How Afrobeats has become an unstoppable musical force and how we, as a society have become the biggest advocates for our rights.
A while back, we wrote a series about a bunch of rappers who were signed to an East Coast label that included the likes of Drake, Jay-Z, and Kendrick Lamar. The idea was to write about as many of these artist as we could. Since then, we have seen these musicians go on to become household names everywhere from hip-hop to R&B. As a music fan myself, I have been lucky enough to be able to see these individuals grow from their very beginnings. While their releases have been on my mind, I have been doing my very best to research their records and their albums as well as what they have been working on. However, as is the case with many things in my life, it can be hard to find the information we need. The more we look, the more we learn. So, in this series, I decided to write about the lives and times of some of the most influential afrobeats of all time. In this first installment, we will be talking about the early days of Afrobeats and how Afrobeats has grown as an artist to where they are at today.
The Early Years
This first wave of Afrobeats began in the early 2000s when hip-hop was just starting to make the first leaps into the mainstream. Afrobeats did not appear on many of the year’s best hip-hop albums, but they were present to keep the young fans happy. Their earliest releases, such as “What Up? (Lemme Dance)” and “I Can’t Keep Up,” were considered a step in the right direction by some artists. Their music was a lot more energetic when compared to today’s standards, and their sound is definitely more personal. The early work from the group was mostly under the name “King Cheeks” before signing on with the East Coast label, Afrika Music Group.
After their debut album, “King Cheeks,” they were invited to perform on MTV’s “Unplugged” series as well as the BET Awards in 2000. The group was invited because of the success of their record, which was the first time rappers were being paid for performances on TV; the money made from their performance was turned into a royalty check.