Singer Kcee has said that the Nigerian music industry did not treat him fairly at the beginning of his career, as many of his early efforts were not properly recognized despite the success of his songs.
Speaking in a recent interview on Afrobeats Intelligence, he explained that while he was still growing in the industry, he felt overlooked and often not considered for award nominations.
He added that his support came mainly from fans who continued to push his music even when official recognition was limited.
He spoke about his breakout song Limpopo, saying it changed his career path and opened wider opportunities for him, including international attention. He also noted that the song brought him strong earnings through ringback tune sales during that period.
Kcee further mentioned that Ojapiano also gained massive attention online, especially on TikTok, where it spread quickly and generated public discussion about its performance on major music charts. He said that with time, he has learned to value the benefits and income from his music more than awards.
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He said: “To be honest, I grew up in an industry that was not fair to… and giving my best and the industry was not recognising.
“The fans were the ones behind me. I did a lot of work, and they were not nominating me for awards. And I cried. I was pained. Right now, whether I win awards or not, I do not care. I prefer the rewards to the awards. It affected everything and not just music.
“When ‘Limpopo’ came, I was in tears that God had answered my prayers. It took me into the global market straight away. After all the years I have worked with Presh, that is the biggest record I have ever done.
“I see myself travelling to Uganda, the United States of America.
“When I dropped ‘Ojapiano’ today. The next day, it was doing 120,000 videos on TikTok in one day. It happened for seven days. And that raised a conversation in the industry like ‘Why is Kcee not sitting at number one on the Apple Store?’
“‘Limpopo’ gave me a lot of money from ringback tunes. We were making hundreds of thousands of dollars.”
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The singer, who first became known as part of the music duo KC Presh before their split in 2011, later went on to release several solo projects and gain major recognition in the industry, including winning Song of the Year at The Headies in 2013.
