Popular Nigerian comedian and content creator Layi Wasabi has opened up on how his perception of Wizkid’s music changed as his own life circumstances improved, revealing that he only fully connected with the Afrobeats star’s evolving sound after achieving a measure of financial success.
Speaking during a recent conversation, Layi explained that he initially struggled to embrace the musical direction Wizkid adopted as his career expanded beyond Nigeria and began attracting a global audience.
According to the comedian, the transition was difficult for many listeners who had grown attached to the singer’s earlier, more relatable stories about hardship, ambition and everyday struggles.
Layi noted that the Wizkid many fans fell in love with was the young dreamer whose music reflected the realities of hustling through life, particularly during the period that produced songs associated with his journey from the streets of Surulere to mainstream success.
As the singer’s life changed, however, so did the themes that inspired his music.
He said that for a long time, he could not completely identify with Wizkid’s newer sound because it no longer mirrored the challenges and circumstances he was personally dealing with at the time.
According to him, it was only after his own financial situation improved that he began to understand the experiences and emotions being expressed in the Grammy-winning star’s music.
“It is crazy because I started to enjoy Wizkid when life started to get better for me,” Layi said, admitting that the shift in his perspective made him appreciate the artist’s evolution in a completely different way.
The skit maker argued that many fans often expect musicians to remain frozen in a particular era, forgetting that artists naturally create from their lived experiences.
As people’s realities change, their stories, inspirations and creative expressions are also bound to change.
Drawing from Wizkid’s journey, Layi explained that the singer’s audience expanded significantly over the years, exposing him to new cultures, environments and experiences that inevitably influenced his sound and artistic direction.
He pointed out that it would be unrealistic to expect Wizkid to continue making exactly the same type of music he released nearly two decades ago when he was still trying to establish himself in the industry.
“As a creative, your experiences inspire you,” he said. “He can’t sound the same way he sounded when he was moving from Costain to Ojuelegba because life is different now and the audience has changed too.”
Layi maintained that success often opens people up to a broader range of experiences, emotions and perspectives, which in turn affects how they consume art and entertainment.
For him, understanding Wizkid’s newer music became easier once he experienced some of the comforts and opportunities that come with success.
Beyond music, the comedian also reflected on the changing nature of content creation, noting that creators no longer need to rely on excessive noise or exaggerated performances to capture attention.
According to him, audiences have become more sophisticated, allowing comedians and entertainers to communicate humour in more subtle and intelligent ways without sacrificing impact.
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