"Being Called 'A Rapper From The East' Is A Box" - Phyno

Nigerian rapper Phyno has revealed his concerns about being referred to as an indigenous rapper from the East by Nigerians.

This thought was expressed on CoolFM's Midday Oasis show on the 4th of September with the 'Energy Gad' Do2tun. According to Phyno, where the rapper said he would prefer to just be referred to as a rapper rather than being called a rapper from the East. He went on to clarify that he does love where he's from but describing him that way has a way of boxing him to seem like an artiste that create music for just Eastern Nigerian rather than creating music for the world like he actually does.

He said;

I think it's a box. That's where I'm from I should be proud of where I'm from but then again just making it feel like my music is just meant for people in that region, it's a box already.

If it's something the rapper has been fighting, he said;

Anything you put your energy in drains you and that shouldn't be my problem but then again, it is a box. It's not something I should be feeling good about. I'm a musician, I'm a rapper, I should do what I want to do and how I know how to do it best but if you want to start judging from how people see it and put it in their head, then you'll say 'Okay, this is already a box' and it's going to be difficult to get out of this box so just do your thing. ... the thing is, in a country like Nigerian where people speak like probably three hundred and sixty-something languages, they tend to take the ones that do the music in their own native language. ... Nobody comes out and says Tekno the boy from the east, but he's from the East or Patoranking the boy from the east, so probably because I do music in igbo you understand, but that's how I know how to do it. But then again, Wiz does music in Yoruba whether we like it or not, Davido does music with Yoruba whether we like it or not so why box only Olamide? ... This is how I know how to do my music the best way I can do it and I do it with my dialect and that's it.

Speaking on AKA concerning the issue of Xenophobia in South Africa, Phyno said;

I just think he needs someone to actually check his tweet before he tweets them most times or probably he should get Mayne he has his own point of view (because) the thing about me is that I agree everybody has their own point of view but then again I think the way he passes the message was very wrong.