By Kemi Yesufu
Before the current controversy around rave act, Asake, blew up, I thought about sharing a post on his new found Americanness. For some time Asake whose claim to fame is his ‘ijinle’, (originality to his Isale Eko roots) has been showing off his new levels as a celebrity enjoying life in the USA. I wanted to make a simplistic argument that Asake, whose last EP is titled ‘Lungu Boy’ will gradually lose his authenticity by living in faraway America while singing in Yoruba and using street slangs from Naija (Nigeria).
I thought to draw Asake’s attention to Nigeria’s, some would say, Africa’s Big – 3, Burna Boy, Davido and Wizkid, who make a show off their retaining Lagos, Nigeria, as their base. Also, Grammy winner, Tems who is often accused of making music for the foreign market, spends most of her free time in Nigeria. Same for the likes of Tiwa Savage, Yemi Alade and Arya Starr. In a nutshell, top Afrobeats stars want to be seen as enrooted in Nigeria.
For Detty December 2024, Asake, was no where to be found while majority of the A-List artistes ensured that they were seen at events and shows. Then there was the public (online) meltdown by Asake, with his absence linked to his reported separation from the Olamide Badoo-led YBNL. Personally, I’ve been a little worried about reports of the unceremonious fashion Asake parted ways with his former record label. It reminded me of how 9nice dumped ID Cabasa and he gradually lost relevance . There are reasons why some of the biggest names in music remain under record labels. For Asake’s supposed meltdown, I read it as the usual eccentric display from talented artistes.
Back to Asake’s new Americana status, could it be the reason he stopped communicating with his father? I saw a video of the old man saying his son stopped communicating with him in 2020 or 2022. Asake responded to the trending videos of his father with a short clip of verse in which he said no-one can satisfy the world and his father wants to cajole him or something of that sort.
I am not keen on advising Asake on how to relate with his father, but I wonder if he is rethinking ‘black tax’, the way some African -Americans are beginning to view helping their families when they become rich and famous.
The debate on black tax and how it affects the black community has become a reoccurring topic. A recent article I read on black tax focused on how some black star athletes and entertainers go broke after their prime, for certain other reasons and because they end up spending millions of USD settling their parents and family members. The article compared black sports stars and their white counterparts’ spending and investments, noting that white celebrities don’t always have to invest in ageing parents and large families, rather they invest in themselves (present) and their future (kids and retirement).
As with black communities in the US, it’s probably time for us in Nigeria to prioritise and widen access to pension contribution by anyone who earns an income in his/her prime. We must also find a new system for paying for healthcare, education and housing, the current out-of-pocket model isn’t sustainable. Black tax will not go away with the current model where citizens have to make outright payment for the basics. As it is, many aged parents and relations desperately rely on the successful family member.
Again, I slide back to Asake to counsel him to take care of his supposed daughter, even the toughest antagonists of black tax believe in investing in the future which includes the celebrity or successful individual’s offspring. Should Asake also decide to build his father the N50m worth residence in Lagos, as suggested by those in a video making the rounds, it wouldn’t such a bad idea.
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