On Nigerian Music and Misogyny, Letter three.
Complicity and the myth of the "good guy"
This is part three of a five-part correspondence series between
and . In this series, we explore misogyny in Nigerian music—its lyrics, themes, and the industry-wide culture that enables it.has done a beautiful job of breaking down some very problematic lyrics in her previous letter.“Fela was a political activist, but he was also a misogynist. These things are not mutually exclusive and one does not take away from the other.”
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However, one thing she said struck me: “Fela was a political activist, but he was also a misogynist. These things are not mutually exclusive and one does not take away from the other.”
And I agree wholeheartedly. A man can fight against bad governance, racism, and even class oppression but his fight may not extend to women or women's issues. Fela is a perfect example of this.
It's sad really, the way we treat misogynistic men with respect, extending them the respect they have refused to extend towards women. I've heard, we've all heard about Fela, how he used his music to fight and champion change etc, etc, but no one ever talk about him and his problematic lyrics.
This brings me to the “good guys” in the industry. The men we think won't do write or sing such stuff because they are progressive, because they advocate against bad governance and on some level understand oppression. But if there is anything that Fela has taught me it's that a man can be “forward thinking” but that thinking won't extend to women.
Take for example Falz aka Falz the Bahd Guy. He was very vocal during the madly popular end SARS protest. Fighting for the rights of men who were the main targets of police brutality in Nigeria. All well and good. He also sang the very viral and controversial “This is Nigeria”. So, we know that Falz is not afraid to use his voice to effect change.
However, in his song "Child of the World," he relies heavily on subtle victim-blaming, the degradation of sex work(ers), and the tired trope that rape "ruins" women.
Take these lines: "She promised not to disappoint / I guess she broke her vow"
"She let herself go / She let Mummy down"
A girl is raped by her uncle, and somehow the focus shifts to how she has "let herself go" and "disappointed" her mother. The blame is subtly shifted from her rapist onto her. Somehow she is the one that has disappointed her mother by becoming a “runs girl” and not her rapist.
The degradation of sex work is also glaring:
"Say if you ride 'stick', you go ride 'Range Rover'"
"Queen 'Runs girl', she no get any competition / Gomina, Senator, she's giving every politician"
The song paints sex work as the ultimate evidence of her downfall, as though survival under patriarchy is shameful, while the men who exploit her remain unscathed. It ignores the realities of transactional relationships and the systemic failures that push women into these choices. The real villains—the men in power—are merely background characters in her supposed self-destruction.
Besides, even the whole
“I be child of the the world” is offensive. In the beginning of the song, he says, “omo Jesu, mummy knows she loves the gospel”. What he's basically saying is that the rape has made her dirty and she can no longer be of Jesus. At least that's what I got from it.
And then, of course, comes the moralistic punishment trope:
"Somebody tell am say the consequences no dey likely / Until she tested positive to HIV.”
Because how else do you "teach a lesson" in a society that punishes women for their sexuality? Her suffering is complete once disease enters the picture, reinforcing the tired idea that sex work and "promiscuity" always lead to ruin. It’s lazy, it’s harmful, and it completely disregards the real issues sex workers face—like lack of healthcare, stigma, and abuse from the very men society refuses to hold accountable.
And so, we return to the central question: Why do we allow so-called progressive men to get away with this? Why do we hold them to such low standards that speaking up against injustice in one area absolves them of misogyny?
Fela, Falz, and many others like them have proven one thing: a man can be radical in his politics, but when it comes to women, his progressiveness has limits. The fight for justice is never truly for us.
But it’s not just the men who are the culprits. What about the women in the industry? If we expect more from ‘woke’ men, should we also expect more from female artists?
Female Nigerian musicians: Are they just trying to survive, make money or make it big? Does their ambition for fame and money overpower the need to fight against mysoginy?
On the one hand, I feel it makes them complicit. Because they collaborate with these men. On the other I get that they're just trying to get that bag and make a name for themselves.
Are we? Am I? Expecting too much from female artistes in a male-dominated industry? Is there really much they can do?
Then again, a lot of them are already well established like Ayra Starr, Tems, Tiwa Savage etc. They have power or a modicum of power. At least I think they do.
When they collaborate with these problematic men is it because they have to or do they genuinely not care about the misogyny?
Again, am I asking for too much. Is it asking for a too much to say that they call out problematic behavior when they see it? Or am I overreacting? Because it's “just” lyrics.
Nah!
No one should say it's just lyrics, or it's not that deep. It is deep. It is very deep. O deep gan.
Lyrics, music, books, words, they all have real life implications because they influence their listeners and readers greatly. And because a lot of the time lyrics are a reflection of the artists views, listeners can make the argument that if so and so can say this and get away with it then I can say it as well.
If sex sells, if violence against women sells, if disrespecting women sells, can we say that it is we the listeners who are at fault for creating an enabling environment for these male artists?
Yesss ooo. I'm actively trying to stop listening to Ruger for example and others because waaaaa a. I don't want my money in their pockets.
“If sex sells, if violence against women sells, if disrespecting women sells, can we say that it is we the listeners who are at fault for creating an enabling environment for these male artists? “ I hate it so much when people try to separate the art from the artist and very often they only have this level of sympathy for male artists, you should never be comfortable buying art ( listening to music)from artists that don’t align with your views and very often they let their misogyny bleed through their music , if you listen to their music, you buy their art . This just means you fund their bigotry / lifestyle, you are partly responsible for their rubbish