What started as a casual music flex on social media quickly turned into a heated exchange between Afrobeats superstar Davido and rapper Jesse Jagz, reigniting conversations about respect, relevance, and genre rivalry in Nigerian music.
The clash unfolded on Wednesday afternoon when Davido took to X to boast in Pidgin, about the dominance of Amapiano, a sound that currently enjoys massive global traction.
“I go use amapiano yenk you!!!!” Davido tweeted.
The post immediately drew a response from Jesse Jagz, a respected hip-hop figure and senior colleague in the industry, who expressed fatigue with the sound.
“We don tire,” Jesse wrote — a post he later deleted.
What appeared to be a simple genre disagreement soon escalated. Davido fired back with a controversial response that shocked many fans:
“STOP TAKING DRUGS I’LL BUY YOUR LIFE.”
Jesse Jagz responded firmly, calling for respect and rejecting Davido’s statement:
“You can’t buy life lil bro — be respectful.”
He also defended his position as a hip-hop veteran, declaring himself “rap’s emperor,” while lamenting what he described as declining musical standards.
“These wack musicians have cooked up the charts so bad that no good music can get in,” Jesse added.
Davido, however, was not done. He issued another warning-laced reply:
“Y’all already got OD to worry about, better no add wetin no good.”
As tensions cooled, Jesse Jagz deleted several of his tweets, prompting Davido to publicly question the move:
“Y u delete?”
The online spat quickly divided fans, with opinions split between those defending Jesse Jagz’s stance on artistic integrity and others backing Davido’s confidence and commercial dominance.
@Mhoni_Hiyst wrote, “If this will make Jesse Jagz enter the booth and drop jams or diss tracks, I’m all for it. We need him back cooking.”
@SirloinKay added, “Nigerian music money no reach Davido papa money sha. While he can’t buy a life, let’s not pretend like he can’t employ Jesse Jagz for the rest of his natural life.”
Others criticised Davido’s choice of words. @Gorilla23mp said, “Jesse is right. Davido shouldn’t have used the word ‘buy life.’ With money you can do a lot in Nigeria, but you can’t even buy your own life.”
Some fans, however, attempted to interpret Davido’s comment differently.
@TamimGarba explained, “What Davido means is that he is taking drugs to destroy his life, so instead of destroying his life, Davido is offering to save him.”
Still, not everyone was impressed. @ellwahabb wrote: “Davido ain’t lying.” @johnson_gbemi countered: “Noise maker, money miss road.”
Beyond the insults, the exchange once again highlights the long-standing tension between hip-hop purists and Afrobeats stars, especially in an era where streaming numbers, global reach, and chart dominance often define success more than lyrical depth.