Wizkid Disowns Afrobeats: ‘Please Don’t Download My New Album, I’m Not Afro Anything’

Multiple award-winning Nigerian singer, Ayodeji Balogun, popularly known as Wizkid, has disassociated himself from the Afrobeats genre, following in the footsteps of his industry colleague Burna Boy.

In a series of Instagram posts, the Grammy-winning artist announced his new album titled ‘Morayo’ and made it clear that it is not intended for Afrobeats lovers.

The ‘Ojuelegba’ crooner cautioned the public against referring to him as an Afrobeats artist and urged fans not to download his album if they are fans of his previous hits like ‘Pakuromo’.

Wizkid emphasized his evolution as an artist, stating, “Album name ‘Morayo’ best I ever made. I am not an Afrobeats artistes. Don’t call me that.

“If you like Afrobeats please don’t download my album, I’m not Afro anything.

“And please if you like ‘Pakuromo’ Wizkid, don’t like this album. In fact, delete me from your playlist and life.”

Furthermore, he warned bloggers against posting his new album on their blogs upon its release.

Wizkid’s declaration comes after Burna Boy criticised the Afrobeats genre in August 2023, describing it as lacking substance and predominantly focusing on portraying an amazing time without real-life experiences.

Burna Boy had said, “Not even experience, because half of them, like 90% of them, have no real-life experience that they can understand.

“That’s why you hear most Nigerian music, African Music, or Afrobeats, as you people call it, is mostly about nothing, absolutely nothing. There is no substance to it, like nobody is talking about anything, it’s just a great time. But at the end of the day, life isn’t an amazing time.”

Afrobeats, a genre that gained widespread mainstream acclaim in the late 2010s, has been celebrated as one of Africa’s biggest exports, with artists like Wizkid, Davido, Tiwa Savage and Burna Boy leading the charge.

Wizkid, known for his massive global fanbase and numerous accolades, had hinted at a five-year hiatus from music in November 2023.

However, he surprised fans by releasing the second instalment of his ‘Soundman’ extended play (EP) in December that same year.