M.I.A - More Than Hype
Melody Ifeanyi Adigo - also known as M.I.A - is a hype woman in an industry that is becoming more relevant in Afrobeats. In this article, she speaks about her craft and reveals her origin story.
In the primordial days of our (contemporary) pop culture - commoditised- as Afrobeats, we took a few things from Hip Hop. One of them is the hypeman.
In Hip Hop, the hype man amps the crowd for the star rapper. Think Spliff Starr to Busta Rhymes. However, while hype men in Hip Hop are more or less side pieces who are rappers essentially, hype men in Afrobeats stand independently as artists.
Over the years, their presence has become ubiquitous in nightclubs, concerts, festivals and songs. They are energy bringers and specialists who whip up the audience or the crowd. They raise the level of parties with trademark phrases, couplets and other literal devices.
You can see their names on promo materials. Names like Seye Banks, Jimmie Akinsola, Toby Shang, Special Ed, Shody and DO2DTUN are celebrities in their own right.
The hype industry is not an overflow of testosterone. Melody Ifeanyi Adigo, 27, is also a hypeman, hype woman and a pretty darn good one.
Also known by the acronym M.I.A, she is an on-air-personality with THE BEAT 97.9FM in the ancestral city of Ibadan, Oyo state.
Her slim frame belies the amount of energy she has. When she is on air, her movements and mannerisms fit the rigid world of radio. When she is on stage, she is another person.
M.I.A is one of the resident hype acts of the Mainland BlockParty, Nigeria's biggest youth event. If you attend the monthly event, you will see Melody ride the adrenalin monster as she and her cohorts 'ginger the crowd', as they say on the streets.
It's a pretty dope sight with thousands of people reacting to her words and instructions. The best bit is at the beginning when the early attendees are too shy to dance or come to the front of the stage.
M.I.A goes into the crowd and encourages people to dance and let loose. Her energy is infectious enough to get people dancing quickly, and soon enough, we have a party.
As a popular singer turned politician once sang “ain’t no party like a Lagos party.” Parties, concerts and festivals go on for hours and if M.I.A is hyping at one of these events, she goes the distance. Hypemen or hype acts in Nigeria are emerging as performers and no longer side attractions.
"Every stage is an opportunity to perform. It's like a performance for me," says M.I.A, during her interview with The Naija Way.
After her six-hour daily radio show, Melody is out on weekends at select events doing what she likes to do best - connect with the crowd. For someone whose other job is to be out and about, she does not like going outside.
"I hate going out," she reveals over a Zoom call. "But when I go out, I want it to count, and I know there will be one or two people like me in the crowd. And that's why I put my all into it so that they can have a great time," she admits.
M.I.A makes it count. She prefers concerts and festivals to clubs. "That's where to let loose and let go. I prefer that," she says.
M.I.A was born in Ibadan. She grew up there too, but she is from Imo. "I left Ibadan for education twice for my senior secondary school; I went to Ogun state. Then I went to Nnamdi Azikwe University Awka. I studied English education" even though she wanted to study Mass Communication.
When she was in UNIZIK, she auditioned for the university's radio station, but it did not work out. Another opportunity soon presented itself. "There was this online TV show a friend told me about, so I went to audition for it. And I got the job right on the spot. That's how I got into broadcasting in 2015. From there, I hosted their red carpet (events), in-house events, (I also did) interviews," says M.I.A.
In 2018, when she got into the National Broadcast Academy (as advised by radio legend Femi Sowoolu), she was involved in social activities. These social gatherings and parties started her journey into the artistry of hype. M.I.A was not the host at these parties but, as she puts it, she was the "energy bringer."
"Everybody expected me to bring the energy to the party, like ginger people to come up from their rooms, come on and have a great time. I think that was how I got into the business of hyping," says M.I.A
Thanks to another woman, MC Queen Lagbaja in Ibadan, M.I.A fine-tuned her skills. "My uncle, a DJ introduced me to MC Queen Lagbaja, who was working at a bar in Ibadan. Together, we used to do Friday nights. I learned from her for the space of six months."
It was also in Ibadan that she got her break as a hypeman. "I got a break...like last year in July when I did Premier Block Party," says M.I.A.
Recently in Nigeria, we have seen hypemen take their artform from public venues into the booth. The newly minted Headies winner Goya Menor went viral with the ‘Ameno Amapiano’ remix. Others like Toby Shang and Seye Banks have released songs and projects based on hype artistry. They don’t rap over beats. They hype.
What is said on these beats is humorous social commentary and witty observational comedy on what goes on in nightclubs.
"I think it's one of the greatest things ever for the hype industry," says M.I.A about the explosion of the hype industry in the last few years. With the growth comes more opportunities, which Melody believes will lead to better pay for hype acts in the country.
“There's going to be more relevance. Hype men are going to be paid better because there's now more relevance,” says M.I.A.
And M.I.A is mad relevant right now. Just before she goes to perform at Mainland BlockParty, her fans run up to greet her. She gives everyone a big smile. When she gets to the wings of the stage, she takes the mic and lowers her head.
Then she transforms into an energy beast, bounces on stage and does her thing for hours.
For enquiries, you can mail me at contact@ayomidetayo.com
Yeah, she is definitely a crowd puller
A Giant, she stands so tall.Good at her craft. Energetic and a crowd puller. She sure knows her job and does it well and effortlessly.