Daily Advent Nigeria

Does Wizkid and Duncan Mighty debate even make sense?

Does Wizkid and Duncan Mighty debate even make sense?

Music has a way of bringing out the best and worst emotions from its audience, and this time Twitter is the battleground for another needless ‘war of the fans’.  The subject of debate is surrounded around Wizkid influencing the career of Duncan Mighty following the success of the hit single, ‘Fake Love’.

How is it possible for a modern day popstar to bring back to life the glorious career of a living legend? Do you revive the career of legends? Seeing that the Port Harcourt first son has been lacing nationwide hit records at the same time Wizkid was learning to lace his shoes.

These are some of the questions raised by the scathing tweets and comments that have been pouring in to make the debate a trending topic.

Even across offices, the voices have been loud and conclusions reached without leaving room for alternative opinions depending on the age bracket that makes up the room.

The biggest takeaway from an observer’s point of view is the ‘old school versus new school’ bias rearing its head vigorously out of this debate.

For a number of modern-day music listeners in Nigeria, hip-hop/pop started the day MI Abagastrolled into town and one of the biggest beneficiaries of his entrance was a certain Wizkid, who featured on the song, ‘Fast Money, Fast Cars’.

Wizkid has since grown from the boy delivering that compelling hook to a man who sells out the iconic O2 Arena and sits at the same table with music mogul, Diddy.

Moments, which to his audience solidifies Wizkid as the best thing ever in the history of Nigerian music.

While for the older fans, Duncan Mighty who released his debut album, Koliwater in 2008, and has a ground-breaking second album, Ahamefuna (Legacy), in 2010 with singles like ‘Port Harcourt Son’ and ‘Obianuju’ is on an untouchable level.

For this generation, Duncan Mighty belongs to the era where music was still presented in its pure and undiluted form, an era where the Internet was not available to turn half-baked talents into an overnight success.

That is the ‘golden era’ that they nostalgically continue to hold onto as a way of purging themselves from the new sound or ‘noise’ as they call what prevails today.

However, here are a few conclusions from my perspective and depending on how you choose to look at it, both sides of the divide have made statements, that can actually be true at the same time and not take anything away from the artists involved.

1. Duncan Mighty is a legend.

2. Duncan Mighty does not need anybody to score a hit record, his most successful album, Ahamefuna which contained 15 tracks did not have any feature artist, his sound and brilliance has lasted across five solid albums.

3. Wizkid is the flavour of this new generation, so it is only natural that anything he touches becomes sweeter.

4. There have been at least 8 songs released after Fake Love that features Duncan Mighty including Reekado Banks on ‘Bio Bio’, Masterkraft on ‘Low Waist’, Ceeza Milli’s ‘Sabi’, ‘Uju’ by B-Red, Protocol’s ‘Akachukwu’, ‘Igbinedion’ by Flyboi, DJ Xclusive’s ‘Gimme Love’, Bracket’s ‘Chinelo’, and none has come close to the appeal that ‘Fake Love’ brought him.

Whether a number of these songs were recorded before ‘Fake Love’ or after takes a different page, but the Domino effect of its success is what has made Duncan Mighty the hottest property for features in the last few months.

5. Duncan Mighty’s career was never dead, yes it wasn’t as vibrant as it was, which is quite understandable when you ask yourself, how many artists who had a career in 2008 are still in anyway relevant today?

6. Duncan Mighty remains a god in Port Harcourt, but there is no artist who does not enjoy the attention of being the focus of a wider audience yet again. That is what musicians live for; the stage, the glamour, the buzz, this drives the adrenaline and inspires to do more, and that is what he is enjoying now more than he has done in at least the last four years.

At the end of the day,‘Fake Love’ is as important to his career as it is to Wizkid, who continues his quest to regain dominance of the home scene with the likes of Davido laying claim to the throne.

The reason collaborations are done is to help progress the careers of the artists involved and tap into their individual fan bases and on all count, ‘Fake Love’ has succeeded.

When Duncan Mighty emerged on the scene, he reigned supreme, it was his time, and everyone fell in line, but as time progressed, the value attached to lyrics and authenticity in music has decreased and a new generation based on beats, vibes and trends are having their time.

While the Wene Mighty came with his lyrics and melodies, Wizkid added the right vibe and the result was a success attained by both acts and not just one of them.

So as Wizkid continues to score international deals, while Duncan Mighty vibes with Tiwa Savage and Davido in the studio, music lovers should shield their swords, enjoy the music that these collaborations will birth.

Tuck in your emotions and biases, breathe, don’t deter future collaborations from happening, leave the toxicity of Twitter out of this and let the music win.