Nigerian Music has grown
in leaps and bounds over the years, with emphasis and focus on music
created within the geographical boundaries of the West African nation.
But music in itself, as a form of expression and means of communication
has no boundaries. With Nigeria being the most populous black nation on
Earth, we decided to provide for our readers a carefully selected crop
of Nigerian Musicians based abroad or as we call them diaspora. We
looked at various factors from their music artistry to their
materials/oeuvre (number of studio albums) to their latency(how long
they’ve been active and successful) to international acclaim and
recognition. This list is not a bible hence, all the names on this list
are based on our research and personal opinion. We hope these talented
crops of singers further add color to your playlist
NOTABLE MENTIONS
FUNSHO
.Another exponent of rising musical genre, PBR&B, Funsho is an
American born Nigerian based in Washington DC. Very little is known of
the atmospheric singer, except that his name dropped on the radar of
popular music discovery blogs earlier this year, when he dropped his
debut EP, S.H.E which stands for Sounds Have Emotions. You can listen to
the EP here and you can watch the video of his song ‘Picasso’ below;
2.TOYBOY & ROBIN
Toyboy & Robin are a musical group made up of Toyin Mustapha and Rob
Drake. There’ve been making music since 2012 and have released two EP’S
and one collection of remixes. Their sound is a combination of house,
heavy bass, r&b, and pop. Sean of Beatport described their music as,
‘ sweet electronic rhythms complimented by even sweeter edits and
alterations to blissful R&B vocal lines’. You can listen to their
beautiful song, ‘Save me now’. Below is the video to their 2013 single, ‘Jaded’.
IBEYI
The beautiful, smooth-singing sisters gained fame when they were signed
onto Beyonce’s label, Parkwood Entertainment. The signing created a
media-frenzy, and expectations were high as to what these
French-Cuban-Nigerian twins could offer. If there was pressure, the
Ibeyi twins did a good job in hiding it, cause their music became more
expressive, more experimental, more free. The Ibeyi twins are made up of
Lisa-Kainde Diaz and Naomi Diaz. Their debut album,’Oya’ employs a
soulful, down-tempo vibe, very akin to yoruba ritual songs. Ibeyi stand
out in our list as some of their songs are in yoruba and they also
employ a lot of african instruments in their music. You can visit their
website to buy their music and listen to more of their songs here. Below is the video of their single, ‘Ghosts’.
AYO
Ayo born Joy Olasunmibo Ogunmakin, is of Nigerian,German, and Romanian
roots. This diverse cultural mix is clearly evident in her slow-tempo
music. Ayo sings mostly with the acoustic guitar and has released four
studio albums to date. Her albums have gone platinum in Germany, France
etc and she has toured several European cities. Her music is a gentle
mix of acoustic-soul and world music. She mostly sings about love,
heartbreak, her difficult childhood, and contemporary politics. She’s
widely popular in France and she won the EBBA Award (European Border
Breakers Award that recognizes the success of ten emerging artists or
groups who reached audiences outside their home countries with their
first internationally released album). The EBBA Award further puts light
on the tremendous success Ayo’s first album, Joyful achieved. Her other
studio albums include Gravity at last(2008), Billie Eve(2011), Ticket
to the world(2013). Ayo has sold a total of one and a half million
albums in over forty countries. You can visit her website here to see more videos and listen to more songs. Below is the video to her rustic and chart-topping single, ‘Down on my knees’.
AZEKEL
zekel Adesuyi is a british-born Nigerian Singer, Songwriter, and
Producer. He’s an exponent of the new genre PBR&B. His music
contains high amounts of atmospheric sounds, an expensive falsetto, and
lyrics that touch on any topic. He has released an EP titled ‘Circa’.
His recent single has received a lot of love from major music discovery
platforms like Pitchfork, Pigeons and Planes,Exclaim! etc And has received praise from the likes of Bastille and Prince. You can buy his music here and below is the video of his acclaimed single, ‘New Romance’.
TOKUNBO
Tokunbo Akinro was the lead vocalist of the German Acoustic Soul band,
Tok Tok Tok. The band were active from 1998-2013. There music was a
beautiful flower stripped of all unnecessary colors. She has toured all
over the world from Paris, Berlin, Madrid, The Hague, Kiev, Tel Aviv,
and Sao Paulo. As the lead singer of the band Tok Tok Tok, fifteen
studio albums were released (inclusive of a greatest hits compilation
and a live dvd album) of which the recent one was ‘Gershwin with
Strings'(2012).The band have won various European Music Awards like the
German Jazz Award, French Grand Prix Sacem etc. She’s known for her
gentle vocals, and laid-back singing style. You can listen to more of
her songs here and watch the video of her single, ‘Heartbleed’ below;
ASA
Born Bukola Elemide, Asa is the only one on this list that is
“half-diasporan”. She released her self-titled debut album ‘Asa’ in
Nigeria, that had a lot of songs that became a staple in Nigeria music
scene like ‘Fire on the mountain’ and ‘Jailer’. Asa is known for her
downbeat soul, effortless lyrics, and pungent hooks. In a period that
was dominated by the rise of Afro-pop(led by Dbanj) and the increasing
wave of hip-hop, Asa’s music shined through like gentle sun rays. Her
sophomore album(Beautiful Imperfection) however, was released in France
and so was her third album(Bed of stone) which was partly recorded in
Nashville. Asa has sold close to two million albums and has won such
prestigious international awards like the Prix Constantin. You can buy
her music here, and below is the video to her hit single ‘Eyo’.
SADE
Helen Folashade Adu know popularly as Sade is an English born Nigerian
Singer-Songwriter, Composer and Arranger. She’s the lead singer for the
Downbeat Soul British band, Sade. Sade has sold close to fifty million
records worldwide and she has been described by the Sunday Times as the
most successful female british solo act in history. She’s known for her
soft voice, and lyrics which dwell mostly on love and social commentary.
In an era known for the rise of hip-hop and the total dominance of
Micheal Jackson’s bold pop, Sade’s music was the jewel of pure soul and
the soothing effects of her voice and singing style resonated with
audiences from the eighties till present. Below is the video to Sade’s
beautiful hit, ‘By your side’. You can buy their albums here.
SEAL
Known for his worldwide Batman Forever theme song, ‘Kiss from a rose’,
Seal was born Henry Olusegun Adeola Samuel. Seal is known for the heavy
prevalence of Soul in his music and depth of his lyrics. He was married
to supermodel, Heidi Klum before they separated recently. Seal has sold
more than thirty million albums worldwide and has released a total of
nine studio albums (a greatest hits compilation included), these are
Seal(1991), Seal II(1994), Human Being(1998), Togetherland(2001), Seal
IV(2003), Greatest Hits Album, System(2007), Soul(2008), and Commitment
and Soul(2010). With a baritone and craggy voice, Seal was a foremost
british-nigerian soul singer in the nineties. His vocal talent was a
prime reason why he was chosen to be a coach on The Voice(Australia). He
has won numerous awards like The Ivor Novello Award(one of
songwriting’s most prestigious awards), four Grammy Awards, and an MTV
Video Music Award. You can buy his music here. Below is a video of his best-selling single and worldwide hit, ‘Kiss from a rose’.
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