Skales’ 2014 hit ‘shake body’ enjoys viral comeback a decade after release
A decade after its original release, Nigerian singer Skales’ 2014 Afrobeats hit ‘Shake Body’ is experiencing a powerful resurgence, fueled by viral remixes and TikTok trends.
Originally released in May 2014, the upbeat track with its catchy pidgin-English lyrics has found new commercial life, thanks in part to a remix by Dutch DJ Onderkoffer. Skales officially uploaded the remix to streaming platforms, where it garnered nearly 200,000 streams within just 10 hours despite no playlist support.
“This is crazy!!… in 10 hours it’s already almost 200k streams with no form of playlist support, that’s craaazy… thank you Jesus!!!” Skales shared on X, expressing gratitude for the song’s renewed popularity.
A major contributor to the song’s resurgence is 16-year-old FC Barcelona football prodigy, Lamine Yamal, whose dance videos featuring the track have gone viral on TikTok, sparking a fresh wave of interest among Gen Z users globally.
The ‘Shake Body’ revival continues a recent trend of older Nigerian songs experiencing a second wave of popularity through TikTok. In 2024, legendary highlife artist Mike Ejeagha’s 41-year-old track ‘Gwo Gwo Gwo Ngwo’ enjoyed a commercial comeback after skitmaker Brain Jotter danced to it online.
Similarly, CKay’s ‘Love Nwantiti’ became a global phenomenon years after its initial release, proving TikTok’s growing influence in reshaping music consumption and propelling legacy songs back into the spotlight.
