“Benue State is one of the richest in terms of cultural preservation,” superstar singer-songwriter, producer and entrepreneur 2Baba tells Apple Music. “The state slogan is ‘Food Basket of the Nation’—this shows the vast varieties of food delicacies produced in one state. Beyond that, we have our languages, folklores, traditional dances, beliefs, and traditional festivals that are peculiar only to Benue State.” For Oshe Naija, our celebration of the sounds of Nigeria, we asked the legendary star to reflect on how the land of his heritage helped shape his own music—and the impact it’s had on Nigeria’s soundscape. “We have our local drum called okanga, and a local flute called ukpe, which are essential to our music productions and performances,” 2Baba explains. “Our music is heavily percussion-driven—hence the importance of those instruments. I’m a testimony to the sounds from my state. I pride myself as one of the pioneers of the contemporary Afrobeats the world is enjoying right now. Being called ‘Godfather of Afrobeats’ affirmed how impactful and influential my music is to my generation, and the one after me.” Celebrated as one of the pioneers of the modern African sounds, 2Baba credits his Benue State-heritage not only for its musical influences, but also for how it helped shape his character. “I grew up in an environment that upholds respect, humility, kindness, and friendliness as necessary virtues for someone to have as a human being,” he affirms. “These reflect not only in my person but also in my music.” Here, he highlights work by artists who were formative to his own art, including Sonny Okosuns, U-Roy, Fela Kuti and Peter Tosh, alongside LL COOL J, Nas, Busta Rhymes and more. “The playlist represents just a few [of the artists] I listened to growing up,” he explains. “Thanks to my dad; he had a wide eclectic collection of different genres of music which shaped my music orientation to date. Every one of the artists I chose influenced my music journey.”