With musicians playing more prominent roles in election campaigns, they lend rhythm and excitement to political rallies nationwide, turning campaign grounds into concert arenas and using their popularity to sway public sentiment. Sometimes, these songs, which are becoming soundtracks of Nigeria’s democracy, are more memorable than the oft-repeated campaign speeches, which largely signify nothing. LEO SOBECHI and SEYE OLUMIDE report that as politicians increasingly use artistes for image laundering or vilification of opponents, there is a need to separate the chaff of entertainment from the substance of serious issues of statecraft.
Music has always been intertwined with politics in Nigeria. From independence-era anthems to protest songs against military rule, rhythm and rhetoric have walked hand in hand. But it was during the Second Republic, especially Moshood Kasimawo Abiola’s 1993 “Hope ’93” campaign, that jingles became mainstream political tools.
Abiola’s team pioneered the concept of music as a form of mass communication. The team hired professional producers and musicians to craft songs of optimism and inclusion that resonated with everyday Nigerians. The result was an infectious chorus (rendered in Yoruba and pidgin English) that transcended class and ethnic barriers.
In Nigeria’s heated election seasons, when manifestoes fade and slogans lose their spark, melody takes over. From motor parks to marketplaces and across airwaves, campaign jingles blare from loudspeakers, catchy tunes that praise candidates, promise hope, and turn politics into rhythm.
Beyond jingles, politicians are increasingly courting famous artistes to boost their appeal, and this cuts across many parts of the country.
For instance, during the 2011 elections, top Fuji musicians, King Wasiu Ayinde Marshal (KWAM 1), Wasiu Ajibola Pasuma, and Saheed Osupa, recorded campaign songs and performed at rallies in Lagos.
In 2015, Fuji and hip-hop acts across the North popularised the “Sai Buhari” catchphrase.
In 2019, O to ge, a simple Yoruba phrase meaning “Enough is enough”, became the anthem of political change in Kwara State.
In the 1990s and early 2000s, most campaign jingles were rooted in the Fuji, Juju, or Highlife genres of music, which easily connected with grassroots audiences. But with the rise of social media and youth-driven politics, the beat is shifting steadily toward Afrobeats, hip-hop, and Amapiano.
Chibueze “Beatplug” Okoro, an Abuja-based producer who worked on Labour Party (LP) jingles during the 2023 elections, told The Guardian: “We used Amapiano beats and street slang because young people don’t listen to radio jingles anymore, they live online. The goal was to make campaign songs go viral like club hits.”
That strategy defined Peter Obi’s 2023 campaign, where supporters across states spontaneously produced remixes, from gospel versions in Enugu to street beats in Lagos. The viral “Ellu P” chant, recorded by a supporter at a polling unit, also became an anthem of protest and participation, symbolising the youth-driven energy that reshaped Nigeria’s campaign culture.
A veteran Lagos music producer who has worked on political songs since the 1990s, also told The Guardian: “Abiola’s team understood early that jingles are not just songs, they are emotional codes. When people sing, they internalise the message. That’s the psychology.”
Since then, every major campaign in Nigeria has leveraged music – sometimes subtly, often flamboyantly, and frequently unforgettable. What began as voluntary efforts by loyalists has evolved into a multimillion-naira industry involving composers, producers, sound engineers, and marketers.
Another Lagos-based producer who worked on a 2019 governorship campaign disclosed that payments for political jingles now range from N500,000 for local contests to over N10 million for governorship or presidential projects.
Different eras, different beats, rhythms
NIGERIA’S earliest political songs were simple chants. During the First Republic, supporters of Obafemi Awolowo and Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe sang praise choruses at rallies and marketplaces. By the 1980s, music legends like Ebenezer Obey and King Sunny Ade were occasionally courted to perform at political events.
With the return to democracy in 1999, campaign music took a commercial turn. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s team sponsored several northern folk tunes in 2007, and Goodluck Jonathan’s 2011 campaign leaned on gospel and pop beats to appeal to Christian and youth audiences.
Buhari’s 2015 “Change” campaign – powered by the “Sai Buhari” chorus – marked a digital shift. The chant became a brand, spreading through ringtones, memes, and viral videos. Tinubu’s “Emi l’okan” moment in 2023 followed that trajectory, evolving into a danceable slogan that dominated streets and social media.
Truth be told, not all artistes embrace political patronage. Some fear being labelled partisan or losing fans, hence they are wary of the backlash that follows perceived political alignments. That notwithstanding, others have continued to view politics as part of their craft, with some Fuji musicians even positing that music and politics are intertwined, and can’t be successfully separated in Nigeria; hence, when they sing for politicians, they are part of the campaign culture.
