Popular Nigerian rapper Chibuzor Azubike Nelson, known as Phyno, finally breaks silence on the criticism that trailed his feature of a convicted internet fraudster, Hushpuppi, in a track on his new album Full Time Job. The rapper was criticized after the voice of Hushpuppi featured in a track he titled “Nwoke Esike,” where he motivated people.
Other listeners were very judgmental about the move that Phyno had made, to the extent that one of them asked what message the rapper was trying to send across, featuring Hushpuppi. To this, Phyno reacted rather explosively, he told critics to “go and sleep” if they didn’t understand what creativity had been invested in the track. He even drew parallels to U.S. artists who collaborate with controversial figures, suggesting a more complex crossing of real-world narratives into art.
Interestingly, this collaboration also marks a closure on the long-standing beef between Phyno and Hushpuppi. The two had engaged in a fight some years ago on social media back in 2017 when Hushpuppi called out Phyno and Ice Prince for wearing fake luxury watches, to which Phyno replied, telling Hushpuppi to leave the display of his wealth alone.
With the feature of Hushpuppi, Phyno sparked a conversation into the ever-evolving relationship between public personas and music that had his fans divided but enticed with the new twist in his artistic career.
