Two days following the official release of his ‘Beyond Gifted’ album, Willy Paul found himself embroiled in controversy as one of the featured artists expressed dissatisfaction with the album’s cover color.
Marioo, who collaborated with Willy Paul on the track ‘Nanana’, voiced his concerns on Willy Paul’s Instagram page regarding the album’s dark red cover, which he felt evoked imagery of excessive blood.
“Ngoma kali sana lakini hii cover iko na damu nyingi sana kakangu,” Marioo wrote.
In response, Willy Paul defended the album’s aesthetic choice.
The Kenyan singer had earlier been forced to explain his decision to exclude Kenyan artists from his new album.
Willy Paul justified this decision by alleging that many Kenyan artists harbor negative sentiments of envy and animosity, contributing nothing positive to the music scene.
“I have seen many questions about why there is not a single Kenyan artist on my album. Why have you forgotten that many Kenyan artists are only evil spirits that they can afford at a cheap price? The album is coming out early tomorrow,” Willy Paul asserted.
Aside from his solo tracks like “Umeme,” “My Child My Love,” and “Isabella,” Willy Paul’s album features collaborations with Bongo artists such as Marioo and Nandy, as well as Afrobeats artists like Iyanya and Guchi.
Related: Willy Paul explains why he snubbed Kenyan musicians in his new album
