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The rap scene in Nigeria is evolving. Evolving is the word because it sure isn’t dead. Yes, a lot of rappers are ditching rap to do the more commercially appealing stuff and those still in it are not exactly going mainstream at the moment but rap isn’t dead, it just needs more people to go out of their comfort zone and listen.
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This was one of the things I discussed with Rapper PsychoYP, one man who is pushing the rap culture in Nigeria.
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Born Nicholas Ihua-Maduenyi, PsychoYP is a native of Rivers state. The first thing I asked was how the name PsychoYP came about. Friendly reminder that YP means Young Papi, not Young Problem or Young Prodigy.
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“I think secondary school some people used to call me Papi Chulo and YP was a nickname for Papi Chulo. I actually had a lot of nicknames and I just put it all together”.
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Every artiste had that time where they knew they were going into music full-time and for PsychoYP (YP), it was in secondary school.
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“A lot of people were making music in secondary school at the time. There was Tay Iwar, Lady Donli and the likes. For me, it was JSS3/SS1”.
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2022 has been a great year for YP, from getting his Master’s degree to going on tour.
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“This year I did my graduation from two years ago, my project has been ready for a bit too, I don’t know why it’s not out yet (laughs) but it’s been ready since the first quarter of the year. I’m on tour now with Rema so it’s been crazy”
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There are a ton of genres and subgenres today, from Afrobeats, Afropop, Afrohighlife, Afro-fusion and even Afrodrill (I have no idea what this one is). YP sounds different. His sound is so unique, that you really can’t ascertain what genre of music he does. With all of this in mind, I was curious to find out what YP calls his sound. Trap? Rap? Drill? Afro Drill?
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“I’m a rapper, I do rap but I have my own kind of sound. I won’t call it Afro anything. Being in Nigeria and being a Nigerian, there’s a tendency for everything to have the Afro vibe and be mixed with Afrobeats but for me, I’m just a rapper. I make international music and I’m not really trying to push the whole afro subgenre. Having a subgenre will be cool though but for now, I’m not into that.”
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If you listen to YP (I see no reason why you shouldn’t), you’ll obviously hear and see some traits of certain foreign acts and some of these guys have been an inspiration.
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“I listen to Travis Scott, Gunna, Lil Baby, Young Thug, Lil Wayne, Drake, Jazz Cartier and the likes. I’ve been listening to a lot of good music, to be honest”.
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With PsychoYP based in Abuja, I was curious to know how the music scene is in Abuja and the music culture in its entirety. I know it pops but no state comes close to Lagos as the entertainment hub of the country.
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“Abuja is a rap type of place, back then a lot of people were making Afrobeats, the likes of TC and Tay Iwar but now it’s not necessarily the case. There’s Lady Donli and a couple of others (someone in the background mentions Azanti) Azanti was born in Angola please (laughs). Yeah, everyone is rapping now in Abuja. It’s basically the centre for pushing the rap that everyone says cannot flourish”
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Talking about Abuja and rap brings one thing to mind: Apex Village.
Apex Village is home to some of Abuja’s most renowned hip-hop acts in PsychoYP, Zilla Oaks, Ayüü, Kuddi is Dead, Marv OTM, AarTheUnruly and Pablo Herbs and not many people know how Apex Village was formed.
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“I wanted to put out a project and everyone working on the project were my guys. From the features to the artwork, basically everything. So it’s a whole group of creatives from videographers to illustrators and the rest. I still work with all of these people today, the same graphic designers, the same producers. I try to put my guys on no matter what. I eventually had to get some other people but it’s all good”
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There was no way I was going to talk to YP without discussing his rap beef with DND Section, a beef that caused a huge stir in the rap scene and served as a wake-up call to everyone in the rap game.
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Narrating, he says: “One night, Martel sent me bottles, I was drunk and I was driving round with my guy, DND was yarning on a live saying he was a better rapper and all of that. He then texted me telling me he was trying to push an agenda or something. I told him to drop the song and I’ll reply if the need came up. We were all calm.
I came out from the club then I did the song sharply, shot the video too and I posted it up before I got to my ends and the rest was history.
As I posted it I turned off my phone and went to sleep. When I woke up, I saw a ton of missed calls and people texting me about a Twitter space. I knew he was really pained. He dropped a reply but it wasn’t hard (laughs)
It was good a lot of people got clout from it though, free recognition and all of that. It was crazy, man. It’s something people will remember for some time”
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Rumours are that PsychoYP doesn’t write his verses and he doesn’t waste time sending his verse in. I needed to know from the horse’s mouth as they say.
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“I could have done a song during this interview timeframe, but I’m not with my laptop and y’all ain’t paying. I’m just joking (laughs)”
“A verse takes me a couple of minutes, I just turn up the volume and run it and listen back. I mix when I’m recording so it’s basically done once I finish recording.”
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Odumodublvck is one guy on the rise and he featured on Bando Diaries, a song which went viral and saw a ton on rappers jump on the beat.
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“Odumodublvck is a crazy individual and the verse he dropped was the hardest verse ever. I wanted to do a remix challenge and that verse was meant to be his remix entry. I didn’t let him know but when I heard the verse I let him know it was unfair for any remix challenge.“
I had shot the video without his verse but I had to go back to Abuja to shoot his part”
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Talking about Odumodublvck and artistes in Abuja, are there guys you want people to look out for?
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“There’s the apex guys, Zilla Oaks, Marv OTM, Azanti, Chimzy. Just check out all my guys from Abuja”
It’s an artiste’s dream to go on tour outside the country and for Psycho YP, touring with Rema has been crazy
“When my people told me I was going, I was like What?? I had to conceal the news till it was time to let it out. Tour has been great. Rema has gotten me drunk about two times now but yeah it’s been crazy.“
Favourite Project?
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“My unreleased project YP SZN 3. That’s what I’m currently jamming and it’s crazy”
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YP and Azanti is a combination that goes together like rice and stew. If you don’t believe me, listen to YP & Azanti Vol 1.
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On meeting Azanti:
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“Azanti was that kid who wanted me to hear his stuff. He was 15 at the time I guess. I listened and It wasn’t perfect but it had potential. I put him in a group chat with all my producers and we just started making music, a lot of music“
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To wrap up, I had to get YP’s thoughts about Rap in Nigeria and how he believes it can be propelled and more appreciated.
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“I believe people are making the music but the listeners need to listen, it’s not every time Afrobeats, sometimes calm down, hear jam and vibe. Once people open their minds, everything flows“
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YP concludes by telling us his plans for the rest of the year.
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“I’ve got YP SZN 3 on the way, some NFT dropping. Just watch out. I appreciate all the love”.
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It’s YP SZN and I’m here for it!
