‘Rick Ross should want to meet me in Lagos’ — MI revisits April outburst

MI Abaga has explained his grouse a few months back over the US rapper Rick Ross’ visit to Lagos, Nigeria.

Abaga, who is extolled as a top Nigerian rap star, went on an outburst last April after he was denied access to the US rapper.

Ross’ visit was for a Lagos show that was held on April 14, at Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island.

The show featured Davido, Tiwa Savage, Mayorkun, DJ Obi, The Cavemen, Fave, and DJ Yin but excluded rappers.

Abaga, in a couple of tweets, had said Nigerian rappers must begin to place a premium on themselves to gain respect.

In a recent chat with Ebuka Obi-Uchendu, TV host, Abaga said he expected Ross would want to meet him personally.

“I got invited by an agency I really respect. I told them I wouldn’t want to come for dinner but if Rick Ross is in town, I’d love to meet him personally. He should want to meet MI. It’s The Guy here,” Abaga said.

“We should have dinner. It should be dope. If I go to Miami and I know someone who knows him, I’d want to go to his house and hang out. The event happened and I found out that there were no rappers. That’s what sparked it.

“No rappers on the lineup. I come on social media to see people talking, saying rappers were disrespected. My tweet was to the effect that I was invited to go and asked to meet with Rick Ross, but it didn’t happen.”

Abaga reiterated that artistes in Nigeria must double down on the effort they put into their projects.

“We need to understand that game of entertainment is what it is. I felt that, until hip hop starts to demand that sort of respect in terms of the dollar amount or naira, we’re not going to get treated that way,” the rapper added.

“I asked to meet him. In the context of Nigeria, people think it’s crazy but it’s what’s supposed to happen. A rapper is in town, you’re a great rapper. You guys should spend the evening together.

“I don’t know what the sentiment was but I think people were asking why I would want to be alone with Rick Ross.

“In retrospect, the truth is that, as an artiste, you’re not in control of everything. What you control is the music you make and the effort you put in. If we as a hip-hop community do that, it’s the validation we need.”