There is something about the South African Amapiano and Nigerian Afrobeat collaboration that continues to bring forth the best tunes, from early fusions like DJ Maphorisa’s work with artists such as Runtown and Major Lazer to more recent global hits that blend the genres’ infectious rhythms. Tracks like Burna Boy’s “Rollercoaster” featuring J Balvin showcase how these crossovers can elevate African sounds internationally, but not every attempt hits the mark.
A High-Profile Miss: “Money Constant” Falls Flat
It seems that Nigerian artistes are the baddest when it comes to interpreting the Amapiano beats into hit tracks, with examples like Asake’s “Amapiano” or Davido’s ventures into the style proving the point. But this particular track, “Money Constant,” produced and owned by award-winning producer DJ Tunez, featuring Wizkid, DJ Maphorisa, and rising star Mavo, did nothing to buttress all the hype and magic that the fusion of these music genres brings.
Released on October 23, 2025, as part of a three-pack EP including “Fiesta Forever” and “Abangani,” the song quickly climbed charts, debuting at #127 on Nigeria’s Spotify Daily Top Songs with 36K streams and holding #1 on Nigeria’s Apple Music for nine consecutive days. It even reached #6 on the Global Shazam Top Songs Chart and topped Nigeria’s Spotify Weekly with 2.39 million streams, fueling claims from fans that it’s the “most viral song in the world.”
Yet, despite this commercial success, the track feels like a missed opportunity in a year where Amapiano and Afrobeat viewership surged globally, nearing 4 billion views on platforms like Vevo.
Production Praise: The Beat Carries the Load
There is no doubt that the beat is one in town. Classic Amapiano flair with the suspense-building pauses and silly-but-entertaining sounds and noises. It brings that easy, yet groovy feel to the sound, making you want to move your body to the beat and have a good time in the timeless rendition of South African-style house that has evolved into Amapiano since its mid-2010s origins in townships, blending House, Kwaito, and Jazz.
DJ Maphorisa, a pioneer in pushing Amapiano’s boundaries through collaborations with international acts like Drake, delivers his signature production here, but it’s undercut by the lack of substance from the vocalists.
Euphoria Denied: Big Names, No Magic
But unfortunately for the track, it did nothing to elicit that feeling of euphoria that everyone would be expecting from such a track filled with these musical bigwigs. Fan reactions on X highlight the streaming push, with Wizkid FC rallying to keep it at the top, but even some listeners note similarities to other beats, like Javivah’s “Kaukata” featuring Babyboy, Poco Lee, and Falz.
Mavo’s Lazy Verses: A Step Back from Stardom
Mavo did the song dirty, giving us some lazy-assed verses that feel like he just decided to jam up a number of sentences that do not make any coherent sense apart from the fact that he keeps on shouting about money being constant. All this comes in what many see as a bid to live up to the expectations of the freestyle king: Wizkid. His verse, hyped in fan reels, blends into the background without adding depth, relying on repetitive hooks that echo his earlier work.
Wizkid: The Freestyle King’s Legacy
There is no doubt that Wizkid is the king of Afrobeat freestyle; bringing out timeless hits that were originally freestyles. Songs like “Manya” and “Fever” are some of his best freestyle attempts that later stuck themselves in the “Musical genius” tracks hall of fame, alongside classics that helped propel Afrobeat’s global rise, as seen in collaborations like Rema’s remixes with Selena Gomez.
Mavo’s Breakout and Decline
Mavo, it seems, is still reeling from the success of his hit track: “Escaladizzy,” which he released on June 6, 2025, featuring Wave$tar. The original song and its remix quickly went viral on social media platforms like TikTok, leading to Mavo’s breakout year, with lyrics celebrating a carefree, money-focused high life under Kilo Gbede Records.
But his recent attempts at music, even though received by Afrobeats enthusiasts, is a far cry from the raw star power he exhibited in “Escaladizzy.”
In the “Money Constant” track, Mavo could have made a better attempt at stringing his words together into a story that evolves about constantly making money; or money being the constant thing on his mind. He instead punctuates his hype of Wizkid by hyping his latest hit, “Kese,” without building a narrative that sticks.
Wizkid’s Vibe-Over-Substance Crime
Wizkid too is guilty of the “all vibe, no real content” crime. He just cruises on, hyping his last biggest hit, “Kese”; and hyping everyone on the track; while adding “yeah yeah” to places that could have done better with some quality songwriting. As a veteran who’s elevated Afrobeat through tracks like those on Billboard’s list of all-time greats, this feels like a step back from his more substantive work.
Maphorisa’s Minimal Contribution
Maphorisa doesn’t contribute much to the actual song other than his animalistic chirps and cries in the background. Yes, they help enrich the song, but we all can admit that the song could use a bit more lyrics and content—especially when compared to Amapiano’s soulful vocalists like Mawhoo or Ami Faku, who ground the genre with dreamlike depth.
DJ Tunez: The Glue Holding It Together
We cannot blame DJ Tunez, who tried his best to fuse the whole thing together to make a coherent song that is now top of the list in all major Nigerian music streaming platforms, building on his history of seamless productions.
Afrobeat vs. Amapiano: Content Is King
Let us not mince words when critics say that the reason why Afrobeats is hotter than Amapiano internationally is that the genre has more context and content to its tracks; with stories that are painted in music than its South African counterpart which is basically just beats and vibes—a divide that’s been widening since Afrobeats’ remixes with Western stars boosted its reach.
A Warning to Nigerian Afrobeat
Let it be known that from the critic’s point of view, Nigerian Afrobeat cannot afford to fall back into the “freestyle with no content” period; especially looking at the current position the genre holds in world music. We cannot afford to disrupt our meteoric rise to the creme de la creme of world music; not now, not ever—not when collaborations like these could instead draw from successful models, like the Afrobeats-Latin crossovers that have expanded audiences globally.
