Afrobeats is escapism, Tems counters. Buju Banton

Grammy-winning Nigerian musician Temilade Openiyi, also known as Tems, has described afrobeats as a genre designed expressly for escape.

According to her, the genre's objective in Nigeria is to provide an escape from hard realities, rather than to preach against societal injustices.

The 'Love Me Jeje' singer said this in response to Jamaican reggae star Buju Banton's criticism of afrobeats on a recent episode of the 'Shopping The Sneakers' podcast.

Banton believed that Afrobeats lacked substance and would disappear with time.

"I get where Buju Banton's coming from. Reggae is not afrobeats, and afrobeats in Nigeria exist solely for the sake of escape," she explained.