Soundtracks: How Nigerian artistes lyrically eulogise #EndSARS

October 23, 2021 Village Reporter

In the thick of the September- October 2020 #EndSARS protests, Saturday Telegraph wrote a report about the various Nigerian songs that were co-opted as unofficial anthems across many protest grounds in the country. A year after the shooting of October 20 many Nigerian artistes have over time continued to document the travails of those moments with their songs as Davido’s ‘Fem’ assumed the ultimate soundtrack for the agitations. Artistes like Dremo, Vector, Dark Poet, and Falz had made records about police brutality, but the Lekki tollgate massacre has gone on to be immortalised in sonics just like Timaya’s song, ‘Dem Mama’ immortalised the gruesome histrionics of the Odi massacre. While Burna Boy had been obscure at the start of the protests due to what he later suggested was his mom’s ill-health, he led the way with ‘20.10.20,’ a record which commemorates the Lekki tollgate shooting. Chike came second with ‘Wahala Dey,’ a more relaxed and emotional take on the matter before Headies award winning rapper, AQ, came out with ‘Shoot The Messenger.’

Earlier in 2021, AQ released his critically acclaimed album, Golden. It was filled with riveting social-political messages and a pungent message around death. But ‘Shoot The Messenger’ was celebratory, however, in its dark luster. AQ is both happy, calm and agitated.