Veteran Nigerian singer Alexander Akande, also known as 9ice, revealed that in the early days of his career he was often compared to Haitian rapper Wyclef Jean.
He admitted that he, like many other Nigerian artists at the time, was influenced by Wyclef’s sound, but believed he was more skilled at emulating it.
However, in a recent interview with SPS, 9ice shared that he eventually veered away from mimicking Wyclef Jean’s style once he found his own unique sound.
He stated that his music is now a blend of various influences including Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, Bob Marley, Ayinde Barrister, Kwan1, and Pasuma.
“My inspiration was Wyclef [Jean]. If anybody listened to me at the beginning, there was a time I was sounding like Wyclef 100 per cent. And there were other people that were sounding like him but they felt that I sounded better than them when it comes to sounding like Wyclef,” he said.
“And from sounding like Wyclef, I got to my own original sound. Bob Marley, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, Ayinde Barrister, Kwan1, Pasuma and Obesere are the people that I listened to while growing up and they formed my blend in music.”
