The year started out with a continuation of last year’s gains. Songs that didn't fade out with December but insisted on following into January. “Body (danz)” sat right at the centre of that conversation, CKay doing what he does, while Mavo—the fresh uncharted voice at the time—carried the record in a way that made people pay attention a little longer than usual.
And it wasn’t just “Body (danz)” that had us in a chokehold. The roars of “MONEY CONSTANT” refused to quiet down, FOLA’s melodies kept slipping into rotations, and before long, the charts began to reflect the introduction of new names.
Weeks turned into months, and those names grew in number. These upcoming acts had begun to etch their names in stone. While Mavo held on to a much-envied run, Priesst found his moment with “Akonuche,” and even the AI-assisted “Papaoutai” remake by mikeeysmind, Chill77 & Unjaps carved out its own space.
The charts, as always, tell the clearest version of the Q1 story:
MAVO:
“Body (Danz)” sets the tone early, opening at No. 4 before climbing to No. 1, and by the time Q1 settled, it had logged 23 weeks on the chart, sitting comfortably as the second most streamed record (28.4 million) while still pulling a heavy No. 3 on radio (585.8 million impressions).
And instead of slowing down, “MONEY CONSTANT” (with DJ Maphorisa, DJ Tunez & Wizkid) with its No. 5 debut, No. 3 peak and the same 23-week stretch. On streaming, it is currently No. 4 (23.8 million) and No. 3 on radio (697 million). Even deeper into Mavo’s catalogue, “Galorizzy” (w/ Scott Maphuma) never moved past its No. 6 peak across 18 weeks, but radio carried it to No. 5 (582 million impressions) despite a lesser No. 48 on streaming (9.3 million).
“Shakabulizzy” rose from a No. 26 debut to a No. 3 peak, staying for 29 weeks on the Official Nigeria Top 100 chart ( No. 13 on streaming and No. 17 on radio with 17.3 million streams and 344.5 million radio impressions respectively.)
Then “Tumo Weto,” peaked at No. 13 and its 22 weeks on the chart include its present No. 8 position on streaming (21.1 million).
His feature on Kidd Carder’s “Big Bum Bum” Kidd Carder needed just 5 weeks to move from No. 17 to No. 2, while “Aura Salad” featuring SSSoundGawd held a steady No. 9 peak across 6 weeks.
SHODAY:
Shoday’s “Paparazzi” came in ready with a quick No. 3 debut and a swift No. 1 peak, 13 weeks on the chart and by quarter’s end, it sat at No. 12 on streaming (17.3 million) with 356 million radio impressions (No. 16).
“Nakupenda” (w/ Scotts Maphuma, Ecool, Iphxne DJ) extended Shoday’s presence on the chart run—No. 13 debut, No. 3 peak, lasting 16 weeks—closing at No. 14 on streaming (16.8 million) and pulling 383.7 million impressions on radio.
PRIESST:
Priesst’s “Akonuche” started way down at No. 85, but worked its way up to a No. 8 peak over 11 weeks, eventually landing at No. 72 on streaming (6.8 million) while radio pushed it further to No. 22 (298.1 million impressions).
MORE:
For 6UFF, his “10 Minutes” single with ODUMODUBLVCK moved from a No. 30 debut to a No. 7 peak in just 4 weeks.
NO11 & Ayjay Bobo, “HOW FAR” built momentum after a TikTok trend and rose from a No. 58 debut to a No. 8 peak. Q1 ends with “HOW FAR” at No. 86 on streaming (6.1 million) and No. 64 on radio (173 million radio impressions). It has spent 12 weeks on the Official Singles Chart.
And then there was “Papaoutai”—the AI-assisted entry from mikeeysmind, Chill77 & Unjaps which debuted at No. 60, peaked at No. 7 and spent a total of 12 weeks on the chart. “Papaoutai” ended the first quarter at No. 118 on streaming (4.5 million) but climbed to No. 43 on radio (212 million impressions).
By the time the quarter wrapped, it was obvious that the pattern of new artistes gaining traction with their songs while being widely accepted meant they belonged on the charts. The future is now and evidently, new.