Bebe Cool Recalls Initial Backlash to His Afrobeats Sound, Says Fans Have Caught On

Ugandan music legend Bebe Cool has revealed how he handled the backlash when he first experimented with Afrobeats.

The first two releases off his Break The Chains album, Circumference and Motivation, drew heavy criticism online.

Speaking on the Afrobeats Podcast with Adesope Olajide, the singer explained that he knew resistance was coming, but he was confident in his vision.

I expected it because I know how rigid Uganda or East Africa can be, since we are so much dancehall-oriented.

Bebe Cool noted that despite the pushback, younger audiences were already embracing the new wave of sounds from across the continent.

It is understandable, though. The young people had already shown us where to go, and there is no excuse about it. I mean, by welcoming West African artistes and South African artistes, they were saying, ‘Guys, this is what is trending. You need to move.

He referred to the album as a “right bet,” saying the music industry eventually caught on to what he was doing.

So I think the bet was right for that album, Break The Chains. We need to now make the sound that goes global, and that was the topic we started and it also vibrated into the media. In the beginning, most of them saw me as a guy who is just going to try… This cannot work. But as I speak now, the page is totally different. Everybody is now paying full attention.