SECOND WAVE OF ARTISTS FROM CAMEROON, WHO MOVED TO NIGERIA FOR COLLABORATION 

English-speaking Cameroon artists moving to Nigeria to collaborate is an age-old phenomenon. 

In the early 2000s when the Nigerian music industry started experiencing an unprecedented boom, English-speaking Cameroonian contemporary music artists started traveling to the neighboring country feed from the granary. By virtue of the cultural similarities , English-speaking Cameroonian artists thought Nigeria could be the cradle for liberal artistic expression and success. 

DENZYL (AMBE)

AMBE, formerly known as Denzyl traveled to Nigeria in the early 2000s . Some songs from his debut album ’E Don Blow’’ were produced in Nigeria by J Sleek, renowned as producer for 2 Face Idibia, Faze, Chuddy K, and Sound Sultan.

DENZYL (Ambe) was introduced to Wizkid by J Sleek. They collaborated on the song “Do You Really Wanna Know”, produced in November 2012. 

WEST DON

West Don is renowned for his hit song “Ajebota”. He relocated to Nigeria to explore the music landscape. After dropping ‘Oyibo’’ , he linked up with famous Nigerian artist Terry G on an up-tempo smash-tune titled ‘’Bend Over’’, produced by Smch Beat and Terry G 

GROOVIE 

Cameroonian dancehall artist GROOVIE Selecta was making waves in Buea in the early 2000s. 

He wowed the audience with his incredible voice and lyrical versatility. 

GROOVIE moved to Lagos and lived there for close to 10 years. It was expected that his talent will stand out. GROOVIE was not signed by a major label. He returned to Cameroon in 2019. 

XCELLENTE

Xcellenté was formerly known as Excel. He was renowned in Bamenda for songs. He traveled to Nigeria in the early 2000s and got signed by Achievas, home to Solidstar. In 2011z he dropped “MUTINA” Ft. label mate Solidstar 

He later released “JALAA” featuring label mate Solidstar. He collaborated with some big names in the industry from the likes of Iyanya, Solidstar, J.Martins and Ric Hassani. 

MR VAL

Mr Val was a member of M-Thugs alongside Dr Sley. In the early 2000s, the R&,B group was popular in Buea. They traveled to Nigeria to pursue their music career. They faced hardship in the streets of Lagos. Dr Sley was forced to return to Cameroon. 

In 2009, he was amongst top 4 finalist representing in the 1st season of “Peak Talent Show” 

In 2011, Mr Val signed a record deal with Big Dreams Entertainment and debuted on April 21, 2012 with “S’aye Temi”, he was back in the studio to record three new singles which were released in late 2012.

He later dropped “Bulu Bala” and “My choice”. 

It is expected that the third wave of artists ; Elisha K and Kocee will make a huge difference. 

#nexdimempire