Lionn Productions is a newly created record label owned by ex-Alpha Better Records singer, Mr. Leo, who walked away from his former label to establish his own label under which he signed two talented artists; Gomez, and later Kameni. In 2019, The HotJem wrote an article insinuating that Kameni, who looked extremely promising, was not the most talented as compared to Gomez who has all the musical talent in the world and even had exposure before Kameni. But we were sure that she had the attitude to excel and she’s not proving us wrong. We also pointed out that Kameni would soon lose the “upcoming artist” tag sooner or later, and our observation was partly based on how the streets seemed to have welcomed her with open arms, as well as how she positioned herself for opportunities.
Fast-forward to just eight months later, she has gained a lot of momentum with her music and street style and gone far beyond being tagged as an “upcoming artist”. Although she joined the label after Gomez, she has undoubtedly earned the spot of the frontline artist of Lionn Productions, headlining many shows. Again, Kameni is not the most talented (No disrespect) but she’s one of the most hard-working female artists in Cameroon. The consistent and well structured energy channeled towards her craft is very much evident and emphatic. Success makes the noise doesn’t it?
Most growing labels are always very skeptical about signing female artists, because of the management cost, and other factors. Davido said DMW had not signed a female artist because of how much attention they would require. When investments are made, it often ends in regret. However, so far, this has not been the case with Kameni. While Mr. Leo has faced wide criticism overtime for supposedly not living up to expectations, she seems to have taken the burden off his shoulders. She just bagged a deal with United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA) a few months ago and is currently partnering with Guiness-Cameroon as brand ambassador, to introduce its new Baileys Delight product. As you can see, Kameni has a lot on her plate. Away from all that, her songs are doing doing great on the streets. Her song “Nayo Nayo”, which is a street anthem, just recently hit 2 Million views on YouTube and her EP is doing well on streaming platforms.
It should be noted that Kameni has performed with international artists like Toofan, and was one of the few artists to have had a one-on-one chat with Burna Boy when he arrived in Cameroon for his concert in 2019 and who was on the project by Mr. Leo which was instigated to fight against COVID-19. The project featured other international musicians as well. Now at her level, Kameni has all it takes to go beyond where Mr. Leo left off while with Alpha Better Records, and she can do this with Lionn Production as a way to pay back Mr. Leo for the confidence he invested in her. Not just for Mr. Leo but for herself, her career and her fans who believed in her from day one.
In a very delicate Cameroonian music industry, it is smart to drive as far as you can, while the sun still shines. Kameni is at a challenging stage that most artists face when the attention is on them, and when they are seemingly on top of the world in with their career. Bigger labels will usually come knocking at the door or those artists who are doing great, have potential for more growth and who have a dedicated and growing fanbase, and many artists would not think twice about wanting to join these bigger labels when the latter show interest. Bigger does not always mean better for the artist. Bigger labels have been known to ruin the careers of artist who would have been much better off with a smaller label.
We hope Kameni can be patient and not get easily enticed if a bigger label comes knocking. Based on her achievements so far, one can only be happy for how far Kameni has come as an artist under Lionn Productions. The Lionn’s den has been busy grooming her and it seems to be paying off.
