Tuface Idibia — or Innocent Ujah Idibia — is the best, by Ediale Kingsley

What he lacks today is the arrogance of Burna Boy, the clout-chasing capacity of Davido, and the calculated aloofness of Wizkid. Without these attributes, he was king in his time — crowned solely by talent, not controversy or social media antics. These three, though dominant today, aren’t more talented than 2Baba. Not even close.

Since his emergence, no one has blended soul, storytelling, melody, and cross-genre mastery like Tuface. From the raw brilliance of African Queen to the haunting introspection of Only Me, and the socio-political elegance of For Instance and E Be Like Say, Tubaba has always worn artistry like royal robes.

He’s the one act from the golden era who can still go toe-to-toe with the so-called “new cats” and out-sing, out-write, and out-emote them. The only thing time hasn’t favored is his relevance — and that, sadly, is a matter of positioning, not ability.

Tuface’s humility is both his PR push and his anti-growth mechanism. He’s never one to brag, to chase virality, or to even assert his own greatness. And while this has made him widely respected — the “elder statesman” of Afrobeats — it has also robbed him of the digital-age momentum that propels others.

In a culture that thrives on noise, drama, and self-propaganda, Tubaba’s quiet dignity is mistaken for irrelevance. His humility makes him accessible but not “trendy”; respected but not revered like he should be.

His personal life — a complicated web of baby mama drama, domestic turmoil, and media-fueled relationship sagas — has also diluted the shine of his legacy. While his then-marriage to Annie remains one of the most talked-about love stories in modern Nigerian pop culture, it is also a source of tabloid fatigue. Instead of his music leading the conversation, it’s often his private struggles. And unfortunately, scandal, even when unfairly spotlighted, taints perception — especially for an artist who refuses to aggressively reclaim his narrative.

But let’s return to the truth that no one can cancel or cloud: Tuface Idibia is talent personified. His vocal texture, lyrical depth, genre range, and stage presence are second to none. He is the bridge between highlife and hiplife, between reggae and rhythm, between old-school Naija and global Afrobeats. If music was the only currency of greatness, Tubaba would still be the richest.

So yes, Burna may roar, Davido may dazzle, and Wizkid may glide — but none of them carry the weight of legacy, emotion, and sheer talent the way Tuface does.

Davido sang, “I am better than all o’ you.” Burna Boy says he is African Giant. He claims he has converted so many kilometres. But Tuface would rather allow musicians like Eedris Abdulkareem do the talking for him.

And Eedris, in a diss track, would do justice to that. But in retrospect, Tuface owes us a brag track.

Or does Tuface (2Baba) have a few tracks where he subtly or directly asserts his greatness, as he’s never been the loud, braggadocious type like many modern Afrobeats stars?

His confidence is usually wrapped in humility, but are there moments where he lets the world know he’s aware of his legendary status?

Even songs that should have given him the opportunity to brag, he still manages to sermonize on humility against bragging.

“I know it sounds like bragging, but it’s true that I’m talking.”

That’s Street Credibility, where 9ice boldly brags away. But Tuface comes in and starts off with:

“As I come here before you, I go talk am as I see am. I no go use any sugar cover am, call me your mallam. And I know you understand am, and I still go dey stress am. Say we no dey use gra gra do am. We always peacefully do it very nicely. We always try to wahala nobody. It’s 2face and 9ice, guaranteed to always always nice up your party…”

In that track where he had the license to brag away, he just goes on and on giving us reasons why we shouldn’t brag:

“Can’t deny God’s blessing… Dis one e no be shakara aaaa… Dis one is surely confirmed.”

And if you didn’t have enough of the anti-bragging sermon, Tuface ensured a full track where he took all the verses alone and centered the whole lines on a TEDx Talk titled WHY YOU SHOULDN’T BRAG (okay, the actual title is Only Me).

Only Me by Tuface was a sermon for humility. And he was the authority on the subject. So the lyrics sounded so good on his lips. If songs were clothes, we’d say the song fitted him so well.

He stated clearly that nobody is Superman (not him, not anyone):

“Nobody is supernatural
Diverse is the spirit of the carnival
Your personality e no matter at all
Individuality cannot make us tall
I sing, I sing for all of y’all
Don’t let anybody push you to the wall
Na community na hin make us all
Secret society na hin break us all
I don’t want to be talking like a preacher at all
I don’t want to dey like say I sabi pass all
I know say no be everybody sabi play ball
But arise O’ Compatriots if Nigeria call”

He re-emphasized that times come and go, and as such it’s pointless bragging to be a king:

“So make you just dey do your thing, make I do my thing
If I like living instead of to be feeling like a king on top nothing
Stop the bragging and stop the posing
Cuz all na vanity vanishing”

To really tell you this was a sermon, he said that thing in the Bible about ‘he who has ears let him hear’:

“Who get ear make dem hear
No go tell anybody say you see me for here
If na only me you know say I no go dey care
Just like everybody I wish life is fair
Only me there would be no one here for we to dare
Nobody to follow me scatter money in the air
No one to lean on in times of despair
Too much of everything but no one to share it with
It will be only me going to cinema
No girlfriend to tell once in a while to say ‘free me ma’
But know I gat Funke Elenu and Chidera
Plus I’m not the only superman in the area”

Tuface chose humility. Again, I feel if he had some brags here and there, maybe he would have had even longer dominance. However, I say that with some careful consideration though — understanding that Tuface didn’t really have a short music life span in terms of greatness. I think humility also paid him.