Nigerians who are shaping the face of music

Image Credit: Shopé

23rd Jan 2020
Tags: Music News Shopè Rap World

When Cross Rhythms wrote about Shopé recently, it was suggested the rapper was “on the cusp of stardom.”

He’s clearly on the way up.

The Canada-based emcee is not quite up there with the Kanye Wests and NFs yet, but having won the Canadian TV talent search Searchlight, received a prestigious placement in the Allan Slaight Juno Master Class, and performed at JunoFest at the 2020 Juno Awards in Saskatoon, he’s clearly on the way up. His xRhythms hit 'Sorry' can only help.

One of the unusual things about the rapper is the diversity of his lyrics.

Back in 2016, he recorded a song with American rapper Sho Baraka that was dedicated to "Alton Sterling and all the black men and women who have been the victims of racism and police brutality", while last Christmas he pitched in with an intriguing rendition of seasonal favourite 'Little Drummer Boy'.

Shopé lived in Lagos, Nigeria, for a good part of his childhood.

My parents had a giant chest of vinyl records.

Speaking of his earlier music influence, "I recall my parents had what at the time looked like a giant chest of vinyl records. I wonder if the chest would look as big, now that I'm older. In any case, they must have had hundreds of records ranging from African legend Fela Kuti to Earth, Wind & Fire to Michael Jackson to Sade and many, many more.

"My parents' love for music was evident not only in the record collection, but in the fact that something was often playing in the house or someone was singing."

He often fuses his flows with phrases from his own language.

He often fuses his flows with phrases from his own language, Yoruba, one of the many tongues spoken in Nigeria. Recently he was written about on the rapzilla website, who suggested that along with other Nigerian-descent rappers Tobe Nwigwe, Wande and S.O., their influence was “shaping the face of music in 2019.”