Firstly, Congratulations Nigeria we made it to the AFCON Finals!!!! Yaaay!!!!
As the rest of the world and other Africans will attest to, Nigerians have main character syndrome and they are proud of it, no matter the age, gender, or the social status of a Nigerian, it is highly ingrained in Nigerians that we are the Giant of Africa and the most powerful black nation in the world.
Wherever we go our impact is always felt and we dominate whatever industry we take interest in positively.
Amapiano, a genre of music which according to wikipedia “is a Nguni word loosely translated to “the pianos”, is a South African and Nigerian subgenre of house music that emerged in South Africa in the mid-2010. And guess what? It has been taken over by Nigerians ! yes you read that right.
To buttress this fact, there is various evidence to support the claim that Nigerians Now OWN Amapiano and no longer South Africans even though they are the originators of the genre.
Firstly, the definition above further says “subgenre of house music that emerged in South Africa in the mid-2010s and has subsequently been popularised and globalised by Nigerian musicians”. Read that again.
Apart from this wikipedia definition we have real life evidence that shows how Nigerians have taken over the Amapiano genre and have showcased it to the world.
Firstly, we have the music collaboration between Asake & Olamide in 2023 in which the title was called Amapiano. This song was nominated for the Best African Music Performance in the recently concluded 66th Annual Grammy Awards because it went viral both online and in concerts. This subsequently increased the popularity of the term “Amapiano” which made the world understand and exposed to both the term and the dance Moves. Something South African Musicians Couldn’t Do!
Another notable figure in the music industry who really helped with the popularity of Amapiano is the Nigerian King of Afrobeats Dance moves himself, “ Poco Lee”, who on his various social media platforms that has lots of followers from both African nations and other continents, vibed to Amapiano dance moves on several occasions, thereby exposing the dance moves to the world.
And we all know the rules of the entertainment industry, regardless of who started a concept, whoever gives the concept popularity is the real owner as no concept in the entertainment industry can survive without popularity and recognition.
It is important to note that there has been a long standing rivalry between the two countries. Both based on economic development and entertainment prowess the two countries have been fighting each other for the position of “the true giant of Africa”
One of the most intense and competitive rivalry between the two nations happened in the recent semi-finals match between the two countries whereby there has been online banter between the two countries about who will win the match. However, fortunately for Nigeria they won the game.
Also on a happier note despite the various banters online and the history of xenophobic attacks on Nigerians living in South Africa by South Africans.The win of Nigeria which a lot of people feared it might turn out bitterly for Nigerians in South Africa did not turn out so as there has been no reports of either violent attacks or xenophobic attacks on Nigerians in South Africa.
Nevertheless, regardless of the amount of rivalries, banters and overtaking of music genres going on between the two countries, one thing that cannot be taken away from these two powerful African nations is their true and deep love for each other and their love for the continent as a whole. Regardless of the banters between African nations, Africa Stands United!.
