The time of youth is one of the most impressionable times in the life of a human being. It is around that time when people are seeking themselves, some finding, some still groping in the dark that they can be assailed by the worst of life’s twist and turns. Youth is a time of wild adventure (these adventures find them). Youth is the busiest time of one’s life.
However, parents do not think so. So when the boomers say that ‘the youths are becoming more degenerate, selfish and lazy’ (inspired by the statement made on 20th April 2018), it is an unfounded and prejudiced claim.
These accusations have grown stronger as time has progressed. The news is rampant with the elder generations trying woefully to put an end to the ‘Marlian Craze’ that has possessed the youths.
What is the ‘Marlian Craze’ about really? Do they actually refuse to wear belts?
Today, eelive takes a deep dive into Naira Marley, his artistry and what it means to be ‘Marlian’ in today’s big story.
Who is Naira Marley?
It depends.
On-screen he is the naughtiest Nigerian artiste you may ever come across with his lyrical content centred around women and a hint of hedonism. In an up-close and personal interview though, Azeez Fashola is soft-spoken with a British accent to his Nigerian English.
He was born in Lagos on 9th May 1994 and he moved to the United Kingdom in 2000. He must have been six then. At such an impressionable age, one would expect any child to promptly colour over the values from his home country with that of his new one but it would not be the case.
Anyone that has heard a Naira Marley’s song has to understand Yoruba at an advanced level to properly appreciate it. If anything, Naira Marley never forgot Nigeria even though it barely raised him.
He schooled in Porlock Hall and got his General Certificate of Secondary Education from Walworth School. He graduated from Peckham Academy with a distinction and studied Business Law at Crossways College. Yes, Azeez Fashola does have a Master’s Degree. But Naira Marley has so much more.
Azeez Fashola to Naira Marley
Fashola has always wanted to be an MC and also do voice-overs. He does have a good croon that emerges from deep within his bones. He started singing in 2014, releasing his debut track with Max Twigz just three months in the game.
Marry Juana was the hit that got his gang No Mannaz, a group of dreadlocked boys, recognised on the street rap scene. His style was described as a mix between the then-emerging grime rap and afrobeat. Naira Marley will later call this style Afroswing.
His debut EP was called Gotta Dance and this was in 2015. It met a warm reception but this may not have been enough for the afroswinger who gained popularity with the song he made with Olamide and Lil Kesh, called Issa Goal.
It was a lucky shot. The song was released coincidently with the period that the Nigerian Football Team was preparing for their World Cup competition in Russia. The football references were obvious and the public made the connection. Issa Goal became of the official anthem of the Super Eagles for their World Cup competition in Russia.
This was the start of Naira Marley’s career in Nigeria. When the remix came six months later, with SLim and Slimcase, added to the host of hip-hop stars on the track, it renewed the popularity of the track and Naira Marley of course.
Naira Marley’s arrest
Naira would disappear from the charts for a while until 3 May 2019, when he featured Zlatan in a track named, Am I A Yahoo Boy. This song led to his arrest, along with co-singer Zlatan. Zlatan got released but Naira Marley stayed detained for almost two months.
In there, his fame spread like wildfire as his fan took to Twitter and demanded his release. The outcry would spark the age-old conversation about the morality of the cybercrime Yahoo Boys perpetrate. And as the conversation heated up, Naira Marley’s fanbase grew in size.
Was this a strategic move? Was it a stroke of genius? Or was this his heavy luck happening again?
While in prison, Naira Marley will release a song where he appreciated everyone in the industry that helped him to the point of his career. And just when all hope seemed to be lost, Naira Marley got a bail grant of 2 million naira which his family paid promptly.
His fans received what many called the genre-defining track that would finally stamp Afeez ‘Naira Marley’ Fashola’s name in every household.
The song, Soapy, enjoyed the full weight of social media attention, soaring up the Nigerian charts and stayed for quite a long time. The visuals for Soapy won in the Viewer’s Choice category in the Soundcity MVP awards.
He would then go on to release a six-track EP called Lord of Lamba. In the EP, everyone agrees that every song was good. Naira had created a style and had mastered it.
