“Akon No Create Afrobeats” – ID Cabasa Blasts Singer Over False Claims

 

Veteran Nigerian music producer and label boss, ID Cabasa, has fired back at American-Senegalese singer Akon for claiming that he helped create Afrobeats.

In a recent interview, Akon claimed that his early work with Nigerian artists in the late 2000s and early 2010s played a major role in building the Afrobeats genre we know today. But Cabasa isn’t buying it at all.

Speaking on Wazobia FM, Cabasa made it clear that even though Akon did collaborate with Nigerian artists back then, that doesn't mean he can take credit for starting the whole movement.

“Akon for also tok say na he still discovered the likes of 2Face, Timaya, 9ice and Co,” Cabasa said in Pidgin. “Na the people wey he roll with when he come Nigeria, wey tell am say, ‘I’m the biggest person around this place.’ So, he properly feels he pioneered business and branding sides of Afrobeats.”

Cabasa also reacted to Akon’s claim that he signed Wizkid when the singer was “just a local artist.” He corrected that statement by reminding everyone that it was Banky W who discovered and signed Wizkid to Empire Mates Entertainment (EME)—before Akon ever got involved.

“Even the way wey he take dey tok about Wizkid, no be wettin the story be be that. We all know say na Banky W dem sign Wizkid,” Cabasa said.

Finally, on Akon’s overall claim of helping create Afrobeats, Cabasa shut it down completely. According to him, Afrobeats was never the work of one person—it’s a cultural movement.

“Yes, we collaborate with Akon in terms of distribution but e no mean say he go tok say na he create Afrobeats. Because Afrobeats no be wettin wey one person create, na culture,” he added.