with older people around me. Their rich counsel helps to keep me in check.”
Telz (Nigeria)
SHOUT the name Alli Odunayo no one cares to pay attention but mere mention of Telz or ‘Funkula’, stakeholders in the Nigerian music industry and across the continent would tell you that is the brilliant producer behind many hits like Parotanking’s Abule, Burna Boy’s Wonderful as well as Onyeka, Naughty by Nature and Wetin Dey Sup off the Grammy award winner’s album titled Twice as Tall, which he primarily produced along with LeriQ, Rexxie, Timbaland and DJDS, among others.
Though ‘Funkula’ is just a tag/chant he stumbled on whilst going through something on his laptop, he however like the way everyone says ‘Born Killer’, ‘Kpon Giller’, ‘Fun Killer’.
“It’s controversial; everyone wants to know what it is and argue about what they think it is. I did it on purpose because I’m trying to sell the tag and it’s really working because Funkula is becoming a household name.
As half of the Spaceship Collective producers alongside LeriQ, with whom he has been tagged ‘RocketBoys’, Telz soaring work on Burna Boy’s discography have piloted him to a global limelight, hence his name prestigious list of nominees for ‘Producer of the Year’.
Virgo Deep (South Africa)
After establishing himself as one of the more inventive and experimental producers amongst the league of South Africa’s House sub-genre, Virgo Deep has become a billboard for Afro-fusion evolution.
With Amapiano now the dominant sound of South Africa’s youth culture, Virgo Deep is a frontline producer with a stellar discography including last year’s debut album, Rise of a Baby Boy, and the fourth installment in the Baby Boy series released in May.
Virgo Deep is also responsible for helming several huge hits, including Focalistic’s career-defining Ke Star, which received the pan-African treatment with the stellar addition of Nigerian superstar Davido.
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