Who is your African pop queen; Tiwa Savage or Yemi Alade?
It can only be one of these two.
That’s the question that hangs on the lips of every music enthusiast in Africa. A competition that exists in perception and conflicting interest. Sometimes the contest takes a back seat, and it becomes a juxtaposition: Tiwa Savage and Yemi Alade. Side-by-side, mentioned in the same breath, and conjuring inherently the same, yet different mental imagery.
Like all pop culture rivalry that is generated by the media, this one truly exists only in the minds of fans, propagated by social media, and made real by the insistence of the artistes to ignore the conversations, or sometimes, to stylishly avoid the question during press interviews and talk shows. Why these rivalries come up is self-evident.
The Nigerian music industry is male dominated, with very few women rolling in the big time. Omawumi, Waje, Tiwa Savage, Yemi Alade, and Seyi Shay are the current “Big 5” in mainstream music. An argument for Cynthia Moran can be made, but she is too niche to properly lay a claim to the pop soundscape. Omawumi and Waje are seen as two of a kind, with very little designs on the pop crown. Seyi Shay, well, she is regarded as a Tiwa Savage spin-off.
A case could be made for the amount of awards they have both won and the crowd of loyal fans that each pull.
Well, I’d let you be the judge on that.
You’ve been given two options, who would you pick as the best. Tiwa or Yemi Alade?
Drop your thoughts in the comments section.
