Afrobeats Is Not Substantive. Burna Boy.

Burna Boy, a well-known musician from Nigeria, caused a sensation when he asserted forcefully that the Afrobeats genre, with which he is closely connected, lacks substance in a recent interview on Apple Music.

Burna Boy's controversial statements have sparked a heated discussion within the music industry as he prepares for the August 25th release of his new album, "I Told Them."

Burna Boy speaks on AfroBeats as a genre 

“… AfroBeats as people call it, is mostly about nothing, literally nothing. there’s no substance to it — like, nobody is talking about anything in it. it’s just a great time.” pic.twitter.com/rfzOtCaZZY

— benny. (@benny7gg) August 22, 2023

 Burna Boy said, "I don't even know what to say, 'Afrobeats' as you people call it; it's mostly about nothing," in his own words. Absolutely nothing. Everyone is just having a fantastic time; there is nothing substantive about it.

Fans, critics, and other musicians have differing opinions on this outrageous claim. Some believe Burna Boy's criticism to be an accurate depiction of the complexity of Afrobeats' lyrics, while others think it may be a calculated ploy to build interest in his upcoming album.

Below are a few tweets.

“Afrobeats is mostly about nothing , no substance” - Burna Boy pic.twitter.com/dGHcBtr45L

— 𝕂𝕦𝕤𝕤𝕞𝕒𝕟 (@kusssman) August 22, 2023

RE: Burna Boy and Nigerian music lack of substance.

Whenever Burna Boy has to sell a new album to a foreign, Westernised market, he finds a divisive narrative to bestow him exceptionalism in a market that does not know his backstory or lack proper context to process his…

— Joey Akan (@JoeyAkan) August 23, 2023