Nigerian CHH, What Is Wrong With You?

   It's no secret that Nigeria's music industry is the best in Africa, and one of the best in the world. We are so great, that it's no longer a big deal when an American great features one of our own artists anymore. Even the Nigerian Christian music industry is one of the best in the world. We have probably produced more internationally acclaimed gospel artists than any other country in Africa, with a long list of people blessed by our music all over the planet.
     The Nigerian Christian Hip-hop industry? Is it also one of the best in the world? Uh....some people even wonder if there is such a thing as an industry for Nigerian CHH. Even the Nigerian Hip-hop industry is growing to become one of the best in Africa with rappers like Falz, Olamide and Phyno becoming more and more loved by most people. Why doesn't all the success we record have an effect on the Nigerian CHH industry?
   Statistics (and this is from Wikipedia) show that the next group of people that patronise American hip-hop after the Americans themselves are Nigerians. Records show we are crazy for hip-hop music. Why then is Nigerian CHH as stagnant as it has been?
    Well maybe it's because of the inconsistency that Nigerian CHH artists show. People will forget you if you don't release a song in 6 months. They'll be asking if you exist if you go a whole year without releasing any song. And that is if your first song was even a hit! Nigerian CHH artists can go months without releasing any song! Many just drop a single now and then and then fade into oblivion.
   But then again, how can you be consistent when you get almost zero encouragement from the people who are one of your target market? Some Nigerian Christians would rather listen to Drake and Cardi B than listen to Spokesman and Limoblaze. A lot of christians in Nigeria still associate hip-hop with their past lives maybe. They probably think that Satan was the creator of hip-hop and listening to it would maybe destroy their eternal destinies. When you get almost no encouragement from people you expect encouragement from, with what motivation would you use to embark on a new project? And this no encouragement can come in various ways. How will a CHH artist be encouraged, when there is almost no church in Nigeria where rap music is sung? Or when rap music is almost never played in Christian events like love feasts, parties, weddings and stuff? How can a CHH artist be encouraged when his song is never used to advertise christian programs?
   And then there's the invasion of Afro-pop. Oh afro-pop! How can we, avid hip-hop enthusiasts, ever forgive you? Hip-hop is characterized by spoken lines. Super punchlines. It's poetry, no matter how unconventional. Afro-pop is VERY VERY different from hip-hop, but some people release afro-pop songs and think they are rappers. Maybe it's because we can also use afro-beats to make hip-hop music, but there are differences. BIG DIFFERENCES. They are as different as Falz and Wizkid. As different as Protek and Frank Edwards. Does the kind of songs Sammy Hart sings sound like afro-pop to you?
  I have a very good feeling about 2020. Maybe it'll be the year people begin to appreciate Nigerian Christian Hip-hop. Or maybe Nigerian churches begin to see the importance of hip-hop music. Especially as an evangelism tool. Or maybe Nigerian Christian Hip-hop Artists will begin to release album after album, and drop single after single. Or maybe a Nigerian CHH artist will just release a song that'll change the perception of CHH in Nigeria. Then, just like every other aspect of Nigeria's music industry is getting global recognition, perhaps 2020 will be the year of Nigerian CHH.