Best New Music Special: Sarz & Obongjayar bring Funk back on ‘Sweetness’
Is Funk-Disco back?
In 1976, the great Afro-Soul singer, Orlando Julius recorded his four-track extended play that invited listeners into the fad of the decade. Singing, “Come on let’s do the new dance,” Orlando Julius introduced his album with the title track, “Disco Hi-Life” encouraging audiences to join him in marrying sounds from his Nigerian home and the influential West. Recorded between the iconic Ginger Baker Studio in Lagos and West Virginia’s The American Star Studio, Orlando Julius’ instructions way back then are still being heeded now. Julius said “let’s do the disco hi-life,” and Sarz and Obongjayar, 40 years on, listened.
During the 1970s and ’80s, Disco and its more jazz-inclined sibling, Funk were globally consumed and produced. As Pop icon Michael Jackson was making his most memorable disco tunes, Nigerian legends such as Tony Allen, Eno Louis, Odion Iruoje, and including Orlando Julius, were putting a local inflection on this global sound. As the years went on and Funk and Disco retreated into the archives in the US, to be replaced by the historic rise of Hip-Hop and Rap, West African genres also went through a similar phase. Afro-Disco or Afro-Funk became the tastes of the elderly generation, played in nostalgia for the good old days – which, in these parts, were actually better than now.
Nowadays, artists who continue to make Funk music exist outside the mainstream; and, unlike Fela’s Afrobeat, or the High-Life sound that united West Africa back then, Disco and Funk are not popular choices for mainstream artists to experiment upon. In 2018, when Odunsi (The Engine) reintroduced Afro-Funk to the Nigerian mainstream, with his game-changing debut album, ‘rare.’, even as an alternative artist this feat was considered so counter-grain that many challenged its merit and doubted the potential of its success.
Naysayers be damned, three years later, leading Nigerian producer, Sarz has now joined forces with experimental British-Nigerian artist, Obongjayar for an evolution of the Afro-Funk campaign, that audiences are clearly hoping will catch on, judging by the instant commercial buzz and sonic highs of their joint EP ‘Sweetness‘.
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Short and definitely saccharine, ‘Sweetness‘ is four unexpected tracks that prove the unequivocal production prowess and versatility of Sarz as a global tastemaker. An underground British-Nigerian artist, Obongjayar is best known for his poetic, raspy delivery on overdramatic beats. On his album released last year, Obongjayar flexed his Afrobeat interests alongside spiritual gospel on a record like “God’s Own Children”, clearly showing that travelling to the past to source inspiration for his present music tastes is a common practice of his. Still, as the Funk guitar ushers in the main rhythm of the title and opening track, ‘Sweetness‘ all our expectations of both acts are subverted in the most mesmerising way possible.
As the keyboards on “Sweetness” amplify the Disco tenets of the song, Obongjayar opts for a falsetto delivery, a difference from the booming vocals he typically adopts. Looking for a girl’s attention, Obongjayar weaves in characteristic Disco language, pleading with her not to reject him with the lyrics, “don’t turn your lights out.” After announcing his imminent arrival at her place, the chorus is followed by an instrumental break, a key component of Disco music. In true Sarz fashion, the end of the song also features a lyric-less few seconds, accentuated by a bass solo, that reminds us of the empirical role Sarz plays on this EP.
Each record on the project has its own identity. Where “Sweetness” is fruity and fun, “Nobody” is more contemporary in its sound. “If You Say” is a dance-floor classic, whilst “Gone Girl” is a darker tune with the most melancholy plot-line. On the brooding second track, Obongjayar sings of growing apart from his lover, noticing a change in her attitude that he can’t explain. Obongjayar cleverly references Fela’s immortal title track, “Zombie” to describe his lover’s aloofness, while Sarz works his magic with the beat, incorporating echoes to illustrate the emptiness growing around Obongjayar.
On “Gone Girl”, like in “Sweetness”, Obongjayar’s Nigerian intonations come out stronger on the song’s second verse. Heavily reminiscent of The Weeknd’s ‘Starboy‘ – right from the gritty opening of the title track to the album’s closer “I Feel It Coming” – it is Obongjayar’s unique vocals that truly set this song apart. With “If You Say”, however, the album harkens back to the previously mentioned, Odunsi’s ‘rare.’ With similarities to “dancefloor” in particular, on “If You Say”, what captivates listeners is Obongjayar’s syncopated rhythm. On this song begging for honest communication and follow-through on commitments, throughout ‘Sweetness‘, Obongjayar displays an enviable vulnerability, for those of us who have been jaded in love.
