"Kukere" (

Efik The Efik are an ethnic group located primarily in southern Nigeria, and western Cameroon. Within Nigeria, the Efik can be found in the present-day Cross River State and Akwa Ibom state. The Efik speak the Efik language which is a member of the ...

: "Don't think/worry") is a song by Nigerian singer

Iyanya Iyanya Onoyom Mbuk (born 31 October 1986), better known as Iyanya, is a Nigerian singer and songwriter. Born and raised in Calabar, he rose to fame after winning the first season of ''Project Fame West Africa''. In 2009, Iyanya released his de ...

. It was released as the lead single from his second studio album, ''

Desire Desires are states of mind that are expressed by terms like "wanting", "wishing", "longing" or "craving". A great variety of features is commonly associated with desires. They are seen as propositional attitudes towards conceivable states of affa ...

'' (2013) on 23 November 2011. Upon release, the song peaked at number one on Top FM's May Chart, Soundcity's Viewers Choice, Rhythm FM, and The Beat 99.9 FM's Blackberry Top Ten Countdown. Moreover, it peaked at number two on Radio Port Harcourt. "Kukere" won Hottest Single of the Year at 2013

Nigeria Entertainment Awards The Nigerian Entertainment Awards were established in New York City in January 2006. The awards recognize the contributions of African entertainers with a special focus on Nigerians. Ceremonies * 2006 Nigeria Entertainment Awards * 2007 Nigeria ...

and Best Pop Single at

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Background

CEO Dancers performed the song during their performance on ''

Britain's Got Talent ''Britain's Got Talent'' (often abbreviated to ''BGT'') is a televised British talent show competition, and part of the global '' Got Talent'' franchise created by Simon Cowell. Presented by Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly (colloquial ...

''. Cokobar and Iyanya organized the Kukere Queen Competition in order to better promote the album in London. The competition required participants to submit a dancing video of themselves along with three justifications for why they should win.

Accolades

Kukere (Remix)

The remix of "Kukere" was made available on August 20, 2012; it features vocals by

D'banj Oladapo Daniel Oyebanjo (born 9 June 1980), known professionally as D'banj ( ), is a Nigerians, Nigerian singer, rapper, music executive, event host and television personality. He signed with American rapper Kanye West's record label GOOD Music ...

and serves as the album's third single. The track reprises the original song's hook and instrumental.

Background

In an interview with

Toolz Tolu Oniru (born 6 July 1982), popularly known as Toolz, is a Nigerian radio personality, talk show host, and presenter. She hosts ''The Midday Show'' on The Beat 99.9 FM. Toolz aka Tolu Oniru-Demuren became the acting Program Director of The B ...

, Iyanya said D'banj reached out to him to do the remix and that he was honored to work with the singer. Iyanya also stated that the remix would have a music video; however, the video was never made or published.

Critical reception

The remix of "Kukere" received positive reviews from music critics. Jaguda's Ayo Jaguda praised Iyanya for releasing "one of the biggest dance track ever made" and commended D'Tunes for "the crazy beat". Damilare Aiki of ''

BellaNaija ''BellaNaija'' is a Nigerian lifestyle, entertainment, and fashion website headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria. History BellaNaija was founded by Uche Eze in 2006. In its early form, BellaNaija featured scanned magazine articles, pictures, and in ...

'' said the song "became a national anthem" after being released and that it was "a breath of fresh air". Demola OG of

NotJustOk NotjustOk is an African media and entertainment company, known for housing an online music and entertainment website ''NotJustOk'', a music streaming service Mino Music (previously known as MyNotjustOk), and a music distribution and publishing se ...

characterized the song as a "huge national track" and commended both Iyanya and D'banj for recording the song.

References

{{authority control Iyanya songs 2012 songs 2012 singles D'banj songs Song recordings produced by D'Tunes