The Nigerian music scene during the mid 2000s and into the early 2010s was truly a special moment in time. Gen Z’s might not get it, but women were dropping bops left, right and centre. To celebrate women’s history month, we decided to look at some of the women who dropped hit songs and left us wanting more. These female Nigerian artists need to make a comeback like yesterday.
1. Soty
Port Harcourt, stand up for your girl! If you say you don’t know Soty’s boppity bop, Malaria, You’re either GenZ or must have been living under a rock in 2006.. This girl was so down bad, she compared her man to an Anopheles mosquito. Girl! We can’t deny that the song was ahead of its time though, she’s actually the blueprint for women shooting their shots. Ladies, be like Soty; write mandem love letters — not every time, “Hey big head,” up and down.
2. J’odie
We can’t prove it — yet, but we strongly believe that streaming Kuchi Kuchi religiously three times a day like paracetamol, could lead to pregnancy. Back in 2010, J’odie had us considering diaper and creche money because of this hit song she dedicated to her baby. Kuchi Kuchi and Duduke will go down in history as the two greatest baby love songs of all time. Let’s bet on it.
3. Weird MC
Remember when Ijoya hit the streets? Someone needs to take us back to 2006 when the national grid was alive, fuel wasn’t this scarce and all we wanted to do was shake our booties to this iconic Weird MC song. Those were really good times and this song will remain for years to come.
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4. Di’ja
Dorobucci, Jantamanta and Adaobi are certified hits, but when you really deep it, Di’ja showed us she was a true star when she dropped her one solo song: Awww. This mushy love song was so inescapable, it had Nigerians in a romantic chokehold. Are we the only ones who can’t get over how cute Ladipoe looks in the video as her love interest?
5. Niyola
Niyola has been around for a long time, but her best era was definitely Toh Bad. At the time when record labels were finally investing in their token female signees — Mavin had Tiwa Savage and Iyanya’s Made Men Music Group had Emma Nyra — Empire Mates Entertainment (EME) promoted this song like crazy and we can’t blame them, it was that good. While our girl was last seen battling Kunle Afolayan wigs in Swallow, we just want to remind her that we need new music.
6. Kween
Real music OG’s remember Kween, her massive kinky hair and her song, Jebele. Back before we had the slang IJGB, Kween was part of a clique of artists like Don Jazzy who moved back to Nigeria from the overseas in the mid-2000s. While some of her peers are still working today, Kween drooped this true “I don’t have time for men and their nonsense” feminist bop and decided to leave Nigeria behind. Do we blame her? No. The country is tough dear.
7. Kel
Do you remember Wa Wa Alright? Do you remember the female rapper that dropped it? Kel was a big part of the a female-led rap movement that also included Bouqui, Sasha, Blaise and Chemistry. Now that we think about it, how many female rappers do we have in Nigeria today? Kel, sis, do you maybe want to help us with an album or two?
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