We need more festivals and events to showcase our talent – Obi Asika

Obi Asika, a creative entrepreneur in the Nigerian music industry in a recent interview said Nigerian musicians need more festivals and events across the country to showcase their talents.

He said this when he spoke on indigenous entertainers in Nigeria.

Asika said the streaming numbers being churned out by the likes of Davido, Wizkid, Burna Boy, Psquare and Flavour are evidence the country is lacking not in talent but in critical infrastructure meant to expand their reach.

“I was checking yesterday and five Nigerian artistes have crossed a billion views on youtube, Davido, Burna Boy, Wizkid, Psquare, and Flavour. The first three are obvious. For Psquare, we know it is the legacy,” he said.

“But I was surprised for Flavour because he’s not necessarily mainstream Afrobeats. One song from Ckay is 900 million views. Tekno is 890. Kizz Daniel 680. Olamide is at 600. Rema is at 500. We’re in good hands.

“The thing is not the talent. We have lots of that. It’s about the platforms. We have 400 universities and colleges. We have 40 stadiums. We need to build national touring. We need to have more festivals and events.

“How many people in Sokoto have seen Wizkid for example? How many in Enugu have seen Davido?

“It’s a big country with significant opportunities in merchandise and product commoditization. Leveraging the soft power of Nigeria is the next and only conversation.

“Aba should be the production center for Nollywood and Afrobeats and that is a trillion naira opportunity.”