Nigerian fast-rising musician, Akinbiyi Abiola Ahmed, better known as Bella Shmurda, has revealed how he rassled the music scene with his ‘High Tension’ EP putting his unique street-hop spin in the heart of music fans.
The singer during an interview talked about his growth from the streets and his experiences with its new-found fame and wealth.
According to him, everyday life, what people face, what they see, and the day-to-day activities inspire his music.
The singer after releasing the ‘High Tension’ EP, went further to release a freestyle song ‘Vision 2020’ with Olamide, a song which highlights the government inefficiencies and the plight of young people who dream big in a system that is been set up to oppress.
The singer went further to release one of his biggest songs of 2020 ‘CashApp’ where he collaborated with Zlatan. A song where he sang about the cybercriminals dominating the pop culture.
After the release of his biggest song ‘CashApp’, the singer’s status catapulted him to features on the albums of popular Afrobeat hitmakers, Davido, and Olamide.
The singer who got nominated for the Next Rated Award at the Headies Awards (Nigeria’s apex music award show) also began his 2021 with a bang, releasing another hit ‘Rush’ which spent several weeks at the top of Nigerian charts. ‘Rush’ focuses on his path amidst negative media representation.
The singer also spoke about the impact his mum had on his music, his upcoming album ‘Hyper-Tension’ and his growing up.
He said, “I’m writing more, I’m thinking more, I’m facing more and this is making my music and lyrics evolve. You can’t expect the old me, I’m evolving.”
When asked how life was when growing up, he said, “It was a life worth living, it was of learning, it was a life of evolving. I’m thankful for those times, it wasn’t easy though but I understand why I went through that path. If you want to be great, you’ll face great problems. it’s all good, it’s all blessings. It’s a tough life but I’m happy I’m representing it.”
He said Pasuma was his source of influence while growing up because his mum loves Fuji before he started listening to D’banj, Wizkid, Phyno, Olamide.
He further stated that his favorite is Olamide, given the reasons that he always delivers on what he wants to hear, he said he respects him.
The singer when asked if he faced any letdowns while starting his music path, said, “If you want to be great, you’ll face great problems… It’s a tough life but I’m happy I’m representing it.”
He also said, “The truth is music for me was just passion, was just love, I was not doing music to make it. I was in school, and at some point, I used to be a fashionista and I make clothes amongst other things. I just loved music, I love it when I hear myself. The way I listened to Pasuma or Wizkid, I wanted to hear my music like that. Mostly I did the songs for myself, I never thought of making it. I enjoyed it and improved on myself.”
According to him, “There was a point when my mum started listening to my music, she had it in her car and listened to it on her way to work or she’ll be in the kitchen singing my song. That made me feel that if my mum could vibe to my music, I should put more effort.”
Talking about his mum as a big influence on his music career, Bella Shmurda said, “She’s an educationist and a disciplinarian. She’s a single mum and their lives are different. She had a great impact on my life and my music.”
Bella Shmurda also talks about his inspiration behind the ‘Vision 2020’ and the story that lead to the breakthrough of the remix, he said, “I recorded “Vision 2020” in 2018 but people don’t know this. I released the first version on December 20th, 2018. At that point in my life, I was kinda confused. I wasn’t unsure of what path to take, either the music or school or whatever. I was just praying for better days ahead, “Vision 2020.” I brought around all my situations, I was in school then so I brought everything together and just poured out my mind on the song. Poco posted the song and Baddo reached out to me and we did the remix and sorted things out with ID Cabasa and boom.”
He also describes the High Tension as a mix of ‘desperation’ and ‘future efforts. He said, “Then I was desperate to make it, I want to buy things, do things. I was coming with fire. ‘I no dey look anybody face’ (‘I’m not going to allow others get to me). He added.
Bella Shmurda also talks about how he feels after working with two of the biggest album last year like Olamide’s Carpe Diem and Davido’s A Better Time, he said, “It’s a really big deal for me. While growing up I never thought I’ll end up here working with these superstars. It’s a great privilege to work with them, Shout out to Davido, Baddo, Runtown for giving me an opportunity. It was the start of a new Bella, an evolution for me.”
He said in his new evolution that he learns a lot. He also learns how to approach the public, control the crowd, and also a lot about the game and music from them.
While talking about ‘CashApp’ he said, “Like I always say, my music is conscious. I’m always trying to awaken everyone around me about the things we’re all going through, the wrong things that shouldn’t be, and how we’re meant to be in a better place. The system turned everyone into devils, into alligators and snakes. It’s just something conscious, for those who understand music, who can look left and right. If you’re conscious about the state of things you’ll get “CashApp.”
He said, “My music is conscious. I’m always trying to awaken everyone around me about the things we’re all going through, the wrong things that shouldn’t be, and how we’re meant to be in a better place.”
Speaking about things going wrong.
He also talked about Police brutality and how he had become a victim several times, he said, “Yes many times, before I became Bella Shmurda and after. Many times, both on the island and mainland. I sometimes have to get down and fight physically. I don’t like oppression. You can do any other thing but never try to cheat me. I’ve faced the police so many times and our government has to do something about it. The police system needs to be reformed, they need better pays, better barracks. You can’t expect the police team to feed their families and still stop crime on such terrible pay and lack of resources. They can’t protect anything. Garbage in, garbage out.”
Bella Shmurda further revealed his plans towards his new album and how people will relate to the sound, he said, “I have loads of projects coming. ‘Hyper-Tension’ is coming. The project would prove that I’m serious about this now, we are coming double this time. We want to shake everyone!
The singer in his remarks also plea for fans to understand him on where he is going and where he is coming from. As he said, “It’s easier to connect when the vibe is free when the vibe is true, and when that is what you’re feeling, it means we’re connecting to the music and that’s brought us closer.
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