Wizkid vs Fela: “Why do we feel so safe that our glory is in the past?” – Man queries Nigerians

Mr Ejump

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Wizkid vs Fela: “Why do we feel so safe that our glory is in the past?” – Man queries Nigerians

A Nigerian man has taken to social media to weigh in on the viral comparison between Afrobeats superstar Wizkid and music legend Fela Anikulapo-Kuti.

This comes amid recent discussions involving Seun Kuti, Fela’s son, and Wizkid, which reignited debates about whether present-day’s artists should be compared to Fela.

Questioning Nigeria’s Attitude Towards Young Talents

In the viral video, the young man questioned why Nigerians often assume that the country’s best days are behind it and why younger talents are sometimes discouraged from surpassing past legends.

Comparison Preserves Legacy, Not Disrespect

He argued that comparison is not disrespectful but a way to preserve legacy. The man further used football examples to illustrate his point.

He noted that Diego Maradona retired in 1997, yet Lionel Messi, who began his professional career years later, is often compared to him.

He also referenced Portugal’s football history, where Eusébio’s achievements remain unmatched, yet Cristiano Ronaldo has risen to become one of the country’s greatest players.

Fear of Young Generations’ Success

Turning back to Nigerian culture, he questioned why society fears the success of younger generations.

In his words: “There is a player called Diego Armando Maradona. Maradona stopped playing football in 1997, and after so many years, down to 2003, a player like Messi played his first professional football for Barcelona at the age of 16. Now, did the year difference stop the comparison between Messi and Maradona? No. Do you know why? Because they are in the same profession.

Maradona played football so well that when he retired, Napoli decided they were going to retire his jersey number 10. But the Italian Football Federation said that if you are a professional football club in Italy, jerseys from 1 to 11 must remain active, no matter the legacy you are trying to protect. And so, Napoli brought back that jersey and handed it over to anyone who could wear it. But did they put the person in the space of Maradona? No, because they only obeyed a law.

Now, let’s not even go to Messi. There is a player called Andrés Iniesta, who also played for Barcelona. When he left, because of his midfield achievements and how much of a maestro he was as a midfielder, people thought jersey number 8 should be rested. But after a few years, a player called Pedri rose through the ranks of Barcelona’s La Masia, and they decided that to encourage a new player to do what Iniesta had done for them, so he could pick up the challenge and give them a future Iniesta, they gave Pedri jersey number 8. Not because he had done what Iniesta did, but so that he could try to do what Iniesta did for Barcelona. That was a way of pushing him. That is Pedri with jersey number 8.

When you go to the history of Portugal, only one player has scored nine goals in one World Cup, playing six games — a player called Eusébio. Go and Google it. Eusébio da Silva Ferreira wore jersey number 13 for Portugal, and till today he is nicknamed the Black Panther because of that jersey. Do you know who is wearing that jersey today? Renato Veiga, and he is not even well known. Eusébio was that good. When Eusébio played football, they never knew people like Ronaldo would be born. But do you know that when Ronaldo came, he is arguably the best player that ever played for Portugal? Does that throw away the history of Eusébio? No.

Now we sit down in Nigeria and hear issues like Sabinus and Mr Ibu. Do you know why that comparison was easy for people to make? Because they are in the same field of making people laugh. One was on TV, the other is on your phone. So comparison is the easiest way to keep anyone’s legacy going. If not for comparison, a lot of people would have been forgotten.

As bad as our politicians are, if you want to compare the president who tried and the one who did not try, you still have to bring back the name of the one who did not try so you can know that the other tried. Why? Because you cannot compare a president and a pastor. Buhari and Obasanjo, Abacha and Abdulsalami — in those comparisons, one must do better than the other because they are in the same profession.

When John the Baptist was mistaken for Jesus because he was doing something close to what they said Jesus was coming to do, people asked, “Are you the one we are waiting for, or should we expect another?” Did that stop the fact that John was not worthy to untie the strap of Jesus’ sandals? No. Comparison is the best way to keep anyone’s legacy alive, no matter who the person is.

Till today, even though it has been proven that Jesus is the Son of God — God in the image of man to dwell among men — people still compare him. Did you know that because he came as a man, they rate his name alongside Michael Jackson’s, saying Jesus is the most popular name after Michael Jackson? Why would they even try that? They did not say “after God.” They said “after the most popular name” because Jesus was named like every man. They even mention Coca-Cola — a non-living thing. Does this stop Jesus from being the Son of God? No. Does it stop churches from acknowledging his name? No.

So what am I trying to say in essence? There is nothing wrong under the sun if Wizkid, Burna Boy, or anybody else does music. You can never compare Osime to Fela. You can never compare Pastor Oyedepo to Fela because they are not in the same field. But the fact that people are in the same field, whether living or dead, comparison must happen, and there is nothing disrespectful about it.

Lamine Yamal showed one or two years of footballing brilliance and excellence, and they quickly gave him Messi’s jersey. Do you know why? Barcelona is trying to encourage him to outdo Messi. That will be a profit for the club, a profit for him, a profit for football, and a greater chance for younger ones to do greater things than Messi. Whether he will do it or not is up to him.

As a nation, I don’t know why we feel safe believing our best days are behind us. We believe the glory of Nigeria is in the past. That is why when one president is leaving, he makes sure the next one is worse. That has been Nigeria’s trajectory. The same applies to governors. Do you know why Alex Otti is popular? It is because he is better than his last two predecessors. If they had performed well, Alex Otti would not be this popular.

I don’t understand why there is fear when someone from the younger generation tries to outperform someone from the past.

The Seun Kuti issue would have been better if a neutral person made the argument — maybe a music expert, analyst, PMAN member, or someone like Jimmy Jatt. It would have been healthier. Also, if the argument did not come from “Wizkid FC is comparing Wizkid with Fela,” it would have been better. Let us put it on musical grounds, album grounds, or award grounds.

But comparing someone to your father means your father did so well that even years after his death, every musician is measured against him. Is that not the best way to remember your father? There is no national holiday for Fela, yet his name is still alive through comparison. You should take pride in that, not fight it.

This issue degenerated when insults and curses came in. Respect is reciprocal. Your elder brother spoke well of this same person. You and your sister went below the belt. Everyone has the right to defend their own. Just as you defend your father, the other person defends himself.

In essence, we must know when to stop. Nothing in the history of mankind will stop musicians from being compared to Fela. The only way that will happen is if we all agree that Fela was not a musician.

Until then, comparison will always happen.”

Video below…