After just ten delightful minutes, we reach the project’s final track, “Nobody”. In 1976, Orlando Julius recorded his own four-track extended play of Afro-Disco songs; this lasted over half an hour. In 2021, ‘Sweetness’ is representative of current interests, coming in at less than 15 minutes. The final track, its most familiar, most mainstream, most contemporary opens with Obongjayar telling his muse, “can’t nobody do what you did.” Just as he mentioned how irresistible she was on “Sweetness”, Obongjayar’s words to his lover somehow mirror achievements of the duo on this EP.
Of course, contemporary Funk/Disco has been done before, but on projects like ‘Starboy‘, ‘Future Nostalgia‘, or ‘rare.‘ or singles such as Doja Cat’s “Say So”, the ’70s are a mere reference. On ‘Sweetness’, however, the Disco-decade is reincarnated in full. Can anybody do what they did? We hope some at least try.
Stream ‘Sweetness’ below.
Featured Image Credits: NATIVE
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NATIVE PREMIERE: Rigo Kamp Runs Ahead Of The Pack With The Visuals For “Marathon”
Rigo Kamp’s Marathon video is an intimate Afro-juju revival that pays homage to Sir Shina Peters and stamps...
Last Friday, Rigo Kamp, a NATIVE uNder alum and one of the architects of an equal parts nostalgic and refreshing sound released his self-titled debut EP, delivering a propulsive fusion of Alte, R&B, Funk, and Soul-infused rhythms.
Featuring previously released singles “Morning Sun” and “Summer”, the six-track eponymous EP executively produced by Odunsi The Engine sees Rigo lean heavily into his element as a sonic alchemist, jumping from silky falsettos to gritty grooves without losing an ounce of cohesion, and ultimately stamping the Abuja-born, Lagos-based singer-songwriter as a mad scientist of sound.
Just last November, Apple Music named Rigo Kamp as its Up Next artist, an acknowledgment that underscored his potential and confirmed what the tastemakers and underground scene already knew. Weeks later, he delivered an exhilarating live set for Spotify Fresh Finds in Lagos, proving he’s just as compelling live as he is in the studio.
On “Marathon”, the refreshing opener to the Rigo Kamp EP, Rigo borrows the bounce and swagger of Afro-Juju legend, Sir Shina Peters’ golden-era, fusing nostalgia with re-imagination to birth a vintage performance that feels like a private party for two, where it’s just Rigo, and you.
Get an exclusive first look at the video for Marathon here:
Listen to the Rigo Kamp EP:
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Best New Music: Blinky Bill mines inspiration from the old on the rap banger, “Boss”
A standout off his new album, 'We Cut Keys
Blinky Bill is a savant of the avant. Since the late 2000s, the Kenyan artist and producer has gained a rep for being authentic, creating with very little reverence for norms or trends. As a foundational tone-setter for the eventual arrival of Nu Nairobi, a loose community of artists who champion expression that’s alternate to the mainstream, Blinky’s bonafides are sealed, especially buoyed by a formidable solo catalogue since the much beloved, seminal group, Just A Band, dispersed—and reassembled in 2022.
In late January, Blinky Bill released ‘We Cut Keys 2’, his first project release in over five years and the sequel to his debut project, ‘We Cut Keys While You Wait’. The new album is a semi-sprawling 16-song set where Blinky jams in a truckload of viscerally exciting music ideas, roaming across jazzy keys, pounding electronic bass, funky guitar riffs, and traditionally-inspired rhythms. As with all of his albums, there are lyrical moments driven by profundity, fitting for an artist who’s adept at exploring personal concern with an accessible, everyman’s rapper finesse.
At that, what really elevates ‘We Cut Keys 2’ is that it feels like the most fun album Blinky Bill has made till date. As exciting as the genre-blurring swings on his previous two projects were, there’s a lot more assuredness to the music here, even when his inspiration ventures further than anything he’s done before. Lodged in the lower middle part of the album is “Boss,” a rollicking banger that repurposes the rustic groove of traditional Luo music. The result is a swaggering rap banger with a distinctly Kenyan and East African core.
The first thing that meets listeners’ ears on “Boss” are thick low end drums, all pounding bass and no snare, accented by handclaps and what sounds like a glinting triangle sample. It doesn’t take long for the song to get fuller, with the addition of local drums and a central Benga guitar riff. It’s a musical carnival, where the old informs the new, where the urban is rooted in the pure charm of heritage. Even though the ethos is very familiar in current Afropop, it’s nothing like I’ve ever heard, and that will probably be the same for many listeners.
