Your favorite Nigerian musician gets their hits from weird places

“’Do like that’ was a voicenote I recorded on my phone during Tiwa’s wedding. I just felt something come to me, so I recorded on my phone. It was later that we wanted to record something, and I was searching through my phone and I found it”

That was how Korede Bello recorded the hit single ‘Do like that’, which has over 11 million streams on Spotify, and over 23 million Youtube views. It was one of the songs of 2016, and gave him the momentum to push forward with his debut album “Believe”.

In one split second, the Mavin Records star felt inspiration coming. He grabbed his phone and captured the melody, the rough vocals, and everything that came to him. Two years later, that song has turned out to be a blessing to him. Inspiration struck and he benefited.

Adekunle Gold is another great example of how inspiration can strike at you at the mot odd hour. His song, ‘Pick up’ came to him in the most crazy circumstances. He was billed to perform at an event, and he arrived in his personal car only to be ‘insulted’.

He tells the story: “About six months ago, I went for a gig I was billed to perform at. When we arrived at the venue of the event in my baby boy, security said there was no parking space inside. My manager, stepped up to him and explained that I could not park outside but for me I do not like wahala , I wanted to park outside but Louis, my manager, insisted that he saw spots we could park inside.

“We were there for about five minutes talking and talking; behold! A tear rubber Range Rover drove to the same gate and the guards with no question whatsoever opened the gate. I could not even weep; it was then dawned on me that I had a car that was invented in 1999. When I got home that night, ‘Pick up’ was waiting for me to write.”

That night inspired Adekunle Gold to write one of his most important and successful singles to date. ‘Pick up’ climbed the charts, got nominated for awards, and transformed into the ultimate street lingua for hope.

These two stories represent something crucial in the music industry; inspiration hits you anywhere and anytime, and artists need to be ready to capitalize and use it for advantage. Your favorite musicians have music coming to them from all angles, and are always pressured to create.

But the best songs come to the artists unexpectedly, when they are not working, when they are not in the studio. They could be anywhere, taking a bite, pissing, or just sleeping. It comes.

So when next you see your artist chilling on snapchat, or smoking a joint while stroking their dog, let them be. Do not disturb them. A hit single is on its way.  Mind your business.