How Nigerian-American Artist, Mezuo, Composed Score for Netflix Latest Movie ‘Clash’

Chiamaka Ozulumba reports that Nigerian- American Artist, Charles Chiemezuo O’Kehie, popularly known as Mezuo, has joined the list of young composers for major studio picture in Netflix film “Clash

For Nigerian- American Artist, Charles Chiemezuo O’Kehie, popularly known as Mezuo, his feature film composition debut with Netflix film “Clash”, which would be released on Netflix today, was the stuff dreams are made of. The young artist who is based in Los Angeles in America scored the movie which was directed by award winning filmmaker Paschal Atuma. As expected, his music added elements from both the United States and Nigeria.

A graduate of the University of Texas at Austin McCombs School of Business with a minor in Screenwriting and Directing, Mezuo recently released his debut music video for his song “30”.

On why he chose music as a career he said: “The music surfaced early on in High School for me when I rapped in a cypher during a summer program at Columbia University in New York City. I started writing, making beats, and performing within the next year and some change. I ultimately made the decision to fully pursue a career in music during my second year of college at The University of Texas at Austin. The journey’s been wild but fast forward through a lot of heartbreaks, triumphs, and Hollywood hurdles from my teens through part of my twenties…and here we are. I’m now embarking on the biggest deals and activities of my career thus far.”

On the reaction of family and friends when he announced his desire to pursue a career in music he noted that “it’s very common in a Nigerian household for an entertainment pursuit to be met with confusion or even outright disapproval. For me, it was staggering that I had some immediate support from my closest sibling which in turn led to a broader understanding across my family. The biggest factor was that academically I left very little to discuss because my grades were as high as they could be consistently.

“Obviously, this is a sweet spot for African households at large. I kept this in mind and continued to run my own race until family and friends alike were able to assess my talent through the lenses of my merit. They were able to draw a parallel to other points of success in my life and essentially put one and one together. I thank God for all of the support to this point.”

For him, his Netflix deal was an exciting moment. According to him, “I’ll start by saying when I got hired on to score the film, I had no idea where it would end up. I just saw the picture and went to work. Needless to say, I’m ecstatic as this is a major achievement for me early on in my career. It sets the tone for what’s to come and simultaneously opens up more doors for me across the broader entertainment industry.”

Speaking on the Nigerian music industry then and now, he said: “There’s more connectivity now. We’re as connected as ever to the Nigerian music industry from the United States as ever thanks to social media. With that, the sound and influence is spanning across the globe both ways. More American artists have been experimenting with Afrobeat driven music because it’s become more prominent. There’s also more international collaborations across the board as a result of all of this.”

On the issue of several Nigerians in the music industry who were born and bred abroad, who tend to succeed more in Nigeria, Mezuo noted that “operating from North Hollywood but having my roots in Nigeria gives me unique leverage because I’m foreign, yet familiar in the Nigerian market. There’s aspects that will build curiosity because of the distance and shift in culture; however, there’s inherent relatability as a Nigerian-American.

“Moreover. I’ve personally made it a point to incorporate the Nigerian market in my career pursuits because I noticed that opportunity pretty early on. I’m excited to be digging deeper in the Nigerian market and ultimately giving my native land something to be proud of with the international strides I’ve made thus far in my career”.

On expectations from him in the next five years he noted that “big business and more elite company overall. The global market should expect to hear the name Mezuo ringing across music, film, and television in that span of time. There is no ceiling that I can place on myself career wise but I fully intend on being in every conversation as far as generational leaders in the field go. God will ultimately tell the story better so I continue to call on him to provide the light on my vision.”