Make music and stop feeling entitled, Illbliss tells older artistes

Illbliss, the Nigerian rapper, has challenged older artistes in the country to put out music and stop feeling entitled. 

In 2020, Burna Boy claimed that nobody in the Nigerian music industry paved the way for his success.

Ice Prince and Skiibii also recently mocked Eedris Abdulkareem after the ace rapper claimed that he was the “most beautiful sacrifice” that birthed success for the new generation artistes.

In an interview on Channels TV, Illbliss shared his thoughts on the disputes around ace musicians who paved the path for young artistes.

Illbliss argued that every young artiste was inspired by an older colleague. He said musicians who claim that no path was paved for them are entitled to their opinions.

He said young artistes are “working hard” while also challenging older musicians whom he described as “OGs” to make more music.

The rapper said “ageism is an issue” in the country but advised older artistes to keep working hard because “there is no age barrier to making music”.

“People are entitled to their opinions. If you think that a way wasn’t paved for you, that’s your opinion. I’ve never been entitled,” he said.

“I know that every young artiste was inspired by some older artiste. They probably never held your hands, gave you a record deal and showed you exactly how to move, but just the music they were putting out at some point made you see it’s possible to be a rapper or a singer.

“I challenge the OGs to go and make music. Ageism is such an issue in Nigeria where you get to a point and you feel like you can’t grow beyond here.

“Or you are an OG and you sit down on your laurels and you want credit from the younger generation. They are working so hard, they took what the older generation built to another level.

“In terms of flowers, our music is also poorly documented. So a lot of young artistes don’t know what the OGs did and they can’t tell who invented which sounds.

“I don’t like the energy from the OGs in a way but I also understand it when you’re aging and you feel like you need to be mentioned.

“The older artistes need to keep working, there are no age barriers. You have fans, you’ve always had fans. Connect with your fans and build a community.”

Born Melvin Ejiofor, Illbliss is a hip-hop sensation who is widely known for his Igbo rap lines.

In 2022, he shared his thoughts on artiste longevity and the rap culture in Nigeria.

Illbliss released a 16-track album titled ‘Sideh Kai’ some days ago.