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Brains Behind The Hits : Top Nigerian Music Producers To Look Out For In 2023

Over the years, the Nigerian music space has witnessed the rise to prominence of a new generation of producers who have been instrumental in the international recognition of the Afrobeat genre. Songs they have produced for various artists have become chart-toppers and award winners. This article aims at recognizing their profound influence on the game and is in no particular ranking.

Don Jazzy

Brains Behind The Hits : Top Nigerian Music Producers To Look Out For In 2023, Yours Truly, Articles, March 29, 2024

Since he and D’Banj first appeared on the music scene in 2004 with “Tongolo” and “Why Me,” Don Jazzy has worked with almost all of the A-list artists in the business today.

He is arguably the most significant producer in Nigeria and has a keen eye for emerging artists. Jazzy is gifted with the ability to hand-pick upcoming artists and reinvent them into stars, and there is much evidence to support this assertion.

Don Jazzy, whose real name is Michael Collins Ajereh, is a music mogul whose production credits list is chock-full of many hits. His trademark sound, “It’s Don Jazzy Again,” has been used on many of his production for his Mohits to Mavins stars, including Korede Bello’s highlife rhythm “Godwin,” and other peppy club bangers by Tiwa Savage, D’Banj and a whole lot more.

Additionally, Don Jazzy has worked with artists worldwide, notably on Jay Z, Kanye West, and Beyoncé’s high-wattage composition “Lift Off,” where Jazzy’s pulsing, filtered techniques stand out.

He is the Founder of the Mavins Music Label, with stars like Ayra Starr, Rema, Johnny Drille, and Ladipoe, among others. It was formerly Mohits and had stars like Dbanj, Tiwa Savage, Dr. Sid, D Prince, Wande Coal, and others.

The veteran producer appears to have delegated much of his recent work to younger artists like his in-house producer, London, and Babyfresh. However, he is still the de facto standard in business in Nigeria.

Rexxie

Brains Behind The Hits : Top Nigerian Music Producers To Look Out For In 2023, Yours Truly, Articles, March 29, 2024

When the tag “Yo, Rexxie Pon this one (PonDits)” enters at the beginning of a song, you can be sure it will be a big hit. The brain behind the alluring Zanku sound goes by Ezeh Chisom but is often referred to as Rexxie in the industry.

He is one of the producers who consistently produced number-one hits for the Marlian community and other Big-name artists. He has collaborated with artists like Naira Marley, Zlatan, Lyta, Burna Boy, Tiwa Savage, and Mohbad, to name a few.

He produces many popular songs, including Gbeku, Soapy, and Tesumole. In addition, the Detty December soundtracks, Able God for Chinko Ekun, Lil Kesh, Zlatan Ibile, Logo Benz for Lil Kesh, Olamide, and Zlatan, and Zanku (Legwork) for Zlatan were all produced by him in 2018.

Naira Marley’s big 2020 hit song, Aye, was produced by Rexxie. Ko por Ke (KPK) by Himself and Mohbad, one of the trendiest and most addicting songs of late 2020, was produced by this multi-talented individual. The African producer of the year award went to Rexxie at the 2020 Soundcity MVP Awards Festival.

Kel-P

Brains Behind The Hits : Top Nigerian Music Producers To Look Out For In 2023, Yours Truly, Articles, March 29, 2024

Kel P is the stage name of Udoma Peter Kelvin Amba, a Nigerian record producer, performer, and songwriter. Kel P rose to fame as a Nigerian influencer and is most known for producing the 2019 album African Giant, which was nominated for a Grammy.

Along with Wizkid, Kel P co-produced some of the Grammy-winning beats for the nominated Made in Lagos Deluxe version by Wizkid and the Global Music Album winner, Mother Nature, by Angélique Kidjo. Burna Boy, Niniola, Skip Marley, Wurld, Dadju, Ashidapo, Phyno, Seyi Shay, Rema, and many others are among the artists with whom Kel P has worked and collaborated.

The Aristokrat Group, the parent business of Aristokrat Records, and Universal Music France, a division of the Universal Music Group, collaborated with Kel P. He also secured a distribution agreement with Caroline France.

KillerTunes

Brains Behind The Hits : Top Nigerian Music Producers To Look Out For In 2023, Yours Truly, Articles, March 29, 2024

Olaye Daniel Otaiye, A record producer and composer with a long list of successful continental singles, is known professionally as Killertunes. He is one of the most talented and well-known sound creators from Nigeria.

