Diplo discussed his visit to Nigeria while on tour in Africa, in a new interview with GQ Magazine. In his Africa Tours, Diplo uncovered some amazing discoveries about this beautiful continent.
On Africa Tours With Diplo.
Diplo who is an American record producer and lead member of the dancehall music project Major Lazer, and co-creator of Jack Ü visited Lagos back in April while on DJ tour of Africa. He played shows in Nairobi, Lagos, Kampala, Addis Ababa, and Johannesburg.
Diplo discussed being skeptical to visit Nigeria from the conversation he had with Shaggy and Sean Paul. He said:
“Everybody always warned me not to go to Nigeria to do shows. All the reggae artists—I remember having a conversation years ago with Sean Paul and Shaggy about Nigeria. Sean Paul’s like, ‘I was going through Nigeria and they put these cactuses up in front of the stage. People just stood on the cactuses trying to get onstage until guys with guns batted them in the head to get ’em off.’ And Shaggy’s like, ‘I got a better story. My first tour in Nigeria, they had a fence up around the venue, and the crowd was so crazy, they were shaking the fence. The police were afraid, so they sent the dogs out on the people to break up the crowd. And then one dog came back over the fence dead. They killed the dog and threw it back over the fence.’ So that was what I knew. I’d never been to Africa, besides South Africa, and everybody in South Africa calls it fake Africa.”
He talked about the impact of Nigerian music on the global music scene, saying:
“Nigeria has this huge diaspora, like Jamaica. Nigerians live everywhere: England, L.A., New York. Nigerians have had a huge impact on music in the last ten years. Like the UK funky stuff that ended up becoming “One Dance” by Drake. And then, over the last three or four years, Nigerians have been taking over with this new Afro-pop movement.”
He continued, liking Lagos to being the Atlanta of Africa:
“One hundred percent. I didn’t know this before I got there, but the music scene is amazing because they have pop stations—you’re gonna hear Bieber and Katy Perry. Then they have all the hip-hop and R&B—“Bad and Boujee” was a hit in Lagos before America. Then they have all the Nigerian stuff—the Afro-pop like Davido, Wizkid, Mr Eazi. And then they also have legacy stuff, like Fela Kuti and Femi Kuti, palm-wine music, and highlife. It’s crazy.”
For Diplo, it wasn’t about money. It was all about the authentic African experience. He said:
“…I feel like it’s a no-brainer. Coachella, Vegas, all those things are gonna be there. Touring Africa is something you have to work towards. That’s why I became a DJ. That’s why I even wanted to make music, so I could do things like go to Africa and perform. I’d rather invest in experiences like this, rather than putting it back into my own ego.”
In the article on Diplo’s Africa Tours, he talked about Africa, his love for music beyond Europe and America. He also talked about Rihanna, saying “I just want her on a Major Lazer song. She’s like the one artist that we can’t ever get.”
Read the full interview HERE
Diplo Shows Us What’s In His Travel Bag While On Tour In Africa. Watch Now:
