Before Amapiano became a regular feature in Nigerian pop music, Maphorisa says South African artists had already started building the bridge.
The South African DJ and producer points to “Sponono” as one of the records that changed things.
Released in 2020, the collaboration brought Maphorisa and Kabza De Small together with Nigerian superstars Burna Boy and Wizkid, as well as South African rapper Cassper Nyovest.
For Maphorisa, putting Nigerian stars on an Amapiano record sent a clear message that they could experiment with the sound too.
So, doing that, I knew that we gave them a green light to do Amapiano.
Nigerian artists eventually embraced elements of Amapiano, with the sound becoming increasingly prominent in Afrobeats records and collaborations.
But Maphorisa does not speak about Nigeria as an outsider simply taking something South Africa created. His own career has included years of musical exchanges between the two countries.
In fact, he credits several Nigerian stars with influencing him.
Don Jazzy, D’banj, P-Square and Davido were among the names he singled out while discussing his relationship with Nigerian music.
Nigerians are very smart, and they are very aggressive.
For Maphorisa, Nigeria’s embrace of Amapiano followed a door that South African musicians had already helped open.