Best New Music Special: Ayra Starr confirms herself as a generational star with “Rush”
etching her name on the path led by her forerunners
The ebbs and flows of Black art as an expression of our collective identity has moved from facets of activism and media censorship under tyrannical regimes to artistic freedom boosted by the synergy of the Black diaspora via virtual communities. For some of the most prominent African creators—think: Wizkid, Burna Boy, Lupita Nyong’o, Chimamanda Adichie—the wins have been apparent in unmatched superstardom. Now, we are witnessing real-life Africa-inspired narratives in films such as the recently released The Woman King, in music genres like Amapiano ascending globally, and in neo-Fuji music progenitors like Asake debuting at #66 on the Billboard 200, a milestone that may never have happened for an artist of that cadre a few years ago.
For women in African music, though, attaining success in a male-dominated business has proved challenging. The repeated efforts by Tiwa Savage, Yemi Alade, Angelique Kidjo, Fatoumata Diawara and others—who are only now enjoying a semblance of a level playing field as global stars, after years of being formidable acts on the African continent—speak volumes. Thankfully, as is human nature, evolution is also a constant for the culture. This encapsulates the symbolism and rise of mid-twenties global superstar Pop girls like Tems and Aya Nakamura. Their growing influence on pop culture is changing what it means to be a Black African woman in music. Global recognition aside, these women are now paving the way for an even younger generation of women like South Africa’s Tyla and Mavin’s Pop princess Ayra Starr to get early shots at a lasting legacy.
View this post on Instagram
The smooth Dancehall-led melody on Ayra’s new single, “Rush”, is only one special aspect of the catchy new track. It’s also a palette cleanser from all the chant-led 2022 chart toppers that have dominated the airwaves lately (“Last Last”, “Finesse” and recently released “Bad To Me” etc.). On the new track, Ayra Starr refuses to back down, delivering some of her most self-confident lyrics to date, even as the naïveté that life as a rising star is all strawberries and rose fields starts to peel away. It’s a notable departure from the R&B-inspired bubblegum Pop songs that introduced her to the world barely two years ago.
Fans who have been ardent since her debut album ‘19 & Dangerous’ may say they saw this coming since “Bloody Samaritan” took over TikTok soundbites, but the defining quality of “Rush” is an angsty devil-may-care attitude. If “Bloody Samaritan” was a self-affirming statement that Ayra Starr was meant to be here, “Rush” is her tectonic offering, which finds her gunning for an equivalent of Tems’ “Try Me” moment, a triumphant song with definitive proclamations of a generational greatness that feels inevitable with each new song.
“Rush” strips away the performative respectability politics expected of music industry newcomers. She’s a “sabi girl” of few words who is becoming aware of her role in the making of contemporary Pop music history. It’s not clear who she addresses as she sings “I no dey form say I too righteous, no come dey form say you too like us,” but the message is loud and clear: Ayra is not here to suck up to anybody’s overblown ego. Despite Ayra’s assertiveness on “Rush”, the second verse hints at her self-awareness of her journey to attaining her top form. This may explain why the promotions leading up to the new single cheekily attempted to put forward the cryptic phrase “E Dey Rush”, with a much-needed big sister backing from Tems.
View this post on Instagram
Conceptually, “E Dey Rush” is a formula we have seen before through Nigerian music history from Fela’s “Everybody say yeah-yeah” to Davido and 30BG’s “E Choke”. However, this was majorly orchestrated by male artists in the upper echelons of Nigerian Pop who got to the top of their game before trying to immortalise their personalities in everyday lingo.
Time will tell how “Rush” ages in Ayra’s discography, but an easy parallel to compare would be that Rihanna released ‘Good Girl Gone Bad’ at 19. Her audacious follow-up, ‘Rated R’ came two years later at 21, and nothing has been the same for the musician turned billionaire fashion mogul ever since. It’s not so much the potential for “E Dey Rush” to become a hashtag and trendy social-media quip associated with the singer’s brand for a long time, but that, at 20 years old and confidently harmonising choral hymns at the tail-loop of “Rush”, Ayra Starr is already making record time towards etching her name on the path led by her forerunners.
Listen to “Rush” here.
Toye used to haunt the hallways of The NATIVE’s Lagos office with hard facts on the intersection of innovation, black arts and global pop-culture. These days, he runs ARTISH, a cool human-resource start-up for the creator economy. Tweet at him @toyesokunbi.
ICYMI: READ ‘PROJECT RUNAWAY’ WITH AYRA STARR & LOJAY