‘Killertool’ is the name Killertunes likes to call his instrument.

He began his profession at the incredibly young age of 17. Later, he began to put together some percussion instruments, which he utilized as a backing soundtrack to jazz up the music he was producing with his piano and guitar skills. Through this and years of consistency, he establishes himself as the most sought-after producer in Africa.

Tempoe

Brains Behind The Hits : Top Nigerian Music Producers To Look Out For In 2023, Yours Truly, Articles, March 29, 2024

Producer Tempoe is skilled at creating incredibly catchy songs that quickly win over listeners. Michael Chigozie Alagwu, often known as Tempo, is undoubtedly the best for having hearing for excellent sound. The 24-year-old music producer has played a crucial role in recent Afrobeats globalization achievements. Before becoming a beneficiary of the Sarz Academy, he created music for artists like Ckay and Blaqbonez. With “Godly” by Omah Lay and “Door,” one of the highlights tracks from Joeboy’s debut album, ‘Somewhere Between Beauty & Magic,’ he has continued to make a name for himself in the Nigerian music space.

From producing numerous Apple Music chart-topping singles to writing tunes that broke Billboard record after record, To perfect his sound, Tempoe has adhered to one rule: if he doesn’t feel it, he won’t spill it.

This guideline guided him from 2016, when he produced Ckay’s summer song, “Nkechi Turnup,” to 2019, when it ushered in the Billboard charting record by Ckay, “Love Nwantiti.”And this quality, which is deeply rooted in his penchant for perfection, is the secret to the success of other songs like Joeboy’s “Alcohol,” Omah Lay’s “Understand,” and even AV’s “Confession.”

P – Prime

Brains Behind The Hits : Top Nigerian Music Producers To Look Out For In 2023, Yours Truly, Articles, March 29, 2024

One of the youngest producers in Nigeria is Emmanuel Peace Oredope, better known by his stage name P.Priime.

P-Priime, who is recognized by his catchphrase “P-P-Priimee, Giddem!” has succeeded in making some of the most dope trending beats in the country. At age 15, he began learning and creating music.

From being a student at Sarz Academy to collaborating with some of Nigeria’s top singers, like Fireboy, Cuppy, Zlatan, Naira Marley, and Olamide, and producing some of the best music in the world, there has been a lot of evident growth for the young lad. Songs like Peruzzi’s “Southy Love” and Portable’s “Zazu Zeh” with Olamide and Poco Lee, amongst others, have enjoyed the production brilliance of P-Prime.

Blaise Beatz

Brains Behind The Hits : Top Nigerian Music Producers To Look Out For In 2023, Yours Truly, Articles, March 29, 2024

“It’s Blaise on the beat baby,” or “OBAH,” is Blaise Beatz’s catchphrase. Though he has been in the background producing, he got his big break when he worked on LAX’s debut album ‘Rasaking’ in 2018 and started gaining attention.

Initially going as ”Larryblaise,” he changed his brand name to ‘Blaise-On-The-Beat.’ He has collaborated with notable Nigerian musicians, including Wizkid, Adekunle Gold, Tiwa Savage, Tekno, Skiiibi, and Reekado Banks, and has developed a distinct beat and sound.

The most popular pop song of 2020, ”Something Different” by AdeKunle Gold, was produced by him as he collaborated with AG Baby to deliver the “Afropop vol.1” album. It’s awe-inspiring how he captured Adekunle Gold’s journey from an alternative folk sound to the current pop sound he now exudes.

He produced “Slow Whine,” “Omaema,” ‘Suru,” and “Enjoy” by Tekno in addition to working on Tekno’s debut album. The famous song “LaLa” featuring CKay can be found on Davido’s ‘A Better Time’ album. In addition, he was the producer of Dj Tunez’s song “Pami,” which features Wizkid, Adekunle Gold, and Omah Lay.

Young Jonn

Brains Behind The Hits : Top Nigerian Music Producers To Look Out For In 2023, Yours Truly, Articles, March 29, 2024

John Saviour “Young Jonn” Udomboso is known for the catchphrase “JIGGY” in his works. The Nigerian singer, songwriter, and music producer is well known for his top singles “Dada” and the remix with Davido. Before fully transitioning to songwriting in the 2010s, he had music production credits on popular industry singles and was primarily linked with the YBNL mafia family.

Later, after receiving nominations for “Producer of The Year” at the 2015 Nigeria Entertainment Awards and The Headies 2015, he rose to the third position on The NET’s list of “Nigeria’s Top 7 Biggest Music Producers.” He is currently signed to Chocolate City Music.

