‘I cannot pay for collaboration with a foreign artiste’- Olamide declares

Olamide Adedeji a.k.a Baddo is one of Nigeria’s most successful rapper at the moment. The entertainer whose draws inspiration from the street and his African roots has revealed that he cannot pay a foreign artiste to collaborate on his song. The serial hitmaker said Fela didn’t have to pay any international artiste to feature on his song, yet his songs traveled far and wide. The YBNL boss urged Nigerian musicians to value what they have.

TheNewsGuru reports that Olamide indigenous rap mad him instrumental to the success of artistes like Lil Kesh and Adekunle Gold who were formerly signed to his label. When quizzed about his stance on seeking collaborations with a foreign artiste, he said:” Did Fela have to do any collaboration for his name to travel out of the shores of this country? How many foreign collaborations have Asa, Femi and Seun Kuti done? Yet, they are constantly invited to perform all over the world. If we don’t value what we have, then the outside world would also take it for granted. If any artiste wants to work with me on a song, I am open to that, but I’m definitely not going to pay for it. Right now, Nigerian music is making waves around the world and I believe that the future is even brighter. If we invest the money we have in our home industry, it would surely grow bigger; instead of using our money to build another country’s industry”.

Unlike Davido and Wizkid who leveraged on international collaborations to conquer the African music landscape, Olamide is yet to be enthroned outside the shores of Nigeria.