Nigeria Music scene is a scene that never disappoints to bring a new star to light every year. In 2018, it was different because three stars beamed bright and all received best love from Nigerians home and Abroad. These stars include Tobechukwu Victor Okoh (Peruzzi); Victor Adere (Victor AD) and Teniola Apata (Teni Entertainer). These three wonderful dance hall musicians lit up the Afropop mainstream of Nigeria with good music in 2018 and the music lovers in Nigeria and beyond won’t forget their input. However, Teni Entertainer edges them all in terms of who has more of the fans’ love and this is not so without a reason.
Number of Hit Songs
The first song I heard from Teni was her “Fargin” song which she uses High-life beat blend from Pa Osita Osadebe to tells her story in sweet lyrics. People applauded her for the sound and music but spoke ill of her look which is not her fault but of nature. She did not slow down in the vocal booth as she released the son “Askamaya” which blew the dance hall away. She has not soft pedaled on the beat and has kept releasing dance hall Afropop sounds fusing Igbo High-life sound with some elements of fugi and Makosa creating the unique Afropop sound.
Someone might be wondering why I was explaining the songs she has made but the fact is Teni has made more singles than any of the other two break out stars. One may argue that Perruzzi who switched from being a song writer to a full music artist has made more songs. That is true but most of his hit songs are featured acts and cannot be compared to Teni’s Hit Singles. But for Victor Ad who has released two songs to the best of my knowledge and one mega hit out of the two cannot stand on same platform. It is one thing to make music and a whole different ball game to make a hits. Teni beats these odds adding “Case” and “Uyo” to her list of hits.
Vocals Music and Styles
Being a female doing music in Nigeria, Teni is not supposed to be loved purely by her music but also her looks. In a funny way, the creator had better plans for her. He gave a chubby look with an auto-voice which could tweak to a male or a female’s voice. This gives her a super vocal prowess which allows her to do very nice high-life songs and sound like Nigerian High-life music kings like Osita Osadebe, Ebenezer Obe and Victor Waifo. This has made her songs to be loved by old and young because while aging adults love her music because it appeals to the time they were young; the young love her music because of the vibe. She makes easy music that can be used to enjoy life without stress.
Perruzzi is good as an Afropop star but the old does not really flow with his vibes because of the high influence of Hiphop on his Afropop. He is more of the 21st century Jet age kind of musician and appeals more to kids of the 90s. In the case of Victor Ad; it is hard to really discuss because he only has one hit song hence judging him with that will be bad for his brand.
The Branding
Teni is a huge brand among men and women now because of her personality. A set critic who works for a notable blog in Nigeria ( www.pulse.ng ) criticized her branding when she newly started up because of her look- postulating that she might not be big because of her looks. The action taken by Dr Dolor Entertainment Company is wonderful because they tapped into the Notorious B.I.G look and kitted her to look like Biggie in some of her video. “Askamaya” and “Case” video shows her evolving into her new styling. The implication of this new styling is that guys love the aura of her tomboyish look. This has had massive influence in her listening list because more guys are playing her song all the time.
However Ladies love her and her music because she makes some real love songs. Many ladies could relate to her “Askamaya” song. She sings about being dumped by a guy because of her street life style but sings that she overcame the bad energy elevating from one level to another. They could also relate to her “Fargin” song which tells a story of the pressure ladies who want to keep their virginity are faced with in relationships. She finds a way to satisfy her fans with good music in nice vibes and stories breaking the borders and bridging the gap between male and female music lovers in Nigeria. Teni Entertainer is a Lady with a guy’s vibe in her music and that is gold for her and her record label.
