Wizkid: MADE IN LAGOS UK CONCERT

December 6, 2021

Wizkid: MADE IN LAGOS UK CONCERT

This weekend we made history; another point went to Africans worldwide as Wizkid became the first African artist to sell out the O2, a twenty a 20,00 capacity venue THREE TIMES! (and twice on a weekday)

The ‘Made In Lagos’ Tour, named after his critically-acclaimed fourth studio album, which continues to garner rave reviews from across the world, sold out in 10 minutes; two more dates were then added, which also promptly sold out in under 5 minutes. When the show was announced back in September, there was barely any promotion save for a few tweets from Wizkid’s account, and he joined the ranks of artists (the only African) to sell out tickets in under 15 minutes, along with the likes of Beyonce, Rihanna and The Spice Girls.

From reports, the first show was phenomenal; he sang his heart out and brought surprise guests including Ella Mai, Skepta, Tems, Buju, and the biggest surprise was Chris Brown, who had not performed in the U.K. in 12 years.

There were videos of unticketed fans storming the main door of the O2 in a desperate need to witness this history come to life; this sort of enthusiasm hasn’t been seen with any other African artist.

Day two started like Day one with the O2 packed with fans from all demographics, DJ Tunez warming the crowd with the best tunes, then the special guests, Bella Shmurda, Buju and Skepta again came, Lojay, Maleek Berry, Tay Iwar and Giggs. The energy was unmatched with thousands of fans, represented by their flashing lights singing along at the top of their lungs.

Day three was much the same; he teased fans with a solo show but brought out more friends, including Ckay, Krept & Konan, Tems & Burna Boy; when he began singing ‘Brown Skin Girl’, I could feel the energy change, the air was charged with anticipation as people hoped for Beyonce, alas it wasn’t to be; instead, he gave us a beautiful Ballad. He also teased fans with “Essence,” an international hit, which is Wizkid’s first U.S. Top 10 single, the song that catapulted the diligently prolific musician into the stratosphere.

Events like this further consolidate Nigerian music’s position on the global scale, we are a force to be reckoned with, this new sound coming out of Africa, a mesh of ‘afrobeat’, soca, reggae, R’n’B and soul and alté’ is not only drawing global attention but influencing the musical scene and as a result, the culture. We are no longer outliers; even if the whole world hasn’t fully caught yet, they will.

Wizkid headlining three fully sold-out nights is a testament to the success of the Made in Lagos album; less than a year after it was released, it had hit one billion streams across all streaming platforms, a marker of top success. This tour further confirms it, and I’m very proud to have witnessed it.

I don’t think the Made in Lagos performance is Wizkid’s best performance of all time (I’d argue it was the 2017 show at Royal Albert Hall in 2017, but this will go down in history. And rightly so, he deserves it!