During the 2023 general elections, the All Progressives Congress (APC) revived Abiola’s legacy with its “Renewed Hope” theme, producing jingles in Yoruba, Hausa, and Pidgin English, blending highlife and gospel genres.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) countered with solidarity songs from Rivers and Delta states, while the Labour Party turned its campaign into a pop-culture movement, driven not by money, but by enthusiasm and social media.
Among those who have turned campaign grounds into concert arenas, using their popularity to sway public sentiment, are Fuji legend King Wasiu Ayinde Marshal (KWAM 1), a long-time ally of Tinubu, who has composed and performed multiple jingles for the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Others like Saheed Osupa, Pasuma Wonder, Abass Akande Obesere, Alao Malaika, and Taye Currency have also thrilled crowds at APC and PDP events, while Juju icons Chief Ebenezer Obey, King Sunny Ade, and Sir Shina Peters have graced campaign stages since the 1980s.
In the Southeast, Highlife greats like the late Oliver De Coque and Prince Morocco Maduka once sang praise tunes for political figures, while in the North, Dan Maraya Jos inspired crowds with Hausa folk music.
Modern Afrobeats stars have also joined the fray. Olamide, Zlatan Ibile, and Portable performed at APC youth rallies, while Kcee and Harrysong supported Goodluck Jonathan in 2015. Artists like Banky W, 9ice, and Tony Tetuila even took their ambitions further – contesting elective offices themselves.
In Nigeria’s democracy, music remains a potent campaign tool – where the microphone often carries as much power as the manifesto.
Royalty is also enmeshed in rhythms
TAYE CURRENCY recently demonstrated the power of the microphone during the coronation of Oba Rasheed Adewolu Ladoja as the 44th Olubadan of Ibadan land.
Although some other musicians like Tiri Leather also performed at the Olubadan’s coronation, the major talking point or takeaway from the musical exchanges was the rendition by the Fuji crooner, which ended up as the side highlight of the event.
Indeed, Currency got dignitaries torn between mirth and contemplation, when he indulged in song escapades, especially his malediction of ‘Werey l’a fin wo werey’. Taken on its ordinary meaning, the lyrics of that musical rendition in Yoruba convey the idea that one can use ‘madness to correct or cure madness’.
However, some observers at the event noted that the musician was merely passing a revolutionary message that in Nigerian street lingo means, “If you do anyhow you, go collect anyhow,” that is to say, “those who act foolishly are wont to face the consequences of their actions.”
Dignitaries at the coronation, not a few, whom were stunned by the use of such caustic language at a very sombre and symbolic event, were left to wonder why the musician descended to that pedestrian rendition.
A Facebook user, Adigun Akinbayo, who joined many others to condemn the deployment of the ‘werey l’a fin wo werey’ sarcasm at the coronation ceremony, noted that although Currency’s attempt to explain himself after the event showed that he was entitled to his truth, he ought to have worked on a music piece suitable to the occasion.
But those who desire to get to the root of the Fuji Musician’s decision to render a song clothed in madness at a chieftaincy coronation said event organisers of events usually invite the kind of entertainers that suit their fancy.
For instance, The Guardian discovered that the behind-the-scenes intrigues that led to the invitation of Taye Currency, instead of King Osupa, actually informed his (Taye’s) gloating – that those intrigues reflected the partisan competition for space or supremacy by political leaders.
Indeed, Olubadan’s coronation was presented as a mix of politics, traditional governance and culture. While posters of the APC dominated the venue and media spaces, the incumbent PDP state administration used Currency to make up for the low exposure of its paraphernalia and symbols.
It was evident at the venue that while Currency performed, he was being encouraged to stay on the puerile song, which was a cheap allusion to APC and the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, who was also using the event as a test ground for his governorship aspiration.
Only those versed in the tempestuous Ibadan politics could notice that Taye Currency’s boast that he was stronger than Osupa in the Ibadan politics was a cheap parody of the PDP versus APC power squabble.
Because, while those loyal to Adelabu flaunted President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Abuja as their source of strength, Makinde and his allies stomped all over the venue as the “owners of the ground troops” in Ibadanland.
To the extent of the political show of strength, when Taye Currency later sang that “Makinde is the owner of Oyo, while Tinubu is the owner of Abuja,” he was delivering in lyrical form the contestation of power between Governor Makinde on the one hand, and Minister Adelabu cum Tinubu, on the other.
That political undertone further brought to the fore what has gained traction as a new political culture of hiring bards to spread hate or insults against political opponents in the name of entertainment.
