"This Is Nigeria" is a song by Nigerian rapper Falz, released on 25 May 2018. It is a cover of Childish Gambino's "This Is America". Falz's father, Femi Falana, performed background vocals on the track.[1] "This Is Nigeria" addresses a number of societal issues prevalent in Nigeria, including SARS brutality, codeine abuse and unrestrained killings.[2] The song's accompanying music video was directed by Prodigeezy and produced by Wande Thomas.[3]
According to Falz, the song "addresses numerous political and social ills", and is an attempt "to spark a reaction in the positive direction". The video highlights Nigeria's issues with violence, political corruption, policing, and organized religion.[4][5][6]
Music video
The accompanying music video for "This Is Nigeria" was directed by Prodigeezy.[7] Filmed in an empty warehouse, the video depicts a Fulani man committing murder, Chibok/Dapchi girls dancing, young men getting high off codeine, and undergraduate students being assaulted by the Special Anti-Robbery Squad.[1] The music video has received over 20 million views on YouTube. American rapper Sean Combs uploaded the music video onto his Instagram page and captioned it with the hashtag "#Nigeria LETS GO!".[8][1]
In an interview with Hello Nigeria, Falz discussed the inspiration behind the video. On June 5, 2018, the Muslim Rights Concern demanded that Falz withdraw the music video or face legal action.[9] He was also asked to apologize for using women wearing hijab while dancing Shaku Shaku. This triggered a viral outrage on social media. Nigerian Twitter users showed support for the video and also advised the rapper not to take down the video. Falz's management later released a statement stating that the music video will not be taken down.[6]
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