Nigerian-born artist Tiwa Savage widely regarded as the African Beyonce has released her new single, ’49-99′, via Motown Records.
Since signing her deal international deal with Universal Music Group the explosive track will be her first release with Motown Records which serves as her US label.
While utterly infectious, ’49-99′ makes a powerful statement about poverty. Tiwa Savage explains, ’49-99′ is a term coined from the hard life many Nigerians go through. A transit bus serves as a case study. It ought to have only 49 seated passengers, however, due to poor economic conditions, we often have nearly twice that number of passengers standing (99).”
“The song encourages the young to put down the sense of inheritance and work for what they desire in life, for a better tomorrow. We can’t sit on our old glories and expect things to change for the better. ‘49-99’ also addresses some political leaders who, instead of focusing on the growth of a nation, are there just for the money and having affairs with underage girls – while the citizenry is hustling hard to make a daily living,” added the 39-year-old.
Savage recently recorded ‘Keys to the Kingdom’, a song that she co-wrote for the soundtrack ‘The Lion King: The Gift’ after being hand-picked to do so by Beyoncé.
2018 was a remarkable year all-around for her. She was named the Best African Act at the MTV European Music Awards, making history as the first female to win the award. She was handpicked by Coldplay’s Chris Martin to perform alongside Beyoncé, Ed Sheeran and Jay Z live at the Global Citizen Festival to a 70,000 strong audience and millions across the globe.
Savage’s fearlessness in combining a unique fusion of Afrobeat, R&B, soul and pop paid off, earning her an abundance of award nominations including four Channel O Music Video Awards nominations, five World Music Award nominations, two Headies nominations, MTV Africa Music, BET & MOBO Award nominations and many more.
Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Savage first sang back-up vocals for the late George Michael, and later graduated from the esteemed Berklee College of Music. After moving to Los Angeles, she racked up studio sessions with Frank Ocean, Kenny ‘Babyface’ Edmonds, Fantasia, and more.
The mother of one earned critical acclaim with her debut album, ‘Once Upon a Time’. Her sophomore album, ‘R.E.D.’, and the EP ‘Sugarcane’ which included The Spellz-produced club hit ‘Malo’ featuring Wizkid followed in 2017.
Through her work with the MTV series ‘Shuga’, Savage aims to share further knowledge of HIV/ AIDS prevention and awareness within the continent. One of Africa’s most-followed women on social media, she was the first African female to serve as an ambassador for Pepsi. She has also represented Nike and other leading global brands.
