Nigerian music star Asake, popularly known as Mr. Money, is facing strong online backlash after fans linked a line in his new album M$NEY to support for President Bola Tinubu.
The issue is from a song titled “Amen”, where Asake talks about the power of words and speaking things into reality. In the track, he mentions Tinubu’s well-known “Emi Lokan” remark and his win in the 2023 presidential election.
The line, “Presido sope emi lokan, e win election,” which simply translates to “the President said he is next in line to rule, then he won the election,” quickly spread online and sparked anger. Many people said the singer was praising the president at a time Nigerians are dealing with economic hardship and growing frustration.
On X (formerly Twitter), reactions came fast and emotional.
@tazethegreat tweeted, “Why was Asake praising Tinubu in ‘Amen’? With the way the country is right now, that’s another reason the album flopped.”
@gmltony wrote, “With everything wey dey happen for Nigeria, Asake still get mind praise Tinubu for him album. I no fit lie, that thing weak me. My guys don already talk say dem no go stream am again.”
@amara_views also said, “Some artistes really forget say na the same ordinary Nigerians struggling every day still dey stream their music and buy tickets. This one no sit well with many people.”
However, some listeners defended Asake, saying the meaning was misunderstood.
@JiddaGram tweeted, “He only used Tinubu as an example of speaking something into existence. People are overreacting honestly. The line no even sound like campaign or praise to me.”
@theonlysammie added, “Music listeners for this country too dey emotional sometimes. Not every mention of a politician means endorsement.”
