Nigerian music star CKay is the latest artist to be featured on Billboard‘s “Chartbreaker”, the magazine’s series spotlighting an artist making their introduction to the charts.
CKay is the Chartbreaker for November 2021, but it was his 2019 song “Love Nwantiti” that gave him his first Billboard Hot 100 entry, thanks to a viral TikTok challenge and multiple versions which have been released.
The song climbed to the top 40 on The Hot 100 chart and to No. 2 on Billboard’s Global Excl. U.S. and Global 200 charts. It also claimed the No. 1 spot on Shazam’s Global 200 chart.
“Social media definitely played a role – and it wasn’t only TikTok. It was also Instagram, Twitter and YouTube. The world discovered it one person at a time,” CKay says.
Inspiration behind the Song
In the Billboard interview, CKay says he was in love while making “Love Nwantiti” and the inspiration came to him while he was making beats and freestyling in his living room.
He describes his own kind of Afrobeats as Emo Afrobeats. It is “my own spin on Afrobeats,” he says adding that he finds particular joy in creating it.
“Emo Afrobeats is a way to express myself, my emotions and my sound and still have a groove to it,” he explains. “Plus I’m a cancer, so my energy is basically emotions.
Debut Album
“My album is going to be my best work yet… because I’m going to put my whole soul and essence into it,” CKay tells Billboard.
Listen to the original track below:
Watch the remix featuring Joeboy and Kuami Eugene.
Photo Credit: Manny Jefferson for Billboard
Inspiration behind the Song
In the Billboard interview, CKay says he was in love while making “Love Nwantiti” and the inspiration came to him while he was making beats and freestyling in his living room.
He describes his own kind of Afrobeats as Emo Afrobeats. It is “my own spin on Afrobeats,” he says adding that he finds particular joy in creating it.
“Emo Afrobeats is a way to express myself, my emotions and my sound and still have a groove to it,” he explains. “Plus I’m a cancer, so my energy is basically emotions.
Debut Album
“My album is going to be my best work yet… because I’m going to put my whole soul and essence into it,” CKay tells Billboard.
Photo Credit: Manny Jefferson for Billboard