While Adelabu wants to run for the office of Oyo State governor in 2027 against Makinde and PDP’s governorship contender, the incumbent is also angling to run against President Tinubu in the forthcoming presidential poll.
Worried by the kind of songs the Fuji musician delivered during a serious cultural event as the coronation of an Olubadan of Ibadanland, an X (formerly Twitter) user, Sam Arugboboisi lamented: “The same song once condemned as unfit for a gathering of kings…is now the very tune the kings themselves are dancing to on stage. What an irony!
“Truly, we all see life differently, and that is why we shouldn’t be too quick to cancel or tear someone down just because we don’t agree with them.”
Gaining currency, gathering momentum
WHAT happened in Ibadan, Oyo State, was not an isolated instance. During President Tinubu’s official visit to Katsina State, Rarara (surplusage or talkative), rendered Omo l’ogo. The singer, Dauda Kahutu, who is from Danja Local Council of the state, has become APC’s hype man in the northern part of the country.
In Bauchi State, the chairman of the PDP Governors’ Forum, Senator Bala Mohammed, has two groups that sing his praise and castigate opponents. They include Kauran Bauchi Singers Association (KABASA) and Kaura Independent Singers. The rendition of ‘Bauchi babu change’ conveys the idea that the state remains adamant in PDP.
In Rivers State, the Wike Band became popular through its rendition of ‘As e dey pain them, e dey sweet us,’ which captured the former Governor Nyesom Wike’s political style. Upon being appointed the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Wike increased the stipends of the band boys.
Before Wike’s era, a former Enugu State governor, Dr Chimaroke Nnamani, deployed the musical form to market his programmes and canvass for his second term in office. Although it was a woman, Mrs Oby Nwofor, who sang the iconic Ochichi ka kwa mma, na-onye odolu-anya (leadership is better with those with capacity), the Ebeano Band Boys continued to render the song in praise and exultation of Nnamani.
In Zamfara State, Prince Mk Baagi made a name through the song, Sun kira ruwa, ya nzu ga ruwa anata dukansu (Those that called down the rain are now being beaten by the rain), through which he praised Governor Dauda Lawal’s efforts in defying insecurity to provide development in the state.
It is not only in the exchange of swear words or hate mongering that the use of musical bands finds positive expression. There is also an underground economy around the use of hype men and band boys. While some governors have a standing band, others prefer to contract outstanding musicians.
Psychological warfare, political theatrics
A former two-term member of the Ebonyi State House of Assembly, Eni Uduma Chima, said what happened during the coronation of the Olubadan of Ibadan land reflects the contemporary style of popular engagement in the country.
Chima, a lawyer, maintained that the issue of political rallies as of today is no longer hinged on issues of governance or administration, stressing that emphasis now is more or less a kind of show of political force, intimidation with crowds, or psychological warfare on the opponent with what appears to be an assemblage of the masses.
“The fact that a campaign rally should be a venue for vigorous debates and arguments based on issues contained in the manifesto of a political party, and personal ideas and personal idiosyncrasies and qualifications of the aspirants or candidates to a political post is lost.
“Election itself is a process of choosing representatives to fill in political offices, and the person seeking to be chosen should be making attempts to convince the masses, and draw followership to himself and strengthen his candidature on the basis of the desirability of the people,” he stated.
The former lawmaker regretted that nowadays, rallies are more or less a gathering of people who are already convinced about a particular candidate or party, stressing that even before arriving at the venue, the attendees had already made up their minds, taken a position or had been settled.
“The unfortunate thing,” he contended, “is that the celebration, the orgy of festivity, the drumming and the praises; do not allow the individual who may not have made up his mind to be able to evaluate aspirants or candidates on the basis of what they are able to present and the conviction they are able to make in the course of their rallies and campaigns.”
However, the Director, Institute of Strategic and Development Communication, Nasarawa State University, Keffi, Prof. Emmanuel Dandaura, observed that Nigeria’s democracy doesn’t suffer from a deficit of ideas, but rather from a surplus of political theatrics.
“Our challenge is to rebuild the moral scaffolding that supports leadership and citizenship alike. If leadership has become theatre, then the people must stop clapping for bad actors,” he stated, noting that every generation must decide whether to live by its excuses or by its ethics.
While noting that Nigeria’s politics mirrors its culture, the same way a river mirrors the sky, Dandaura argued that Nigeria’s leadership recruitment reflects the deep structures of our society: loyalty to patrons, ethnic balancing, religious identity, and respect for seniority.
Said the African Union cultural expert: “These norms, while culturally rooted, often work against meritocracy and transparency. Leadership is often treated here as an inheritance, rather than a responsibility. We recruit leaders through the choreography of loyalty, not the contest of ideas.”
