Just a little under 18 months ago, Zaylevelten was glimpsing at a future that he couldn’t quite lay his fingers on despite the clarity of its predestination in his mind. Across the length of his ‘before 1t g0t crazy’ tape, the rapper was hinting at the success that was just around the corner for himself, whether it was on the Soul-Rap-influenced “money calling” or the project’s aspirational opener, “brabus (tiwa savage).” To listen to that iteration of Zaylevelten was to steep one’s self in a radical act of self-manifestation via his salacious lyrics. 

Fair play to the singer, a great percentage of what he was hinting at on ‘before 1t g0t crazy’ unfolded in 2025 with the singer sealing his reputation as one of Nigeria’s most promising up-and-coming acts thanks to a fluid flow and an arsenal of Popular culture references that keeps him plugged into the reality of day-to-day life in the west African country. His first release of 2026, “Muzz,” arrives as a reflective statement on his blistering come-up and the perks that his success affords him. 

There is a moment in many great artists’ catalogue when the scale of their breakthrough comes into focus for them, leading to defiant messaging on wax that captures their state of mind. Zaylevelten taps into that energy on  “Muzz,” offering a diaristic dispatch on the ways his life has changed. It’s perciptible from the opening words uttered on the track with “Whole lotta money” being uttered repeatedly before he launches into a sequence about his motion and the outsized influence of his work across the world. 

In many ways, ‘then 1t g0t crazy,’ the project that established Zaylevelten’s genius was a contemplative and ruminative statement of intent that at times revealed an earnest creator battling to prove his musical chops and soak in different experiences. Halfway through that project, when he says, “I just dey know say Abu Dhabi different from Dubai,” on “Fly,” it’s a candid moment that reveals just how far Zay has come. 

There’s less of that sentimentality on “Muzz” because he’s fully tapped into the fast lifestyle of being a rapper but it’s no less catchy when he sings, “For my show na mazza/ Na real party scatter,” because it’s just true: Zaylevelten is hotter than he’s ever been, he knows it, and, now, he wants the world to acknowledge that fact. 

Listen to “Muzz” here.