Nigerian singer Bella Shmurda has issued a heartfelt call to his peers in the music industry, urging them to focus on creating purpose-driven music and living lives worthy of emulation.
Speaking on a recent episode of the Afrobeats Intelligence podcast, Bella expressed concern over the growing trend of materialism and vanity in the Nigerian music scene. According to him, the industry has become overly influenced by Western values—particularly the glamorization of wealth and luxury—often at the expense of meaningful impact and authentic expression.
“Our industry has become all about flash,” he said. “Everyone is copying the American hip-hop lifestyle—buying expensive jewellery, showing off exotic cars. These things have become so normalized that young people now chase music for the wrong reasons.”
Bella challenged fellow artists to shift their priorities from chasing superficial success to building legacies that inspire the next generation. He lamented that many artists now launch music without any deeper message, using rollout campaigns that emphasize materialism rather than purpose or creativity.
“You need to have a reason for doing music beyond material things,” he stressed. “What message are we sending to the young ones coming up? Where’s the purpose? Where’s the impact? Because in the end, this is about legacy.”
He went on to reveal that his own artistic journey has undergone a personal shift. Reflecting on his breakout track “Vision 2020,” Bella said he now feels a stronger responsibility to use his platform meaningfully.
“At one point, I stopped wearing jewellery,” he shared. “I realized that’s not my purpose. I came into this with Vision 2020—that song had meaning. That’s the kind of music I want to be known for.”
Bella’s message is a timely reminder in an era where music and influence are increasingly intertwined. For him, true success lies not in how much an artist owns, but in what they stand for—and what they leave behind.