One of his latest tracks, “Xtra Cool,” currently ranks high amongst the country’s top songs on streaming services.

Telz

Brains Behind The Hits : Top Nigerian Music Producers To Look Out For In 2023, Yours Truly, Articles, March 29, 2024

Producer Alli Odunayo, often known as Telz, is a Grammy nominee. His signature sound at the beginning of tracks is typical “Funkula.” However, many are guilty of using the terms “Born Killer,” “Fun Killer,” and “Porn Killer” instead.

Telz began working as a producer in 2017. He produced most of the top songs of 2020. The tracks for Patoranking’s hit songs “Abule,” “Do Me,” and “Mon Bebe” with Flavour were created by him. “Wonderful,” “Onyeka,” and “Wetin Dey Sup” were all songs he produced for Burna Boy’s Grammy-winning album ‘Twice as Tall.’

Pheelz

Brains Behind The Hits : Top Nigerian Music Producers To Look Out For In 2023, Yours Truly, Articles, March 29, 2024

Pheelz, also known professionally as Phillip Kayode Moses, is a multi-talented, Grammy Award-winning producer, composer, and musician. His producer tag is “Rii! Riddimacoolayor!”( Rhythm, Cool, and Young). He has been a part of the music industry since 2012 and is a signed artist to Olamide’s YBNL Nation record label.

Before changing his name to “Riddimacoolayor,” he was known as “Pheelz Mr. Producer.” Phleez has collaborated with some of Nigeria’s top artists throughout the years to create some of the most popular songs in the nation. ‘The Chairman’ Album by MI, ‘Ghetto University’ by Runtown, “Billionaire” by Teni, and “Scatter” by Fireboy are just a handful of the songs he produced. He also worked on Olamide’s Baddest Ever Album, “Street,” “OT,” “2kings,” and Tiwa Savage’s hit single, “49-99.”

Pheelz played a significant role in the production of Fireboy’s Apollo Album in 2020. Some of his hot shows from the album include Fireboy’s hottest singles, “Champion,” “Remember Me,” and “Spell,” which were praised by fans. 2021’s “High” by Adekunle Gold and “Electricity” featuring Davido are a few of Pheelz’s masterclasses, and that same year, he released an EP with five tracks and the title Hear me out but no features.

London

Brains Behind The Hits : Top Nigerian Music Producers To Look Out For In 2023, Yours Truly, Articles, March 29, 2024

Mavins Records also employs a house producer named London. This British-Nigerian producer, better known by the producer tag “London!!!,” entered the music industry in 2019 and has since become well-known for creating some of the most outstanding singles ever. London, born Michael Ovie Hunter as a lone child in Kaduna, Northern Nigeria, produced incredible work on Wizkid’s Made in Lagos and Tiwa Savage’s 2020 hit track Koroba. He also had notable hits for Wizkid, Tiwa Savage, Johnny Drille, and Crayon, including Temptation, Mystery Girl, and Do Me.

Arya Starr’s “Bloody Samaritan” was produced by him, and also Rema’s “Soundgasm” in 2021. On TikTok, it was famous as fans continued to dance and choreograph the song in their videos.

SarzBrains Behind The Hits : Top Nigerian Music Producers To Look Out For In 2023, Yours Truly, Articles, March 29, 2024

Osabuohien Osaretin, best known by his stage name Sarz, is a Nigerian record producer and musician. He was born on March 17, 1989. Although, as music enthusiasts know, the song will likely be a hit once it’s “Sarz on the rhythm,” Sarz needs little to no introduction.

One of Africa’s top and most important manufacturers must be included on this list for it to be complete. Sarz Academy, his producing school for new talent, was established in June 2015. An academy that contributed to the success of numerous A-list producers, including Tempoe, P. Prime, and others. Many big stars in Nigeria’s entertainment industry use Sarz, who is considered to be the best. In addition to producing, he has collaborated with several singers on popular songs, making him one of the most followed producers on social media.

He has produced multiple popular songs and projects, including “Girls with Trobul” by him and Wurld, “Oja” and “Instagram” for Reminisce, “Gimme Love” for Seyi Shay, “Bana” and “Desiigner” for Niniola, and numerous jams for Wizkid and other notable Nigerian musicians. His 2021 masterpiece “Monalisa” by Lojay featuring him is a testament to his creative brilliance as a producer and Creative.

Countless other excellent music producers are not recognized on this list as they merit a job well done. Therefore the list is never-ending.

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