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Blinky Bill doesn’t complicate things with his raps, “Boss” is a celebration of self and declaration of reverence of the culture and music that came before him. “They need to know I’m a champion,” Blinky coolly asserts in a sing-rap cadence, segueing into a hook that repeats the song’s title with an infectious stomp. As for reverence, it’s in the performance as much as it is in the music. Amongst one of the more thoughtful guests, early 2000s Kenyan rap icon Maji Maji, of the seminal duo GidiGidi MajiMaji, delivers an energetic verse, with his grizzled chants floating over a section of the arrangement stripped of the pounding.
Rounding out the song are the yelped adlibs by another Kenyan music legend Melkizedo, making the union of old and new feel even fuller. On an album with over a dozen guests, including American rapper Goldlink and British-Ghanaian artist Fuse ODG, Blinky Bill hits a novel, incredibly rewarding note with “Boss.”
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Best New Music: Lojay and Olamide are a captivating pairing on new single, “Arizona”
a masterstroke in
Since his dazzling breakthrough with revered Nigerian DJ-producer, Sarz, on their collaborative EP, ‘LV N ATTN,’ Lojay has rightfully earned the ears of many listeners by carving out his own space in Afropop complete with a charismatic personality, emotion-laden songwriting and back to back hits. The 5-track offering evidently primed him for greatness and has sustained the artist since then as he proves he’s worth more than his salt.
Earlier this year, the singer served up his sophomore effort, ‘GANGSTER ROMANTIC’ which more than proves his solo capabilities as a performer. What makes ‘GANGSTER ROMANTIC’ an easy listen is the faultless sequencing that accentuates Lojay’s emotions throughout the project, from playboy to loverboy, and from self-assured to hesitant. Although his career is still nascent, Lojay has worked with some of the best hands in the music business and, with his ability to make great music, the signs portend good tidings for his future.
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On the other side of the coin, Nigerian rap legend, Olamide continues to leave an indelible mark on Nigeria’s music history with a series of timeless hits and the mentorship of prized signees via his record label, YBNL. The release of his latest and according to him, last album, ‘Unruly,’ crystallised Olamide’s status as the leading street-pop artist of our generation, eclipsing all leftover doubt.
And if it is truly the last we hear of Olamide in album mode, as he chooses to focus on expanding and reaping the benefits of the powerhouse that is YBNL, he is well within his rights. A few weeks ago, his star signee, Asake pushed the boundaries of his success a step further after snagging a Grammy nomination for “Amapiano” under the Best African Music Performance category. As Olamide joins Lojay for an intoxicating delivery on “Arizona,” it is evident that he is currently on flight mode, breezing through with potential hits like the superstar he is.
From the opening seconds of “Arizona,” it is clear that we’re in for a good time. The track opens with signature log drum-shakers combination that portends the song’s irresistible and dance-ready quality. With this solid sonic foundation, Lojay and his guest star, Baddo lay down poignant and intimate verses that find them in loverboy anguish. Lojay’s lush chords alongside Olamide’s sonorous bars come into the picture, making for an instant recipe for success.
The track leads in with a heart-thumping mid-tempo beat, credited to P.Prime, only to be accompanied shortly after by echoey chords fading in and out of the track. Lojay’s croons take over as he sings, “What’s your lucky number baby, give me update,” immediately alerting us that we have another love-themed track on our hands. He takes on the narrative approach to detail an interaction with his love interest, where he beckons her to commit and follow him to various parts of the world.
Olamide slips in immediately after, raining praises on her physical appearance while explaining how crazy she makes him feel, “Nobody got this type of ukwu, omo buruku/You make a nigga coocoo.” As opposed to clearly expressing in words in a similar way to Lojay, he takes the onomatopoeic approach, creating melodies by repeating similar sounding words. It wouldn’t be Olamide without a comedic and memorable one-liner. So when he wraps up his verse saying “Agege bread no dey get label” it reiterates his witty penmanship many listeners have grown to love. His razor sharp flow, matched with the track’s smooth progressions and ‘Piano log drums in the background allow for his verse to carry tension of its own, forging “Arizona” as one of the catchiest feel-good numbers in recent months.
With a pairing as promising as this, coupled with the synergy the pair were able to display, it is safe to conclude that Lojay has added another string to his ever-growing catalogue. His efforts are a clear indication of his desire for growth and global visibility, achieved by his consistency all bound together by his admirably raw approach to relaying his lived experiences.
Listen to “Arizona” here.
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