A scene from CKay's 'Love Nwantiti' music video. Picture: Screenshot
Short-form video is big business for musicians and having your track become the soundtrack to a viral series of reels can make or break your song. CKay, the artist behind Love Nwantiti, knows this all too well after the song recently surpassed 17 million views in just 10 days.
The song actually has two versions and it was the official video for the North African remix of Love Nwantiti, featuring El Grande Toto, that hit the milestone and went on to trend at number one worldwide. At the time of writing, the song had amassed over 19 million views on YouTube.
According to Warner Music, this is a rare feat achieved by only a handful of musicians and content creators on the platform.
“The milestone comes three months after the various remix versions of Love Nwantiti surpassed 20 million Shazams and the North African remix amassing over three million Shazams worldwide,” added Warner Music.
The record label also shared the fact that the Nigerian superstar’s track made its way up the Billboard Hot 100 to number 35 and is currently number one on official charts in eight countries including France, The Netherlands and Switzerland.
The song has also reached the top five on charts in Canada, Australia, UK, Germany and more.
As an artist, CKay is also up for Best African Act at the MOBO Awards and Most Promising Act at the All Africa Music Awards.
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As CKay celebrates Love Nwantiti’s success, South African artists Chicco, Mellow and Sleazy are enjoying their time in their limelight as their new song Nkao Tempela has sparked a new dance-based challenge.
Another local artist loving the boost provided by social media is Young Stunna, whose song Adiwele featuring Kabza De Small got a major boost when a clip of new DJ, Uncle Waffles, went viral.
In the clip, she can be seen jamming to the song while a crowd fawns over her. The video received millions of views and even resulted in superstar Drake following her after seeing the clip.
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