Nasboi’s Unconventional Rise in Music

Photo by KlasikenVision

Nasboi first appeared on our screens as a clone of Davido. When you gain the spotlight under the umbrella of someone else’s fame, it becomes difficult for people to see you outside that frame. Being considered “low budget” is not the best way to introduce your creativity to people. But Nasboi has, over time, evolved beyond this. Through his skits, where he adopts different characters and accents, he’s shown a wide range of creativity. As much as the skit industry is populated with diverse content, Nasboi found a niche and a balance that made his material appealing to anyone who consumed it.

However, for the majority, Nasboi wasn’t known outside of comedy. When he announced the release of Lover Boy in 2023, it seemed strange — particularly for me. It’s often difficult to separate someone from the version of them you’re used to. In Nasboi’s case, he had gone through an identity shift from “low budget Davido,” so seeing him transform into something new seemed odd. In the comments under his music posts, I read comments from people urging him to stick to comedy. But Nasboi knew he could sing, and it’s both disingenuous and unfair to not utilise your talents when you have them.

Building a strong comedy platform before venturing into music turned out to be one of the best moves for him. This became evident when he released Umbrella featuring Wande Coal. Nasboi leveraged his comedy platform to promote the song consistently, making it one of the more popular Nigerian songs of 2023. He infused the song into his skits and got his colleagues and influencers to join in dance challenges, helping the track go viral. Being a comedian allowed him to bypass some of the publicity hurdles that would have cost a typical artist a large sum of money.

He continued strengthening his music career with singles like Small Money, Short Skirt, and eventually, his EP, In Nasboi I Trust (I.N.I.T). Despite these releases, which are gaining impressive stream numbers, Nasboi is still somewhat overlooked in discussions about new music. He is, without question, one of the breakout stars in recent times. His streaming numbers speak for themselves: over 540,000 monthly listeners on Spotify, with Umbrella amassing over 9 million streams and Small Money and Short Skirt garnering over 3 million and 1 million streams, respectively. These are numbers many artists would be thrilled to achieve.

Yet, he’s still seen primarily as a comedian or skit maker. If a list of EPs released this year were to be compiled, I.N.I.T might be left out — not because it lacks musical quality, but simply because it’s Nasboi, and some still hesitate to view him as a “serious” artist. While it may take time for people to adjust to seeing him as a musician, he’s not the first to switch or own double careers. Pheelz and Young John are perfect examples of artists who have transitioned from producers to successful singers, and not every music producer can pull that off.

There are areas in Nasboi’s music that could still be refined (that comedy instinct still flourishes in his music), but that doesn’t diminish the effort he’s put into his craft. He deserves recognition for his musical contributions, and we can start by including him or his projects in more deserved lists and conversations. His work reflects a determination to not only entertain but to create art across mediums. I see him as a person pushing past the boundaries of being boxed or labelled and reshaping how we perceive the limits of creativity. Nasboi can be a skit maker and at the same time a musical artist, allow.