Does singer need to drop the 'Starboy' name?

When Wizkid wakes up this morning, he will be in high spirits as usual.

His world is still in place: The earth is good, his women are happy, his family is together, Tania Omotayo isn’t crying, social media loves him, Sony Music’s top-dollar cheque is still framed and hanging pretty on the wall, he has his contracts all signed and bringing him money, his concert dates have been sealed, and the champagne’s in his coolers are chilled.

This is heaven on earth, except for one thing: He is no longer the Starboy of the music world. When Wizkid created that very name in 2013 he created it for himself, for life. At that point, all he cared about was that Nigeria has our own Starboy.

We have watched it grow from just a whisper to a household name. One that we have all come to love, appreciate and connect with. When Wizkid decided to alter his business arrangement with Banky W’s EME, there was little to stop him. He raved, ranted, gave juicy scoops to journalists, and flatly refused to be under the banner that discovered and groomed him to this point. He was right. After all, the brand Wizkid had become bigger than EME, and needed space to fly independently, free from the hassles and restrictive red tapes of an organized record label.

He was successful, achieved part-freedom, and struck a deal with his bosses, which allowed him begin work on a new record label. That record label would be founded, announced and infused into all of Wizkid’s branding to gain popular recognition and acceptance. The name of the new label?

“STARBOY!!!”

How perfect was it. The name encapsulated and embodied everything about the young singer. This was Nigeria’s fresh prince of pop music, who had dominance over African music. He was shattering glass ceilings, breaking down doors, shutting down stadiums, and basking in the glow of intercontinental awards. He was our hero, our knight in music armor, defender of the Nigerian sounds, or Wizkid…our Starboy. The label has initially seen him sign Maleek Berry, and Legendury Beatz. The biggest artiste in Africa is called Starboy. He also has extended his business model, signing (or cosigned?) Efya, R2bees, and Mr Eazi as a unit to help project the brand.

The name had become synonymous with the singer, and become a great part of his branding. This was bigger than just his record label name. It was his very essence as a singer and as a brand. The driving word of his work.

But that is no more. That name has been usurped in the stealthiest way possible by The Weeknd. A huge amount of Nigerians are familiar with the drug and sex-fuelled singer who showed us the beauty behind his madness with songs such as ‘The Hill’, ‘Earned it’, and ‘Can’t feel my face’. His previous album ruled the world, and now he is back with a new one named: “STARBOY”.

The singer announced a new album with the title, and has proceeded to rebrand himself with the name. He has lost his former hairdo, and now spots a cleaner image. Also has he released the title track to the album which is gaining massive traction, thanks to marketing and distribution power of XO Records, and Republic Records (which is a division of Universal Music Group). There’s a new dope video out now, which visually documents the singer’s re-invention as ‘Starboy’. With all of these happening, the world will come to associate the name with the singer.

Where does this leave Wizkid? To be honest, it leaves him with just a name for his record label. Anything higher than that has been taken from under him. He will not be recognised internationally with the moniker. This year he is projecting our music into the US, building brand Wizkid in globally, and that has slowly began to bear great fruits. Wizkid already signed a tremendous deal with Sony Music Entertainment, and plans are in place to amplify his content and brand, supported by an organized and global business structure.

No doubt he had plans to grow the name in that country, but all of that has been threatened, if not sabotaged by one act of appropriation by The Weeknd.

It will be interesting to see what he does from here forward, as regards the branding. Does he let it go? Or continues with it and seek to share the story of how he hit it first?

Either way he has to deal with it.