Materialism drives many artists into debt – Bella Shmurda

Abdullateef Fowewe

Bella Shmurda has discussed the financial challenges that many Nigerian artists encounter due to their extravagant purchases of luxury items during an appearance on the Afrobeats Intelligence podcast.

He noted that excessive spending on jewelry and cars can limit artists’ ability to finance projects independently, especially without the support of record labels.

Bella Shmurda acknowledged that he made similar errors at the beginning of his career but eventually learned to embrace a more simplistic approach. He noted that effective branding does not necessarily require an emphasis on material goods; proper grooming and dressing well can suffice.

He argues that this focus on luxury often drives young artists to pursue advances, leading to debt and a loss of creative independence. As a result, he advocates for the importance of financial education and responsible spending in the music industry.

He said, “I don’t think packaging has to be materialistic. Having good clothes on you, looking nice, nice skin, brushing your teeth, smelling well is okay, if you know how to dress without chains. I mean some of us don’t have these things before, and we looked good. This guy doesn’t have a chain on, and he looks good. He’s not dirty. I mean, that’s packaged enough for your purpose.

“It’s because of the too much emphasis on expensive packaging that our young artists now run towards advances and they end up being indebted to those companies. And the companies have to hold their catalogue for years.

“It’s because of these materials things that they go into debts. They can’t even fund their next project because they do use their money buy big motor. I made that mistake too but I learnt. And I feel like we just have to educate ourselves about these things.”