Premiere: Nigerian musical pioneer Tekno puts love first in the romantic ‘JINJA’

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It’s not every day you get to premiere an Afrobeats heavyweight’s music video on an American platform. Let’s change that.

When ‘Pana‘—the musical earworm with over 175 million views on YouTube and nearly fifty million streams on Spotify—played in the basement of a Lower East Side venue in 2016, it was the first clue that something unprecedented was happening and making its way into America. It was the way the music made us feel. The vibe changed; people—from various walks of life and cultures—seemed happier and dropped their egos when what we know as Afrobeats now played over the speakers. It was a pre-pandemic world. People weren’t afraid to touch one another and grind on each other like we were paid millions to do it.

Since that night with my then-Dominican-American lover and my Liberian and Haitian DJ duo friends, as a culture, Tekno bestowed us with fellow Nigerian creator Davido’s monster hit ‘If‘ (Tekno wrote and produced the RIAA certified gold record, putting him in the position to work with and feature on records for the likes of Beyoncé, Ciara, Swae Lee, Wizkid, and young Latin music sensation Omar Apollo).

Today, as a longtime fan of Nigerian musical pioneer Tekno—real name: Augustine Miles Kelechi—and his work, GRUNGECAKE presents ‘JINJA’. From the start of the song, he speaks directly to the woman he wants, stating that he can change her life if she allows it. But that’s not all. He wants to treat her right and give her what she wants. Watch the official music video below and stream the record.

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-H0AEH3kPTY&h=315]

Having conquered the African continent, Tekno has relocated to the US and has set his sights on becoming a global phenomenon. It is the follow-up for ‘Mufasa‘, which has been streamed more than a million times globally in less than a month, with the official music video racking up 1.7 million views on YouTube. Meanwhile, the BET Award-nominated multitalented artist recently graced TIDAL playlists such as ‘Outernational’ in addition to taking the cover spot on ‘Naija Nights’. He also occupied the #1 spot on ‘New Arrivals: Africa’ and ‘Afrobeats Heat’.

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