By: Odeh Favour Adiya
Popular Nigerian rapper and singer, Oludemilade Alejo, widely known as Ycee, has expressed concern over what he describes as the growing culture of celebrating ignorance and low academic standards among Nigerian youths.
The rapper made the remarks during a podcast interview shared on Instagram, where he spoke extensively about education, youth culture, and societal values in the country.
Expressing his deep worries over the current trend, Ycee stated, “Nigerian society is no longer celebrating academic excellence. It’s not even Yahoo culture anymore; now we have a ‘Peller culture.’ This ‘Olodo’ uprising we are witnessing is terrible.”
He further lamented how values have flipped in the country, noting that the focus has drastically shifted away from intellect.
“It feels like we are trying so hard to accommodate ignorance so people won’t feel bad, and now they seem to be the majority. The massive attack on Nigeria’s educational system is alarming, aside from kidnappings and Boko Haram attacks,” the rapper added.
According to the rapper, academic excellence and intellectual curiosity are no longer viewed as primary drivers of success. Instead, the allure of internet fame, viral sensations, and cybercrime-associated subcultures has become more attractive to many young people.
Ycee strongly argued that rewarding controversial or attention-seeking content online sends the wrong message to impressionable youths.
The comments sparked heavy reactions from viewers on social media, with many prominent personalities and fans agreeing with his observations.
Veteran actress Kate Henshaw wrote, “The society indulges and rewards non-value content! I scroll right past! Can’t dumb down on my brain biko…”
Another user, 3rotimishort, said, “I could like this video a million times. This guy spelt facts! My daughter was targeted and bullied and considered weird because she reads books for leisure and doesn’t know how to twerk!”
Commenting on the issue, #eddiemadaki wrote, “Sad part is that this type of content shapes the world’s perception about Nigerians currently. Look at ShowSpeed’s African tour, how Nigeria presented compared to other African nations? Embarrassing.”
Another viewer, #chike234, added, “Some people will call it hate, but it’s true. I’ve never seen a generation reward silliness like this.”
