Controversial Nigerian hiphop singer, Jaywon has maintained that many gospel and Afrobeats artists in Nigeria have been drawing inspiration from the style of his 2012 hit, This Year.
The artist made this claim while criticizing Billboard for omitting the track from its recently released list of the Best Afrobeats Songs of All Time.
According to him, no other song on the list carries as much cultural influence as This Year.
Taking to his X handle, Jaywon wrote: “‘This Year’ by Jaywon had more viral moments and cultural impact than some of the tracks Billboard ranked. It has been trending since 2012 and is still relevant today. Who else has achieved that? Hate is inevitable. Year after year, both gospel and Afrobeats singers copy the same vibe, but we remain unshaken. I’ll say it again no song on that list has more cultural impact than #ThisYear by Jaywon.”
Recall that 2Face’s African Queen claimed the number one spot on Billboard’s Top 50 Best Afrobeats Songs of All Time.
Other songs that made the top five include Wizkid’s Ojuelegba, Flavour’s Nwa Baby, Rema’s Calm Down, and CKay’s Love Nwantiti.