Why Lagos? Nigerian Music Dream...

Is undeniable that there is this buzz about Lagos that attracts a lot of views and opinions about it, some good, some bad.

Is undeniable that there is this buzz about Lagos that attracts a lot of views and opinions about it, some good, some bad, But when it comes to the music industry it is good to look at it with all sense of objectivity, if Lagos really is the home of entertainment and how it relates to the people involved in the music industry. There is this common phrase which says “make it in Lagos make it in Nigeria”, sometimes it is upgraded to “make it in Lagos make it everywhere”.

 

Let us look at some reasons why this is being said and why it might be true.

 

POPULATION

Let’s face it music is numbers game the more people in a certain place the more likely you are to find a group of people interested in your music, that is one of the reason a lot of artist-run to Lagos to kick start their careers.

As of the last check Lagos has a population estimated at 21 million in 2016 which makes it the most populous city in Nigeria as well as Africa. It is quite obvious to see why different genres of music gain acceptance, because quite simply in a city as large as Lagos your music will certainly find acceptance within a certain group.

 

WEALTH OF TALENT

With no disrespect to other states in the nation, it would be unjust to compare the availability of talent found in Lagos with that of other states. This is very factual given the ratio of stars and upcoming stars Lagos produces every year in comparison to other states.

Major stars in dominating the music Game now where mostly born and raised in Lagos, the likes of Wizkid, Davido, Olamide just to mention a few, this is not to say that other parts of the country don’t produce stars(like Phyno, Flavour Timaya) but Lagos just does it better. This again can be linked to the population.

Asides from the wealth of talent from the artist point of view, looking at the music producers, the beat makers, the composers even the video directors are all found in drones in Lagos.

 

MARKET

Before the change of the Nation’s Capital to Abuja, Lagos was the capital of Nigeria, it is still known as the financial capital of Nigeria, it is actually the most successful states in terms of revenue generated, bringing in about $1.3 billion in 2015, no other state comes close. It has one of the largest economies in Africa.

This success is mostly due to its market prowess in all kinds of businesses and music is no different. Artists will usually say that Lagos is where the marketers and distributors are, and that in other to get your work out there quickly from the studio to the consumer you have to get the best markets and distributors and they are all in Lagos.

 

MIGRATING POWER

Lagos is Nigeria’s most populous state but it should be noted that not all persons are actually indigenes of Lagos, actually, a lot are not. But they are persons who migrated from their states to Lagos, and these persons are known to always return back to their states of origin during the festive periods or holidays.

And when they go back home, they carry along with the music they acquired from Lagos and that is how music gets spread to another part of the nation, so as a musician it actually makes your work a tad bit easier because it grants your work exposure without you having to do much.

 

INVESTORS

A lot of investors both local and foreign tend not to stress themselves by looking outside Lagos, simply because they know the wealth of talent available in Lagos and the competition for spaces is very tough, so they assume if you can get to the pinnacle in Lagos and get people to notice you, then you must be very good and a worthy risk to invest in. This makes most of the musicians in the other states fight for the remaining scraps and only get investors when they are seeking for a specialized role.

And you know one of the best ways to grow your brand is by having worthy investors.

 

CULTURE AND LIFESTYLE

The Lagos lifestyle is very appealing and sometimes Lagos is referred to as “the life of the party”, in the past few years there have been a massive amount of shows and concerts in Lagos, that have led so many people from other regions to complain on social media about the lack of shows afforded to them.

Lagos can be said to be the happening place to get known quickly because of the concerts and shows, there are regular hangouts and events that you can easily be introduced by the organizers to the public.

Lagos is full of diverse culture and often regarded as no man’s land, this makes them receptive to other forms of music and the ability to tolerate different sounds.

 

MEDIA

There is a funny way in which the media of Lagos as gotten a hold of Nigeria’s media talking about television shows, radio, entertainment blogs, and paper publications. Major cable networks for the entire country always seek Lagos media first and that says a lot.

Most of the music media houses are located Lagos and from there they broadcast to the rest of the country, and usually, they frequently broadcast what is trending in Lagos. Lagos media broadcasts usually the get to people within and outside the nation, so to get more exposure and give your music more airplays you simply have to be trending in Lagos.

With the seemingly plethora of reasons why Lagos is the number one place to go to if you want to take your craft to the next level or reach its desired height, there is obviously no guarantee that you will make it in Lagos but don’t think that should stop anyone, except you want to be a big fish in a small pond.

 

It is very obvious that the saying makes it in “Lagos make it in Nigeria” is indeed true.

 

 

 

Popnable /Popnable Media