10 Artists To Watch In 2016

Each year there are artists that edge closer to making their big break into the mainstream of Nigerian music, some are relatively new to the scene, some have been grinding for years before making their presence felt, while some merely caught our attentions with their talent alone.

Here are 10 artists that should see their fortunes drastically improve in 2016 if they put in the required work.

Tekno has been on our radar for quite some time now, way before Made Men Music Group (Triple MG) signed him up in late 2013.

With his stellar remake of Ice Prince’s “Oleku“ and his chart topping single – “Holiday”featuring Davido you could tell the singer, dancer and producer had what it took to churn out a smash hit single.

Though he had constantly delivered buzz singles like “Dance” and “Everything”, 2015 was the year he finally scored a smash hit.

“Duro” was one of the biggest songs of 2015 in Nigeria, the Triple MG act followed that up with “Wash” which is currently enjoying massive airplays across the entire nation. 2016 promises to be a very good year for the young singer, and if he can keep up his current momentum, he will surely shoot-up to the super-stardom status in no time.

Adekunle Gold was underground for a while. He was once half of a boy band called – “The Bridge”, before they both decided to pursue a solo career which surely paid off for Adekunle Gold.

Adekunle Gold rolled out “Sade” in December 2014, a cover/remake of One Direction’s “Story Of My Life” which caught the attention of YBNL’s boss – Olamide and this sawAdekunle Gold signed up to the YBNL imprint.

2015 saw his stock rise with the follow up single “Orente” which enjoyed massive airplay throughout the year. He later ended the year on a very high note with the prayerful number “Pick Up” which is currently the most played song in Lagos.

Adekunle Gold’s style of music is refreshing; it’s a break-away from the norm (Afropop).  The urban highlife act has managed to win over quite a large number of fans without lewd lyrics and a club tailored single; a feat which is hard to achieve in the Nigerian music scene.

There are echoes of a possible release of his debut album in 2016. Without a shadow of doubt, Adekunle Gold is one artist we all should be excited about in 2016.

Tinny Entertainment signee – Ycee took quite some time to get his groove on. He released a slew of singles since his debut in 2012, mostly misses, but the young rapper kept grinding until he finally struck gold in 2015 with the crossover single “Jagaban”.

The catchy song with heavy instrumentals also boasts of a remix with Olamide which made the already blown song even bigger. Ycee quickly followed that up with an impressive single dubbed “Omo Alhaji” which is doing quite well with the release of the visuals.

There is a lot of promise for the 2015 rookie of the year winner at the Headies.

If you are a regular visitor of Notjustok, or an ardent follower of Nigerian music, you must have come across the name Humblesmith a few times. He made his first appearance on notjustok in 2014 with his impressive single “Chairmoo” accompanied by a Sesan directed video that racked up good airplay.

Humblesmith enlisted Phyno for “Osinachi” in the summer of 2015 and the single was widely accepted upon release. The single was so successful, it earned him a spot on the 2015 Rookies of the year at the Headies and irresistibly prompted Davido to jump on the remix of the song. The controversy surrounding Davido’s verse on the remix ensured the song quickly spread like wildfire.

Osinachi remix is one of the early big songs of 2016 thus far and you can almost tell that all is required of Humblesmith now is a strong follow up single and he would definitely have a better year than the last.

Project fame alumna – Niniola has been on the rise since she made her official debut in 2014 with the chart topping single “Ibadi” and she gets better with her craft with each release.

Niniola describes her genre as AfroHouse which makes her sound unique from what’s obtainable in the Nigerian music scene. Her 2015 Sarz produced single “Soke” was widely accepted and it won her some more fans, so much so she got featured on BET Award winning singer – Eddy Kenzo’s buzz single “Mbilo Mbilo”.

Niniola is a good song writer, combined with her vocal dexterity and stage craft, there is no doubt she has all the makings of a diva. She needs to put out more material in 2016 and she will be on her way to the top of the food chain.

There is no denying the ascendance of X3M music songstress and songwriter – Simi in the last 12 months. Her 2015 single – “Jamb Question” was received with rave reviews from fans and critics alike. A guest appearance by Falz on the video and remix made the song even bigger.

She followed “Jamb Question” up with the dance tailored single – “Open And Close” a fusion of pop and fuji. Her own guest appearance on Falz’ “Soldier” is also noteworthy.

Simi is a fantastic songwriter, one of her secret weapons is her storytelling ability evident in most of her songs coupled with her soothing voice.

Simi is expected to drop a body of work in 2016 that should hopefully take her a step closer to belonging to the top tier of Nigerian music.

Johnny Drille is one of the surprise inclusions on this list, but the Contemporary Gospel/folk artiste has done just enough in the last 12 months to earn him a spot.

The Ex-Project fame contestant caught our attention with his alternative cover of Mavin records songstress Di’Ja’s “Awww” followed by some stellar releases.

Johnny Drille has a great music mind, all his singles till date were self produced, his songwriting skill is impeccable, and his vocal ability is unsurpassed.

Johnny Drille needs to put a face to his voice in 2016 by releasing visuals and maybe put out a body of work . With no iota of doubt, Johnny Drille is destined for greatness.

Mystro is criminally underrated and slept-on, the uber-talented singer and producer is long overdue for the mainstream space.

Mystro has been making music for a very long time, in fact he made his Notjustok debut in 2011, he has since explored different sounds ranging from RnB to Pop to Afrobeats.

Mystro released one of the under-appreciated body of work in 2015 dubbed “Covers” where he flexes his muscle as a music genius and all the songs on the project were reproduced and recorded by him.

Mystro signed a management deal with the well versed Godwin Tom’s management outfit in late 2015. With the wealth of experience Godwin Tom brings to the table he should be able to steer Mystro to greatness in 2016.

HKN Music recording artist B-Red has not had it easy in terms of criticism of his music, but he has taken them to good use and grown as an artist since his debut in 2013.

B-Red churned out some impressive singles in 2015 and scored a massive collaboration with Akon on ”Cucumber”. In this same vein, he also started 2016 on a strong note by teaming up with YBNL act Lil Kesh on a song titled – “Overdo”

2016 is looking like the year B-Red finally drop that chart topping single.

Ghana based Nigerian act – Mr Eazi has been a force in the Ghanaian music industry since his debut mixtape “About To Blow’. He’s worked with heavyweights like Sarkodie and Efya, he’s made quite an impression in Ghana.

Mr Eazi’s partnership with London based producer Juls has been very fruitful, as they’ve both put out top-notch singles like the buzz single – “Bankulize”. His 2015 single – “Skin Tight” featuring Efya was a hit in Ghana.

Mr Eazi is gaining more popularity with each release, it’s only a matter of time before he penetrates the Nigerian market.