Why rapper is not the greatest Hip-Hop act in Nigeria

Yung6ix is a conundrum for many to figure out. The rapper who is signed to KKTBM is superbly talented, and also superbly underachieving.

Possessing wordplay, delivery, craft, street-smart, and the ability to switch between Western and Indigenous rap, and blend with any beat, the rapper comes up short with the acceptance of the final product.

Yung6ix came through hot in 2011, with the cover of Ice Prince’s ‘Oleku’. He moved past that with the release of his mixtape, which had four amazing singles. In 2012, Yung6ix was nominated for the prestigious ‘Lyricist On The Roll’ award at the Headies, but he lost out to Vector.

Yung6ix released his debut album, ‘6 ‘O Clock”, in February 2014. And flew considerably with some of the songs gaining traction. To his core followers, this was his crowning work. The album contained hit songs, with singles ‘Kpansh’, ‘Before I go broke’, ‘Heartbreak swag’, and ‘First class’.

2016 has also seen the rapper release an EP, with the single ‘Blessings’ providing good traction for the project.

With all these works in mainstream rap, Yung6ix still remains underachieving. He isn’t regarded in pop culture as belonging to the mold of Vector, Olamide, M.I, and Reminisce. Last year, he failed to feature on Pulse Nigeria’s ranking of the top 10 rappers, a list which has Falz, Lil Kesh, and Naeto C.

Why has the rapper failed to achieve his full potential in terms of acceptance and status?

Yung6ix can come up against the best rappers in Nigerian entertainment and stand his ground, if not floor them. He is poetic, razz and tush, changing through deliveries and metamorphosing his art. As good as his music is, he lacks the anthems and the club songs.

Nigerian pop culture is in flux, with tastes and trends changing periodically. At the moment dance is the word, and Yung6ix has failed to provide that.  His songs are elitist, with few appealing to mass consumption. Recently, his “Billionaire Ambitions” EP contains a club song ‘For example’, a song with Ghanaian origins featuring Stonebwoy.

Another reason for his plateau, is his lack of media coverage. The media setup around Yung6ix only caters to his music, and fails to sell his life. The rapper is entertaining and interesting, with god-complex which makes him come across as a lovable jerk. Fans don’t see enough of these, hence. This year, only when his life was threatened by HKN’s B-Red, did we get tabloid news.

These are easy fixes for the rapper. A good A&R executive in his ranks and talent manager would steer him in the right direction during composing and recording of singles. Club songs require an understanding of the trend. He can pretty much riff his way through to his next hit, with many producers willing to churn one out for him.

The second fix would require a media executive, or a savvy PR man to become involved, take charge of his social media, and begin to sell Yung6ix right. Let them showcase the celebrity in him, and the sky is his limit.