Paul Okoye criticizes rising artists for glorifying smoking in music videos

Nigerian music star Paul Okoye, popularly known as Rudeboy and one-half of the now-defunct P-Square duo, has issued a strong warning to upcoming artists glamorizing smoking in their music visuals.

Taking to his Instagram Story, Paul expressed his frustration over the growing trend of emerging musicians lighting up weed before or during music video shoots, calling it unnecessary and unhealthy.

Writing in Pidgin English, he questioned the mindset behind the habit, saying: “Dear new acts, abeg, who tell una say whenever una dey shoot visualizer video, say una must dey smoke Igbo for camera? 20 seconds, music never start, you still dey light up.

“Na your choice oh, but make sure say you dey chop better food.

“Don’t tell me it’s swag or trying to look fly.”

He warned that smoking doesn’t equate to style or status and urged artists to prioritize their health, adding that many of them already “look sick.”

“You dey smoke around 50k, dey battle Indomie of 1k without egg.

“Under pressure,” he added, highlighting the irony of spending heavily on weed while struggling to afford basic food.

Paul’s comments are part of his ongoing trend of using social media to speak directly to young people in the industry.

In a post shared about a year ago, he also advised his followers on how to handle online trolls—urging empathy at first, but then ending the message with a humorous twist: “Sometimes be nice to these trolls… then ask them to send their account details, give them hope—and when they send it, insult their papa and block them.”

Known for his blunt style and decades-long influence in Nigerian music, Paul Okoye’s latest message is a cautionary reminder to upcoming artists to focus more on their craft and well-being rather than peer pressure or unhealthy habits masked as “swag.”