Scrilltown MO, a Missouri-based management company affiliated Jay Z’s Roc Nation, is collaborating with two rising Afrobeats stars, Chemmie and Kumzy Pegasus on their new single “No Limit”
Nigerian-American music executive Nate Green Snr personally chose the artists after connecting with them on a “deeper level” as he told me when we spoke about the release.
“No Limit” an empowering anthem about pushing boundaries and claiming new heights, comes out on Friday the 25th of July along with an accompanying video which was shot on a rainy day in Lagos.
I got on a call with Chemmie and Kumzy to talk about the release, their careers and their hopes for the future. It was particularly exciting as I’ve been following Chemmie’s career since I started Afrobeats Head in 2021 and she was my second guest when I started hosting my Twitter Spaces in 2022.
She has since graduated from the Music Business for Africa programme and now combines her career as an artist with her work at DMCE in collaboration with Sony Music Publishing Nigeria.
“I’ve always been curious about what goes on behind the scenes in the music industry,” she tells me when I ask if she’s always planned to combine both roles.
“So that’s why I did the MBA for Africa programme and I’m happy I did because my knowledge of music publishing makes me feel like I’m a front and and a back end developer at the same time.
As for Kumzy, a singer-songwriter and recording engineer who’s been active since 1998, he’s seen the Nigerian music industry grow and evolve in many ways but thinks most of the songs released today sound exactly like the ones from when he first started his career.
“Most upcoming artists today also sound similar. Nobody wants to take risks or try something new.”
Neither Chemmie nor Kumzy have met Scrilltown. They both connected with him on LinkedIn: Chemmie as a guest on one of his Instagram Live shows after he reached out to her and Kumzy connected with the label boss when he randomly decided to DM several industry people on the platform asking for support for his new EP.
Chemmie came up with the idea and title of the song after Scrilltown sent her the beat.
“I spent month trying to come up with something but it wasn’t working,” she recalled. Then I just left it and decided to listen to songs like Despacito and other Latin music records because I figured it had a Latin vibe to it.
On their own musical influences, Chemmie lists Afrobeats greats Davido, Adekunle Gold and Niniola.
“Basically anybody that sounds good. It could be their melodies or even their writing style,” she explained.
“I like Davido a lot. I don’t know about Wizkid FC but I think Davido is one of the most talented artists out there and for Niniola I love her voice. People even tell me we sound alike which is such an honour.”
As for Kumzy, he tells me he “used to be a lover boy” so was influenced by artists like Diddy, Sade Adu, 112, Dru Hill, Wyclef Jean and Sisqo.
“But I’ve stopped being a lover boy because Nigerian girls don’t believe in love”
With a three-way collaboration of this nature I had to ask about how they all handled the split and other financial aspects.
And as expected, Chemmie put her knowledge of publishing and other parts of the music business to good use, having her lawyer look through the contract before signing it.
But Kumzy had a more carefree approach: “I didn’t consult a lawyer. You know why? I was just grateful for the opportunity to finally work on a project like this and promote my music.
Also I trust Mr Scrilltown”
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