Veteran Nigerian rapper, Eedris Abdulkareem, has said that his latest single, ‘Tell Your Papa’, was inspired by a viral video of son of President Bola Tinubu, Seyi Tinubu, boasting that his father was Nigeria’s best-ever president.
The rapper clarified that the song was not a personal attack on Seyi, but a response to the comments he made during an event in Yola, Adamawa State, in March 2025.
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Speaking on Channels Television’s ‘Rubbin’ Minds’ on Sunday, activist singer Abdulkareem explained that Seyi’s public defence of his father prompted him to speak out through music. “I was inspired by Seyi Tinubu to record the song. I saw a video where he was campaigning for his father and he was defending his father, saying, ‘My father is the best president, my father is the greatest president, they are coming for my father…’ He repeated it like six times,” Abdulkareem said.
The rapper stated that he only replied to what was already said and had no intention of launching a personal attack. “So, why should I attack Seyi Tinubu personally? If Seyi Tinubu never talked about it, I wouldn’t have recorded a song like that. So, I am replying to the video that he made. If he had kept quiet, I wouldn’t have said anything,” he noted. “I am inspired by Seyi Tinubu to record that song.”
Abdulkareem also used the platform to address broader national issues affecting Nigerian youth, stating that the song was a call for accountability. “Nigerian youths are just asking for basics: electricity, security, enabling economic environment, job creation and not palliatives,” he said.
Reflecting on the state of the nation, the rapper expressed frustration that little progress has been made since he released his controversial 2001 track ‘Nigeria Jagajaga’. “Twenty-four years after ‘Nigeria Jagajaga’, the song is still relevant because Nigeria has not experienced the necessary development,” he lamented.
He further advised Seyi Tinubu to reconsider taking on public speaking roles, saying, “It looks more perfect when you are silent than when you speak. I would advise Seyi to hand over the microphone to the MC next time. He lacks the charisma and purpose to express himself, telling the truth about the true economic situation in Nigeria under his father’s government.”
Delivering a final jab, Abdulkareem said: “Tinubu is the best father to Seyi Tinubu but he is the worst president to Nigeria. He has empowered Seyi as his son, but Nigerian youths don’t have jobs talkless of food to eat. The Nigerian youths can’t travel by road so I ask Seyi Tinubu to travel by road without his security. Let him feel the pains of ordinary citizens.”
