Veteran Music Exec Claims Afrobeats Has Better Artistes Than Dancehall-Reggae
Veteran music executive Murray Elias, renowned for his work on hits like “I’m Still In Love With You” by Sean Paul featuring Sasha, has ignited a heated debate within the music industry courtesy of controversial comments he made recently via social media.
Elias, who has previously collaborated with Dancehall legends such as Super Cat and Cutty Ranks, dismissed the possibility of unity within the Dancehall community and asserted that Afrobeats artistes surpass their Jamaican counterparts in songwriting, singing, and overall artistry.
The music mogul’s comments came in response to a statement made by international producer Rvssian, who suggested that Afrobeats could face challenges if Dancehall acts were to unite.
Elias took to the comments section of an Instagram post by World Music Views (WMV) to voice his strong opinions.
“Dancehall and Unity are oxymorons. It will never happen,” Elias declared.
He went on to argue that even if unity were achieved, Afrobeats artistes outshine their Jamaican counterparts, citing superior songwriting, singing abilities, and overall commercial appeal on an international crossover level.
Elias emphasised that the Afrobeats music industry benefits from robust funding and efficient management, factors contributing to its global success.
Elias did not mince words when criticising recent signings in the Dancehall and Reggae genres, branding them as “flops.”
He specifically called out Protoje and Lila Ike, stating that they had failed to make a significant impact and were subsequently dropped by their record labels.
The music executive expressed dissatisfaction with the return on investment for these artistes, further asserting that the current wave of Jamaican talent has failed to deliver major chart success.
The spotlight was also cast on rising Dancehall star Shenseea, as Elias claimed that, despite substantial financial backing and hype, she has yet to produce a bona fide hit record on her own.
While acknowledging Shenseea’s high-profile features on other artistes’ tracks, Elias characterised her solo releases as “flops.”
See his comments below:
Idiot talk. First Dancehall and Unity are oxymorons. It will never happen.
Secondly, even if it were to happen the Afrobeat Artists are better songwriters, better singers, better artists than anything coming out of Jamaica.
And by better, I mean more commercial on an international crossover level. Also the Afrobeat Music Industry is well-funded and well run and the major labels sees where it makes money.
All the dancehall signings have been flops or the jury is still out. Protoje and Lila Ike flopped and were just dropped.
And despite all the hype and all the money spent(and a shitload of money has been spent) Shensea has yet to have a bonafide hit record on her own.
She has had a lot of high profile features on other people’s records but her records have all been flops. And right now both TeeJay and Byron Messia each have one hit record. My money is that they are both one-hit wonders.
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