Prominent music critic and industry analyst Joey Akan has ignited a fresh debate with a scathing assessment of the Afrobeats landscape, declaring the genre’s international momentum has “dwindled” and warning of an impending “cultural recession” within the Nigerian music scene.
In a recent, unreserved statement, Akan questioned the absence of “music investors” and provocatively suggested a need for “Yahoo boys back in music,” highlighting what he perceives as a dire funding gap. He lamented that his earlier warnings in 2023 about “Afrobeats cultural regression” were met with hostility, with critics labeling him an “enemy of the culture.”
Akan asserts that after the global success of Rema’s “Calm Down,” there has been a “hard cut-off of meaningful Nigerian motion,” with records failing to gain traction internationally. He points to the failure of “huge-budget projects” to make an impact and a domestic scene struggling to mint new talent, exacerbated by industry-wide inflation that stifles organic discovery.
He foresees a grim future for the “new generation,” who he believes will suffer from misvalued opportunities and a lack of funding.
Akan argues that institutional support for underground artists is diminishing, replaced by empty advice to “build community.”
He concludes with a stark warning: “Welcome to our checkered music past. It’s a cold, familiar and broken place,” implying a return to a less sustainable era for Nigerian music.
