Veteran Nigerian rapper Ruggedman has set the industry talking with a blistering critique of Afrobeats, accusing some of the genre's artistes of being 'talentless' and hiding behind the beat. 'Put them on the stage with a live band. Let them sing live. Oh, you go fear fear,' he said in an interview published Monday.
But Ruggedman was quick to draw a sharp line around Davido, Wizkid and Burna Boy — the so-called Big Three. 'No, no, no, they don't fall under that,' he said. 'They're good. They make music, and they're not Gen Z's really. They've been doing music for a long time.' He noted that Wizkid and Burna Boy have themselves said they don't consider themselves Afrobeats artists, adding another layer to the genre's never-ending identity debate.
Asked which of the three he would pick for a collaboration, Ruggedman said he would rather do a song with all of them: 'Any of them you do a track with, it will move — it's a hit.'
Whether his words spark a needed conversation about talent and live performance in Afrobeats or simply ignite another round of online drama, Ruggedman has once again proven he is not afraid to say what many are only thinking. The comments land just as the 2026 Headies nominations put the genre's hierarchy back in the spotlight.
