Like his colleague, Goya Menor, fast-rising singer, Olowu Taiwo, best known as Eltee Skhillz, has TikTok to thank for his overnight fame and the success of his single ‘ODG’ (Odogwu Na The Spender).
Eltee Skhillz, whom many do not know is the son of a veteran actor, Jide Kosoko and his late wife, Henrietta, began his music career 13 years ago when he released ‘Jekafo’.
However, it was not until he released ODG (Odogwu Na The Spender) in late 2021 that he became a household name.
The song emerged as the most Shazamed song in Nigeria at release and trended on social media.
Shazan is a music identification app, while the most Shazamed song refers to the most popular songs on the platform within a period.
ODG is also the most viral Nigerian song internationally released in 2022.
The music video, which features Ghetto Kids from Uganda, was partly inspired by Ateez’s “The Real” and “Say my name” music videos.
Mex Films directed the official music video, released on March 22.
The track also earned him a nomination for the 2022 headies awards.
TikTok
In an exclusive interview with PREMIUM TIMES, at the Headies Award nomination, which was recently held in Lagos, Eltee Skhillz said he has TikTok to thank for the commercial appeal of his single ODG (Odogwu Na The Spender).
He said: “Tiktok helped my song. When we released it, someone used it on TikTok, which became viral. So, my team reached out to some TikTok influencers, and they started using the sound, which was how it kept increasing.
“TikTok greatly influenced the song because it went from Tiktok to Instagram. Tiktok had a significant impact on ODG. ODG was one of my tracks, and I didn’t release it as a single. Little did I know it would become a hit.
Eltee Skhillz featured Praiz, Niniola and Tanzania’s Harmonise in his EP titled ‘Body of work’.
But the EP wasn’t a commercial success, and neither was it as successful as ODG.
He said: “When the track went viral on Tiktok, my management started pushing ODG as a single since it was what people responded to. I am grateful, and I am ecstatic, my fan base has been increasing from Nigeria to Brazil to other parts of the world.”
One-hit wonder?
After the COVID-19 lockdown, the Nigerian music industry witnessed the rise of many new faces like Goya Menor, Portable, Ruger, Zinoleesky, AyraStarr, and many others.
These singers have attributed their fame to the social media boom. However, their fame notwithstanding, Eltee Skhillz told this newspaper that a poor business strategy and bad management leave some Nigerian artistes at the risk of being a one-hit wonder.
A one-hit wonder is a singer, composer or group that only ever has one successful piece.
Most artists tend to become one-hit wonders because it is not easy to replicate a feat. Some don’t have the necessary managerial skills to make consistent hits. They don’t have a PR team.
The young star said that, unlike many artists, he is not under pressure to release a hit song, as he did not envisage that his song ODG would be a hit.
“I think every fast-growing artist is under pressure to release a new hit after their previous release was a massive hit. Before ODG became big, I have always been growing at my pace.”
“I don’t let pressure push me to do songs that are not what I would want to do, it’s not easy, but for every artist who has had a hit, I don’t think I would call it one-hit wonders”.
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