Awards show the true lifespan of a Nigerian star

Every 5 years, the music industry in Nigeria experiences a shift in power from the old guard, to a new set of stars.

The one-hit wonders come and go, the one-album stars show up and have some fun, new stars are born who go on to become great, and then there are the stars who shine brightly for a season, and then dim their light.

And then there are the old guard, those who have become great over the years, but whose fire has stopped burning brightly, although they still maintain their relevance based on the strength of their name. This year at the MAMAs was another revolutionary year. The old guard are slowly fading away from the continental stage and the new school kids are taking over…slowly.

Previous editions of the MAMAs have had greatness distilled from live TV across the continent, with big Nigerian names successfully getting rewarded for their hard work. Naeto C, 9ice, Psquare, Fela Kuti, M.I, 2face Idibia, and Mo’Cheddah, celebrated.

This year had Patoranking, Wizkid, Tekno, and Yemi Alade celebrated. All of these artistes are relatively young in their careers, with Wizkid being the oldest in terms of success. Wizkid blew up in 2010, Patoranking was in 2014, Tekno 2015, and Yemi Alade 2014.

These are the new school, people who are just 5 years or under in the limelight carrying the Nigerian flag and representing us on the continent. Nigeria has always had a long list of musicians who have embraced the old sounds while introducing new ones and serenading the continent.

Our pop culture is a very aggressive one, with pop music, being a strog driving force. The system keeps changing every year and stars rise, hit the lag phase, and fall off. Only very few stars remain relevant through the five year circle.

Check this out: of all the stars who won the 2008 edition (D’banj, Ikechukwu, Psquare, Naeto C, 9ice), none of them made it to the 2014 edition where Davido, Tiwa Savage, and Flavour.

Every Nigerian who won the award in 2010 (2face Idibia, Sasha and Mo’Cheddah) did not make it to the 2016 edition.  2face Idibia is assuming the role of an elder statesman in the industry, Sasha has effectively quit music, while Mo’Cheddah is reinventing herself after a long hiatus as a fashion icon. Instead, we are having Patoranking, Wizkid, Tekno, and Yemi Alade.

Stars are born every year, and they hit different stages of their careers at different points in time. The stars you see today, may not make it through the next year at the peak of their powers. This is a fact of life, one in which the industry and all who play in it understand and appreciate.

The MAMAs just help us see it clearly.