Have we lost the art of making dope Nigerian music remixes?

The history of Nigerian music is littered with dope remixes. From pop to Hip hop, we have enjoyed a healthy dose of remixes which have gone on to be bigger than the original records.

Collaborations have formed the bedrock of remixes in Nigeria. New artists join forces on the record, and it is reworked to provide perfection, make up for flaws that were present in the original, or just to explore the possibility of a different direction for the melody of the record. There is always something new that got infused.

2face Idibia had a great run with ‘Be there’ remix, which featured M.I Abaga. And although AY.com’s biggest and only great song, ‘Pass me your love’, which featured Terry G was a great song, it’s remix which had Timaya, worked magic for the record, due to how different the record was.

2009 had one of the biggest rap collaborations of Nigeria, after Tha Suspect remade ‘I no send you’ with Wyclef Jean, Mi Fliss, ill Bliss, Eva, Feahong, Kel, Ghetto P, Mo Cheddah, Vector, M.I., Kemistry, Blaise, Eyme, Zee, Othelo, Teeto, OlaDELe all on one record. And then there’s ‘Sample’ remix, which was a Hip-hop remake of Stereoman’s hit record by Terry Tha Rapman (T.R) and Pherowshuz.

It can go on forever. But the point is that we Nigerians come from a history of making remixes to pop records. These remixes, history has shown, possess something fresh, and a new direction for the record to make it pop.

But in the past 3 years, we haven’t had that enough. Only Kiss Daniel’s ‘Woju’ remix which featured Tiwa Savage and Davido, Patoranking’s‘Girlie oh’ remix with Tiwa Savage, and Koker’s ‘Kolewerk’ with Olamide have truly become bigger and better than the original. The rest have been subpar.

Do you know Tekno’s ‘Pana’ had a remix that Flavour and Phyno were on? Do you know that Vector’s ‘King kong’ had remixes? Oritsefemi’s ‘Double Wahala’ remix was a poor version due to D’banj’s antics. And Patoranking has made remixes to ‘My woman my everything’ with very little impact in Nigeria.

The key to this remix is to give a new version, with a new interpretation. But most of these singles, have the flaw of repeating exactly the same melody, beat patterns and verses. The only difference would be the guest verse on the project. When this happens, the record is not fresh It just sounds like an extended version of the same song. Fans can’t put their weight behind it if they are not being offered a new take. A single verse is not enough.

One of the buzzing songs in the country right now is Skales’ ‘Temper’ remix featuring Burna Boy. The original of the song was taken and reworked to provide a better, immersive and dynamic collaboration which is currently fighting for prime time on radio.

Remixes made in Nigeria need to be treated as a new record, but borrowing elements from the source material. Only then can an artist have the right approach to creating the perfect product. We need better remixes.