NIGERIAN POP STARS AND THE DANGEROUS ILLUSION OF WEALTH I am amazed at the supposed wealth of Nigerian pop stars. I know no other musicians on earth who flaunt money the way Nigerians do. And I have met the giants of this industry. Bob Marley. Paul McCartney. Mick Jagger. Elton John. Rod Stewart. These were not people pretending to be international stars. They were the international stars. When McCartney came to Lagos in the seventies to record what became Band on the Run, he was already a former Beatle and one of the most famous men alive. Today he is a billionaire. Yet McCartney has always struck me as low-key, humble, polite and financially astute. His money works for him. It does not work against him. Mick Jagger studied finance and accounting at the London School of Economics before leaving to pursue the Rolling Stones. More than sixty years later, the Rolling Stones are still making money. Jagger understood very early that being a musician and understanding the business of music are two entirely different things. That should tell young Nigerian musicians something. Then I look at Nigerian stars. Private jets everywhere. Rolls-Royces. Ferraris. Lamborghinis. Jewellery. Watches. Mansions. And now Bugattis. Burna Boy has reportedly spent around $6 million, roughly nine billion naira, on a one-of-one customised Bugatti Chiron. A Bugatti. To drive around Lagos. To me, that is madness. It is money that should have been invested for the day people stop buying your music. And believe me, that day comes. I have been in this business for more than four decades. I signed my first publishing contract while I was still at law school. I have watched stars rise and I have watched them vanish. THE MUSIC BUSINESS IS A FAD BUSINESS. Very few artists keep the same level of popularity and income throughout their lives. One generation moves on. Another artist comes along. A $6 million car does not produce royalties. It does not pay dividends. It does not collect rent. It does not own copyrights. It does not own an oil block. It does not manufacture anything. It sits in a garage, costing you money every month simply to exist. And when you eventually try to sell these toys, what somebody is prepared to pay may bear very little relationship to what you originally spent. Wizkid seems addicted to private-jet travel, as do so many of them. Flying commercial appears to have become beneath a Nigerian superstar. But what exactly are they trying to prove? And to whom? I know something about private aircraft, because my father was doing this before today's Nigerian pop stars were born. Chief Godfrey Kio Jaja Amachree was the first Nigerian to own a private jet. That is not a family story. It is documented Nigerian history. Published histories of Rivers State record him as the first Nigerian private-jet owner, and record that in 1969 he brought Delta Air Charter into operation to solve the air transport problems of the Niger Delta. So when I talk about private aircraft, I am not impressed by somebody posing beside a Gulfstream for Instagram. I grew up knowing what it actually costs to keep an aircraft in the air. And there was something behind my father's lifestyle. BUSINESS. He had an oil block. He had substantial commercial interests. He had Delta Air Charter. He had assets that produced money. He understood law and he understood economics. The aircraft was not the business. The business paid for the aircraft. That is the whole difference. And that is precisely what worries me about this generation of Nigerian music stars. Where are their business managers? Who is telling them that stardom does not last? Who is telling them that a record-company advance is not free money? A huge advance is usually recoupable. Depending on the contract, the record company recovers that advance, plus recording and promotional costs, from your royalties before you see another cent. So Nigerians should stop reading headlines about a "$20 million deal" and assuming $20 million has landed in the artist's personal account for him to spend. The economics of music do not work like that. Streaming has made it even harder. Live shows, festivals, endorsements, sponsorships and publishing can make these young men serious money. But record sales and streaming are a very different animal from the enormous physical-record business of the seventies, eighties and nineties. Davido is somewhat different. He comes from a very rich family and has a completely different financial foundation. He can probably afford his playthings. The others need to start planning ahead. Because stardom is a fleeting experience. Anybody who thinks being one of the biggest stars in the world guarantees financial security should study Michael Jackson. Michael Jackson made sums of money that no Nigerian artist has come close to over an entire career. Thriller alone was a phenomenon the streaming generation has never experienced. Yet when he died, his finances were in ruins. Estate court filings put his debts at more than $500 million. Think about that. MICHAEL JACKSON WAS MORE THAN HALF A BILLION DOLLARS IN DEBT. If it could happen to Michael Jackson, it can happen to anybody. So my advice to these young Nigerian stars is simple. Enjoy your success. But invest your money. Buy property. Buy businesses. Buy shares. Build companies. Invest internationally. Own your publishing. Own your masters wherever you can. I have owned my catalogue since 1981, and it still pays me. No car ever has. Build something that produces money when nobody wants to pay you a million dollars to perform anymore. And above everything else, employ serious business managers, accountants and lawyers who have the courage to tell you NO. No, you do not need another Rolls-Royce. No, you do not need another watch. No, you do not need another private-jet photograph. And no, spending $6 million on a car does not make you $6 million richer. Spending money and having money are two completely different things. My father understood that in 1969. He could own a private jet and operate Delta Air Charter because there was an economic machine underneath the lifestyle. That is the lesson. Do not build the lifestyle and then scramble to earn enough to maintain it. BUILD THE MACHINE FIRST. Because the applause eventually stops. The crowds eventually thin out. Another star eventually appears. And when that happens, nobody will care how many Bugattis you once photographed yourself beside. The only question that will matter is: WHAT DO YOU STILL OWN? Kio Amachree President, SKJ Records Sweden #NigerianMusic #Afrobeats #BurnaBoy #Wizkid #Davido #PaulMcCartney #MickJagger #MichaelJackson #MusicBusiness #FinancialLiteracy #PrivateJets #DeltaAirCharter #GodfreyAmachree #MusicIndustry #ArtistManagement #Investing #SKJRecords #LettersFromStockholm