Burna Boy has apologised for his past comments about Afrobeats after facing heavy backlash. In 2023, he said the genre “lacks substance” and that most of its artists had “almost no real-life experiences.” Many fans were disappointed, especially since he is seen as one of the biggest stars pushing Afrobeats to the world.
In a new chat with Eddie Kadi on 1Xtra, Burna Boy explained his mindset back then. “I wasn’t the happiest man in the world,” he said. He added that the reactions made him understand why people felt hurt. “I got the point of the Afrobeats tag in that moment. I totally get it and I apologise for that confusion.”
The Grammy winner explained that he never liked being boxed into one genre. “I didn’t understand why people wanted my music to be inside one box,” he said. “The way I saw it, if you just put everything into Afrobeats, you’re now comparing Socrates to Kendrick Lamar because they both said two things that rhyme so they both must be rappers.”
Burna Boy also spoke about his love for performing live. “I want to be able to do this until I die,” he said. “I want to be doing this the way someone like Coldplay has been doing it for a long time, or The Rolling Stones,” he continued. “These people are still doing what I’m doing now, so why don’t I see anyone that looks like me, on those levels, at that age? And it’s simple, it might sound crazy, it’s because they just don’t love it as much as I do.”
He shared that working with his idol Mick Jagger on his new track Empty Chairs was a dream come true. “Mick Jagger is the rock star,” he said. “I felt he, out of everyone in the world, would understand where I was coming from with this song lyrically and he did.” Burna described the collaboration as “one of the best experiences I’ve had.”
His new album No Sign of Weakness embraces his unique sound as he continues his European and North American tour this year.
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