Female Nigerian rapper, Omowunmi Akindele best known by her stage name, Mz Kiss, has dismissed the notion that rapping in Yoruba makes her local. She spoke of this and the challenges facing female artistes in Nigeria in an interview with Sunday Scoop.
On indigenous rapping, she said: “Some people are yet to understand that rapping in a particular dialect or language does not mean the rapper is restricted to a particular area. That I rap in Yoruba doesn’t mean I’m local. Hip hop is a culture that is recognised all over the world. As long as the sound is good, it has no boundaries.
Rap music is a global ‘vibe’, not restricted to a particular language. Now that the sound is cutting across globally, I’m fine with whatever name people chose to describe it as.”
On the challenges facing female artistes in Nigeria, she stated: “It’s quite challenging being a female rapper in Nigeria because the industry is dominated by male artistes . However, it has made me better and more determined to break boundaries. I ’ m glad people are paying attention to my brand now.
Being a female artiste in this part of the world is a challenge on its own because there’ s a belief that females should only be in the kitchen in an African home. As a result of this, when you’re chasing your dreams, you have to work three times harder than your male colleagues to get attention though it’ s not really easy for both genders. Women fight gender discrimination everyday and I believe with time, we would also be appreciated and be given what we truly deserve for hard work and bravery.