The Nigerian artist known as Burna Boy, whose real name is Damini Ogulu, has decided to pass on his renowned African Giant title to his fellow musician, Folarin Falana, also known as Falz the Bahd Guy. This announcement was made by Burna Boy on X.com on Thursday, addressing the reasons behind his choice to distance himself from the ongoing #EndBadGovernanceInNigeria protests.
Expressing his thoughts on the matter, Burna Boy mentioned that his spirit for the cause dissipated in 2020 during the ENDSARS protest, after certain demonstrators urged for a boycott of his music.
“The fire within me was extinguished on that day. Anybody who dares to mention my name this time around should beware,” Burna Boy expressed in reference to an older video from October 2020, in which protesters could be heard shouting, “Don’t play Burna o, we don’t want Burna.”
Burna Boy’s social media post prompted reactions from X users who criticized his silence during the ongoing protest.
One X.com user, tweeting anonymously as #boymanager0, remarked, “Sir, refrain from speaking. Just because you faced injustice does not justify giving up. Your music instilled in us the value of persevering, so why are you now engaging in foolishness?”
“I encouraged you to battle your oppressors, but you decided to oppose me instead,” Burna Boy responded.
Another user, tweeting as #Xperience_Snr, added, “The outcry of ‘No Burna Boy, We Don’t Want Burna Boy, Cancel’ did not arise out of nowhere. It was a significant letdown for many Nigerians because your previous actions, both abroad and domestically during elections and protests, often disregarded our concerns. Your silence spoke volumes.”
Several users also raised doubts about Burna’s self-proclaimed title as the ‘African Giant.’
“Aren’t you supposedly the Giant of Africa as you continuously claim to be? However, when the time comes to speak up, you mysteriously vanish like an ant in Africa,” wrote #Tooshugary4U.
Similarly, another user, #jr_barry, remarked, “So you want to disappear and still refer to yourself as the African giant.”
In response, Burna Boy announced, “I have passed it on to Falz, bros,” seemingly relinquishing the title to his fellow musician, Falz.