- Kcee, a Nigerian music star, discussed emotional challenges in his career.
- He felt sidelined despite years of dedication and consistent work.
- In an interview on Afrobeats Intelligence, he described the music industry as having an unfair system.
Nigerian music star Kcee has shared details about the emotional challenges he encountered while building his career, revealing that he often felt sidelined despite years of dedication and consistent output.
During a recent conversation on Afrobeats Intelligence, the singer spoke candidly about what he described as an unfair system that failed to properly acknowledge his efforts at the time. He explained that, although he gave his all to his craft, recognition from key industry players was lacking.
“To be honest, I grew up in an industry that was not fair to… and giving my best and the industry was not recognising,” he said.
Reflecting on that period, he said his perspective has since changed. While awards once mattered to him, he now places greater value on tangible success and the appreciation he receives from fans, rather than trophies or nominations.
“The fans were the ones behind me. I did a lot of work, and they were not nominating me for awards. And I cried. I was pained. Right now, whether I win awards or not, I do not care. I prefer the rewards to the awards. It affected everything and not just music,” he added.
Looking back, Kcee described his hit song Limpopo as a major turning point in his life and career. He said the success of the track felt like a long-awaited answer to his prayers after years of struggle in the industry.
“When ‘Limpopo’ came, I was in tears that God had answered my prayers. It took me into the global market straight away. After all the years I have worked with Presh, that is the biggest record I have ever done,” he said.
He also revealed that the song was not only a creative breakthrough but also a financial one, especially through ringback tunes, which were a major source of income at the time.
“Limpopo’ gave me a lot of money from ringback tunes. We were making hundreds of thousands of dollars,” he said.
He also highlighted his more recent release Ojapiano, which gained massive traction on social media platform TikTok. The song quickly went viral, sparking conversations within the industry about chart rankings and visibility, especially regarding its performance on digital platforms like the Apple Music charts.
“When I dropped ‘Ojapiano’ today. The next day, it was doing 120,000 videos on TikTok in one day. It happened for seven days. And that raised a conversation in the industry like ‘Why is Kcee not sitting at number one on the Apple Store?”
Despite his past frustrations with awards and recognition, Kcee emphasized that his priorities have evolved. He now focuses more on the reach of his music, its financial impact, and the connection it builds with audiences around the world rather than industry accolades.
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