Nigerian singer Jaywon has accused both gospel and Afrobeats artists of copying the template of his 2012 hit song “This Year.”
Jaywon made the claim while criticising Billboard for excluding the track from its recently released Top 50 Best Afrobeats Songs of All Time list.
The singer argued that “This Year” has enjoyed greater cultural impact than many songs on the list, noting that it continues to trend more than a decade after its release.
On his X handle, he wrote:
“‘This Year’ by Jaywon had more viral moments and cultural impact than some tracks Billboard decided to rank. Trending since 2012 and still going strong. Year after year, both gospel and Afrobeats acts copy the same vibe, yet we remain unshaken.”
Billboard ranked 2Baba’s “African Queen” as the greatest Afrobeats song of all time, followed by Wizkid’s “Ojuelegba,” Flavour’s “Nwa Baby,” Rema’s “Calm Down,” and CKay’s “Love Nwantiti.”