Read Burna Boy’s Very Explicit Feature In Billboard Magazine Special July Edition
American entertainment media brand, Billboard Magazine, features rave of the moment, Burna Boy, in an article titled “How Burna Boy Became Nigeria’s Surprise Success Story”, for its July edition. The article takes readers on a 360 ride through the life of the 28-year-old superstar, his outstanding feats so far and the highly anticipated “African Giant” LP.
Read excerpts below:
When Burna Boy arrives three hours late to an east London studio on a balmy July evening, he is laid-back to the point of comatose — and monosyllabic. He asks that the photo shoot happen quickly, and when he sits down to be interviewed, the first thing he does is stand up again. “No,” he says, suddenly definitive. “Need a smoke. Come.”
– the article begins.
The tall and imposing 28-year-old, born Damini Ogulu, leads the way into his black minivan, where a member of his entourage hands him his smoke. For the next 45 minutes, he gets lost in a dense, pungent cloud. But as he inhales, Burna Boy — arguably the most popular exponent of Afro-Fusion right now — begins to unwind. “Take as long as you like,” he says with a sparkling smile. “Got all the time in the world.”
“It’s funny,” he says. “Most Americans don’t even understand what I’m saying in my records, but they pick up on the vibe, the vibration.” One reason he believes Afrobeats, the contemporary version of Afrobeat, is having a moment is because “everything started from Africa, and so music started from Africa. It’s all going to come back to its roots eventually. When you hear our music, it resonates in the soul.”
“Nigerians love me a lot more now because they can see that the whole world likes me, too. They think I’m something special, but I’m not. I’m just a human whose skill is making music. Way I see it, everyone plays their own role in the world, and no role is more important than the other.” He has become one of the richest Nigerian artists, but even with a net worth that has been reported to be $22 million, he says, “You are only as rich as where you come from, and Nigeria has a lot of poverty.”
Read the full article here
