w (@walenchism) header
w (@walenchism) profile picture
Joined June 2018
Photo by w (@walenchism)Photo by w (@walenchism)Photo by w (@walenchism)Photo by w (@walenchism)Photo by w (@walenchism)Photo by w (@walenchism)Photo by w (@walenchism)Photo by w (@walenchism)Photo by w (@walenchism)Photo by w (@walenchism)
“I’ll never retire from music… I don’t do music as a hobby. Music is how I think. It’s how I move, how I express myself and how I enjoy my life.” I interviewed @Skepta—20 years in the making!—for Complex UK’s debut cover feature 🖊️🔥 complex.com/music/a/joseph-j…
5
41
3
173
5,944
We’ll be having a chat with Lagos’ latest underground viral sensation, @0ctobersrich, at 7 PM WAT. Chat to be moderated by @dennisadepeter Set a reminder and be there✨ teapawt.net/i/spaces/1POJezMJbjYPj…

3
3
612
Look, I get that people are pissed about this thing—there’s a lot to be mad about. But I was raised by a civil servant, and time and again, I’ve learned that systems collapse gradually, not all at once. Nobody shows up on their first day of work and decides to destroy archives or anything. Quite often, it’s a series of small decisions, small things we let fester here and there. Culture is whatever a system rewards or punishes. But the thing about Nigeria is that while we’re always late to one party (the things we’ve lost are lost), I think it’s important to know we’re also always early to another. So much has been lost, but so much can still be done. And it doesn’t have to be big things; just pick the little things. For example, if someone in your family was a teenager when Nigeria became independent, statistically, they might be dead in a decade or way less. Sit with them and press record; they have so much to say, and so few people willing to listen. Just listen and press record. In whatever language they understand, no matter how little your understanding of it. Keep the family album. Use your phone to photograph them. Keep the tapes. Much of what our civilisation learned about fighting COVID-19 came from what we learned about the Spanish Flu of 1918: a mix of official records documenting death rates, etc., and personal correspondence that captured the experience of living through it. Personal history is family history is national history.
Replying to @ogbeniseyi
Less than two decades ago, they moved a new Oga to NTA Lagos, and to make room for them, they emptied the tape storage and converted it into an office. Rain beat the tapes to decay.
17
823
38
1,477
123,534
Grateful to work alongside so many incredible people holding down the future of Africa’s creative industry. Thank you @TurntableCharts for the feature, and @walenchism for the generous words.
Introducing the fourth set of honorees of the TurnTable ‘30 Under 30’ Class of 2026; 1. @SharonMauve 2. @tope_docx 3. @Olusola_Adenusi These individuals have helped shape the visual and cultural language of a new generation of Nigerian artistes. They understand that a song’s story can be as consequential as the music itself and have built the systems, partnerships, and campaigns that bring Nigerian music from the label to listeners worldwide Read full article here: bit.ly/4dV2fR8
15
30
4
85
3,618
. @heisrema gave us the low-down on ‘EMB’
19
113
18
471
75,661
had a conversation with @jeriqthehussla for @audiomackafrica @audiomack about igbo trap music, dreaming, and shouldering responsibilities for his family after his dad passed. audiomack.com/world/post/jer…
1
12
1
30
they already see you as a troublemaker. bring the trouble to nigeria 😭
I need a stronger nigerian cult fan base on here. How many tees do I have to drop in mainland lagos for this to happen.
7
13
2
41
3,597
I've usually kept mum about AI and an algorithm-led consciousness about writing lately, cos it is something I am still trying to understand without belonging to any camp. But Vara's recent essay was quite worrisome, that a writer with such recognition and intelligence didn't know where to stop. So I wrote, not exactly a rejoinder, but my concerns about what is happening with AI and writing and the conversations we are having about it. Because in Vara's own words, it is something of a "crisis of trust," that "threatens to undermine a global system of literary recognition." And beacaue, who is next? Read, share. Thank you. afapinen.com/2026/10/19/yet-…
14
40
1,465
nu story alert 🚨 .. published in @OkayAfrica, I explore the wave of young Nigerian artists sampling music from the 2010s .. what does it mean for the culture, and has it been done before? okayafrica.com/young-nigeria…
2
9
1
26
770
this is a 21-minute read, broken down into six parts, tracing the evolution of Nigerian streetwear. read here: medium.com/@sophiannadozie/t… cover image credit: @grizzygrae
this article i have been working on is damn too long 😭
4
23
1
58
2,098
Anyone obsessed with the Nigerian underground's music scene? 👀 scottyolorin BLNDE Danpapa GTA scottyolorin Egertton Kobilou Luwa.Mp4 Indi SSSoundGawd onoola-sama
42
112
54
584
52,248
w retweeted
super gassed to do the 10th anniversary Apple Music retrospective notes on Nasty C’s debut album, Bad Hair, which was released 10 years ago today. full circles moment, and thanks to my editor for letting me mess about on the word count for this one.
4
8
290
w retweeted
a lot of afropop projects don’t have staying power because they are not tethered to anything. they’re often just soulless dumps into the digital ether that are signaling towards foreign connections. no exciting storytelling experiences around your music.
6
43
11
170
8,609
uNder, August 2026 🚨 We continue to spotlight the distinctive wave of sounds that are poised to reshape the scope of African music. @itsreespect, @biglodu_, @nin0nat, Osl1nn. Full story: shorturl.at/jbI9C
2
4
1
6
2,536
“I can overcome whatever inhibitions I have for myself and whatever other things other people are saying about me, and I’m gonna do it in this album.” -@ItsMakhanj The singer is paying homage to her origins with her debut album, ‘ Transkei’: shorturl.at/Xfv8H
3
1
4
1,619
For @takingCustody, chopped it up with Victony about the the creative process behind STARLIFE, Afrobeats’ current state, exploring new sounds with Ozedikus, and his legacy a decade from now. Much thanks to @walenchism for the through-pass. culturecustodian.com/growth-…
1
28
2
39
1,408
For @NataalMedia i profiled @firstklaz_ the arewa boy who wants to take the Kalangu sound to the Grammy stage. I really really liked writing this one🥹🥹 Arewa to the worlddddd nataal.com/firstklaz
2
13
1
24
997
A writer from the continent who I respect and always have time for. A brilliant contextualisation of Afro pop or A*POP (using a lineage that includes the likes of Wizkid) and a careful debate about what pop stardom from Africa looks like in western purview (or without).
reviewed the new tyla album for @thefader “It’s all part of a deliberate gambit to reshape the architecture of the much-debated Western crossover framework by wholly leaning into her identity as a pop IT girl from Africa.” thefader.com/2026/07/24/tyla…
1
6
48
3,396