Nigerian musicians have been accused severally by their African contemporaries of being culture vultures but this term has not stopped them from making the most of foreign sounds. 2020 was one year that saw a myriad of musicians flood the Amapiano train and as the year draws to an end, its saturation widens. DJ Kaywise is the latest to hop on the train and with his Eastern pop spin on Highway, he lives on the edge of a culture that’s both appreciated and criticized.
Powered by Phyno, whose Eastern Nigeria inflections and primary use of his native dialect to articulate his thoughts set him apart from his contemporaries, DJ Kaywise indirectly makes High Way a hybrid of cultures and sounds, thereby making the upbeat single which is also an ode to the former’s heritage and preferences, an outlier we can all appreciate despite its roots in appropriation.