Not stopping there, the full advantage of the fan base revealed itself in the Marlian Fest of 30 December 2019. Sold out, tickets, stampede, and people doing anything necessary to touch Naira Marley it what was termed the wildest concert of the year.
Then, Naira Marley presented his new record label, Marlian Records. He announced Cblvck, MohBad, Fabian Blu and Zinoleesky as signed acts before proceeding to give the people a good time.
The Marlians had never been prouder. And despite the bad press they had been getting all year, the Marlians only grew stronger.
Marlians?
A term that denotes people who are part of the gang and adopt the practices that Naira Marley revealed to them. Over the latter half of 2019, social media saw several tweets from Naira Marley’s account where he slowly laid down what seemed like the rules of ‘Marlianism’.
This would earn him one of the most dedicated fanbases in Nigeria; with Marlians augmenting their lifestyles with the simple identifiers Naira Marley would tweet.
Of all the Marlians, the small sample size will reveal that 93% of them are in the age demographic where youth fall under. If you take eyes off the statistics and look around, you are more likely to find 3 out of 10 Afrobeat listeners who identify as Marlian.
With impressive numbers like that and the strength that makes sure the artiste becomes a trending topic whenever he does something; Naira Marley is could have the largest fan base in Nigeria. And he did it in just seven montths.
This is not surprising. Naira Marley has always been a gang member and the rules of forming gangs are the same. There is no one better than him at building a community amongst the Nigerian artistes.
Naira’s genre-defining Afroswing that is a mixture of Yoruba sung with time signatures mostly used by British rappers; does hold its own when it undergoes a thorough musical analysis.
Sonically, his production is lush and powerful, his vocals, deep baritone that complement the superb instrumentals. One of the strongest areas of his music is his lyrical content.
The lack of complexity, the flow in Yoruba and the themes that he deals are exactly what holds the Marlians together before the identifying behaviour perpetuated by Naira Marley. Naira Marley is doing what the greatest music has done over time – inspire a cultural movement.
Of course, these sounds vulgar to whoever doesn’t identify as a Marlian and on the other side of the camp where the older demographic occupy, the numbers are even lower. Naira Marley resonates with the young people much less than he does with older audiences,
But why do young people love Naira Marley? What is so good about him?
The spirit of youth
It most definitely has to do with how much of himself he is. A quick stroll down his tweets reveals the profile of a young man isn’t anything different from what he is.
This carefree attitude coupled with a strong sense of self makes him addictive and followable. There nothing more seductive to youth than a person with a strong identity, coupled with the fact that he is causing all this conversation at the age of 25.
Maybe some people take it too far, assembling into cult meetings. But there is a general sense of well-being and something akin to happiness when Marlians hear a Naira Marley song or simply talk about him.
And in the bleakness of things, owing to Nigeria’s rising youth employment, deteriorating security and a worsening economy; being a Marlian is the only bright spot in the lives of some of the battle-worn young people who ply the traffic-ridden rads of Lagos or have nothing to do in the other smaller towns in Nigeria.
Marlians are united by these moments when all they need to do is enjoy.
However, critics of Naira Marley have turned “Marlian” into an umbrella term for the irreverent and subversive at best, and the vandals and destroyers at worst.
They often complain that Naira Marley is destroying the youths and causing them to be irresponsible with his beliefs. At every point where we encounter Marlianism (for lack of a better word); the critic group berate the Marlians and link it to the profligacy of youth that only worsens as time goes by.
They act like it’s a cult following; but in reality, it is not. It’s just good fun.
Marlianism is, in fact, the act of youth being exactly what they should be; young, impressionable and adventurous. But it seems that no matter the generation or time period; whenever youths want to act their age, it always rubs the elders the wrong way.
What is happening is that Naira Marley is promoting the spirit of youth. This message is different from what these youths grew up hearing their whole lives. Growing up under the influence of the Nigerian tradition has to do with a lot of criticism bordering on disrespect (sometimes, absolutely no affirmation); more often than not.
So when these young people find a person that believes in them and validates their experiences, it becomes empowering.
Being a Marlian is not about skipping belts; it is actually about embracing your youth and enjoying it before it passes. It always passes.
In fact, one can argue that being a Marlian is being denigrated by people who cannot relate; just like the term slay queen.