Can the real Bahd guy please stand up ?
Falz The Bahd Guy in a sense is a pioneer, he pioneered the razz Yoruba flow. Way before Ajebutter22 broke through with ‘Senrere’, Falz had already scored a sleeper hit in 2009 with the single ‘Shakara’ off the mixtape of the same name.
Born in the nineties, Falz isn’t the typical millennial rapper with little regard for the OGs and the foundation of the genre. He is from the New Skool era of UK returnees including, Omo Akin, Ajebutter22, DRB Lasgidi and partner in crime Cheyenne Labesa aka Chyn.
Falz’s calling card, which is rapping in the local Yoruba accent complete with ‘H-factor‘ and common-man humour might be mainstream today, but the son of the famous Nigerian lawyer Femi Falana was one of the pioneers of the style.
In 2014 with the momentum of his break out single ‘High Class‘, Falz managed to put out ‘Wazup Guy‘ his debut album; a conscious and considerate outing that accounts for rivalries, troubles in the society, handling the ladies and dominance, all the while dealing with the newfound fame instigated by his recent success.
In 2015, Falz was nominated in the ‘Best Collaboration of The Year’ category at the 2015 Nigeria Entertainment Awards for his chart-topping single titled ‘Marry Me‘ feat Yemi Alade. Falz later released a single titled ‘Ello Bae‘ which won him a nomination in the ‘Best Street Hop Artiste of The Year‘ category at The Headies 2015. Ever since till date, almost every top concert in the country had a Falz performance.
Coming off a very successful year, Folarinde ‘Falz’ Falana released his second studio album titled ‘Stories That Touch‘ November 2015. He has been ubiquitous, from fronting Ad campaigns for several brands to becoming an A-list star. Falz is a qualified lawyer but his route to the music scene has been less than conventional, blurring the line between his act as a comedian and a rapper. One is never quite sure which is which. Oddly it works, as he switches effortlessly between Yoru-English, Yoruba and Pidgin.
In 2016, Falz won ‘Best Actor in a Comedy Movie/Series‘ at the 2016 Africa Magic Viewers Choice Awards for his role as Segun in Funke Akindele’s TV series Jenifa’s Diary. In June of 2016, Falz was voted the winner of the ‘Viewer’s Choice Best New International Act‘ category at the 2016 BET Awards.
With everything falling in place for the ‘Karashika‘ crooner, his unexpected relationship and ‘Chemistry’ with X3M recording artist Simi added more star power to his rise to fame.
Before their joint EP, ‘Chemistry’, Simi and Falz had done a couple of collaborations, including ‘Soldier’ and ‘Jamb Question‘ which did amazing things for both their careers , making them the best duo in the Nigerian contemporary music scene.
Chemistry is quite the experimental EP, breaking new grounds in the field of male-female singing duos. The first of its kind, it is definitely a note worthy project for Falz and Simi.
Longevity
Falz the Bahd Guy is known, loved and respected by everybody (some even identify him as an actor first). His net worth continues to increase, and his talent wows on many fronts.
Although he has been consistently making music that connects with millions of people, for a while he never headline major concerts, neither was he considered for mouth watering endorsements. All that changed after he droppped ‘Marry Me‘ and ‘Karashika‘ in 2014.
Falz ability to pull crowds and command a strong following on social media is unprecidented considering he has never had a number one hit song in the country, yet he maintains his position on the charts with a string of hot songs.
His recent releases include, ‘Karashika’, ‘Soft work’, ‘Soldier’, ‘Bahd Baddo Baddest’, ‘Ello bae’, and ‘Marry Me’. These songs never topped the charts, but it affected the culture, and influenced the charts. People loved them, and became fans of the Falz. Each new song becomes a staple, and lasts longer than the so called number 1 hit songs, which sparks, blows hot and fizzles out from over-playing.
Social Media Age
With the rise of social media in Nigeria, and the improved internet access to young people in Nigeria, music consumption is changing, and Falz is increasingly embracing and making music for the new wave of digital Nigerians.
Falz is a great example of the power of social media in careers. Many fans of his music today got to know him far away from the music industry. Social media interaction employs a different set of skillset from the offline communications that we enjoy. It is colorful, witty, dipped in imagery, storytelling and reactions. Humor is another great hit online, and beef, which everyone enjoys on the internet is also a part of it.
A huge number of his fans embraced his Instagram persona which generates humour by passing the English language through a filter. That crowd laughed and followed him through his comic self, becoming loyal in the process. And then he sold them his music, creating his lyrics and composition and videos around that character which has made him appear seamless on all platforms. His transition to TV is based upon this.
In 2017, he is back with a new single ‘Wehdone Sir’, with a video to drive home a movement. A conscious song, Falz delivers it with the wit of social media, complete with plenty of humor and enough material gotten from countless Twitter opinions and memes.
This style of music has seen him increasinly relevant and successful, catering to a generation that loves a dose of humor and comedy in the art that they interact with and consume. Falz is still a social media king, and the people are loving it.