He continued: “We respect hierarchy, and that’s part of our communal ethos, but it also means younger, more competent voices are often side-lined. Until we re-engineer our political culture to reward integrity and performance over allegiance, our leadership process will continue to recycle the same breed of actors, not necessarily the best minds. Nigeria doesn’t lack leaders; it suffers from the wrong cultural filters that keep recycling the same breed,” he stated.
On the use of hype men or band boys to deliver political meetings, the don contended that politicians have turned elections into concerts, light, sound, and empty lyrics, insisting that when politics becomes theatre, citizens become spectators, not stakeholders.
According to Dandaura, campaigns today often prioritise crowd-pulling and choreography over conversation and content, noting that this results in a shallow electorate that votes based on emotion rather than evaluation.
His words: “Voters who dance to campaign music often wake up to silent governance. When the beat of entertainment replaces the rhythm of ideas, the culture of accountability dies. The electorate begins to expect less from leaders, as though politics were some form of circus rather than the public service that it’s meant to be.
“This trend numbs public debate and lowers expectations of leadership. It’s why many citizens treat elections like festivals instead of civic examinations. Democracy then becomes about vibes, not values.”
The African Culture expert said the show in Ibadan happened because the drumbeat of sycophancy has become louder than the whisper of conscience. “What we are witnessing is a cultural adaptation; our traditional art of praise poetry (oriki, ewi, ikirende) has been hijacked and politicised.
“In our politics today, oriki, an otherwise highly elevated art form in our traditional society, has been bastardised and given the garb of being antithetical to ideology. Meanwhile, in the traditional context, artists were the conscience of society. So, today, corruption, which is largely driven by greed, has debased everything. Musicians who should be the conscience of the people now compete to out-praise one another in the corridors of power. Praise-singing has become the new currency of political access.
“But let’s be clear: sycophancy is not loyalty; it is the camouflage of opportunism. True leadership doesn’t need drummers; it needs doers and constructive criticism. When musicians play for politicians instead of the people, governance becomes a carnival of deceit. We must return to the tradition where artists and intellectuals act as moral mirrors of society, not amplifiers of false glory,” he submitted.
Bernard Mikko, a former member of the House of Representatives, believes that political associations and groupings in Nigeria are more about mobilising crowds than making strategic policy statements. He argued that most Nigerians see struggle as suffering, while believing that music and other forms of entertainment are a form of enjoyment and happiness.
“This clearly shows that our political culture is evolving and lacking ideology. The majority of registered voters are barely literate to understand politics beyond stomach infrastructure and the glamour and perks of political office,” he remarked, noting that effective political engagement is an enduring socio-political and economic struggle.
Mikko predicted that the practice of entertaining instead of engaging the masses would continue, since the wealth generated in federation accounts is largely from oil and gas, with little or no contribution from the electorate.
Blaming the practice on the country’s feeding bottle economy, Mikko stated: “Until a greater percentage of economic activities are formally captured in the tax net, the issue of holding public officers to account will remain the mantra of genuine opposition and those outside government.
Similarly, a foundation member of the APC, Mr Osita Okechukwu, said that clowning has been the spice of political campaigns, ranging from cartoonists, gossip columnists, to popular singers, who either mimic, misinform with fake news or joke about opponents they do not support.
However, on the damage or harm clowning or slang can do to political opponents, Okechukwu noted that while those cannot be assessed by fingertips, it explains why each political party rents their own canvassers and defenders who narrate their own story.
“It is said that if you don’t tell your own story, some other fellas will do it for you. Impact of the harm differs from clime to clime depending on the civility of the political landscape. Democracy in Nigeria is not on the decline; rather, what can be said is that it is not advancing at the anticipated pace.
His words: “Why people think that democracy is in recession is because most people expect quick results in terms of the envisaged prosperity that democracy will render to the people. People don’t want to face the reality that the growth of democracy is incremental or evolutionary because democracy is not a revolutionary process.
“The growth is because democracy provided the maxim of free and fair elections but did not possess the armour that voters must vote for the best candidate. This seemingly lacuna or missing gap, sometimes goads the electorate to vote for bad leaders. Before Wike and others, flamboyant politicians dotted the history of political campaigns, so there is nothing new in what hype men are doing.”
In sum, both Chima and Prof. Dandaura agree that Nigerian leaders should strive to separate the chaff of entertainment from the substance of serious statecraft issues.
He stated: “Leadership must model the conduct it demands. When those at the top act right, it sends ripples down the system. As a public relations professional, I know that integrity is Africa’s lost mineral; when we mine it again, prosperity will follow,” Dandaura said.
