NATIVE Exclusive: Abuja-based artist, Cheso is paying respect to tradition
Cheso details his new debut album, Salif Keita’s influence & the reason he calls Abuja home
For an all-rounder, Cheso isn’t one of those artists with “rich” musical beginnings. “I’m not one of those people that had music in their family,” he bluntly tells me over the phone. “My dad bought the keyboard when I was around 7 and it was just fascinating to play a few notes that worked together, I think that’s the most in terms of early background.” He went on to learn the rudiments of production and sound engineering from friends much later in life, before heading to the School of Audio Engineering in Los Angeles, where everything coalesced into his expansive arsenal as a singer, producer and audio engineer.
Adding a burning desire to make substance-filled music which will entertain and resonate with listeners to his technical skills, the result is ‘Respect to Tradition’, Cheso’s outstanding debut album and the follow-up to his 2016 EP, ‘The L.Y.L.Y Project’. The 10-track project finds the balance between surveying societal ills and relishing pockets of pure joy, with both sides tied together by Cheso’s immersive folk-heavy production and a rustic vocal approach that conveys gloom and cheerfulness in equally striking measure.
Without any doubt, the four-year gap between Cheso’s two projects has brought in immense growth for the Abuja-based artist, a lot of that owing to his self-professed perfectionism. “I started “Cunie Man” in 2016 and since then, it’s just been doing tracks to match the emotion,” he tells me about why it took so long to make the album.
As a result of its painstaking process, ‘RTT’ finds Cheso tuning his abilities and uniting them into a wholesome artistic identity. “Yellow Sisi”, which he describes as his “club song”, is a show of his ability to craft instantly catchy cuts, the sonically grand “Money” coins in on timely writing, and “Afro Music” is a plain-stated ode to the rhythmic beauty of African music.
Pulling in vivid influences from Malian treasure Salif Keita, Trinidadian calypso legend Mighty Sparrow and one of highlife’s greatest innovators, Rex Jim Lawson, Cheso pays respect to music informed by tradition without sounding like a staunch revivalist. ‘Respect to Tradition’ is a strong offering from the Port Harcourt-raised artist, who now calls Abuja his home, and plans to do great things from there. “Of course, the plan is to spread the music to the world, but I will always represent this place because it was quiet enough for people to actually hear me out.”
Our conversation with Cheso has been lightly edited for clarity.
How come it took so long to drop your sophomore album?
You know our industry has an album versus singles, and it is way more difficult to put out a full length as an independent artist even though we have way more creative freedom. I’m not really a singles guy. There are a lot of things I’d want to say at a particular time and I can’t put it in one song, if not, the song will either be overloaded or it will be too long. At the same, I am a perfectionist of sorts, and this album is one of the projects I started working on even before ‘The LY, LY Project’. I started “Cunie Man” in 2016 and since then, it’s just been doing tracks to match the emotion, because the album is about Nigeria and how the culture has moved. I couldn’t even do exactly what I wanted to do and pass the message in full, so I’ll still be exploring that going forward.
Did your early music background lead to that perfectionist streak?
Kind of. Here’s the thing, I’m not one of those people that had music in their family. I know my dad bought the keyboard when I was around 7 and it was just fascinating to play a few notes that worked together, I think that’s the most in terms of early background. I didn’t listen to a lot of music then and it’s a little of the same now—in fact, I listen to a lot of music through films, ‘cos they try to match emotions with pictures. It was in A-level, when I was living in Port Harcourt, where I met this guy called Bones, and then I was already playing around fruity loops, he’d take a bike to my house and teach me a couple of things. I didn’t have the full version of FL and I couldn’t save any of those things, so I would plot out the notes on a graph book and title it the name of the file, and that was basically the beginning.
When I was in second year of Uni in Ghana, I met this guy—his name is Inem, I don’t know his moniker—and I did a remix of one beat he had and we became fast friends, he’s still my guy till tomorrow. He knew more things about mixing and mastering than I did, and he put me through a couple of things. After that period is when I decided I would get into music after getting my architecture degree, I just didn’t know in what capacity yet. Then I went to School of Audio Engineering in Los Angeles, I now found out what sound really does. I had my music in bits and pieces, but sound engineering just furthered that for me and found out I could do a lot more stuff with production and vocals. It helped me be more meticulous and refined in process, and I think that brought on the perfectionist thing. Since I wrapped up production for this album, though, I’ve been trying to be more spontaneous.
What instruments do you play now?
I play the piano but I’m picking it, I’m currently taking classes because I want to be play like Yanni, even if that’s the last thing I do before I die. That man always has six pianos lined around him, I don’t know how he does it, and he has a proper audience. His shows are always filled, and that’s kind of a milestone for me, I want to get there with the African music I play. I don’t think he’s the kind of artist you will say is popping, but he has a crowd that follows him around and spreads the word, that’s what I want. Like, if I have an annual concert with one thousand ardent fans who I can play my music to and they enjoy it, I’m good.
I’ve never seen you perform live, but I’ve heard stories and seen clips. Is the performance something you give particular thought to when you’re making music?
For me, music-making and performance are two entirely different things, but they’re linked. When I’m performing, the idea is to kinda create something new even if the music has been made, it has to give a feeling and experience that’s different—better—from the recording. The thing is, artists often perform the same song to different crowds and I can’t give the same feeling every time and everywhere I perform. The goal is for people to see me at a show in Lagos or Abuja in November/December, hear that I’m doing a show in Ghana in February, and decide to show up if you’re in Ghana at the time or you have the resources to show up, because you’re sure that you’ll have a different experience.
When I’m with my band and we’re trying to come up with routines, it’s always different. If the ideas are the same, I move musicians around—from keyboard to guitar, drums to percussion—just because they will interpret the music differently. It’s always about being innovative with performances, so that the song sounds fresh every time.
- @ucjamzBeyond Yanni, who are your other musical inspirations?
I was watching “Ali”—the 2001 film on Muhammad Ali—and “Tomorrow” by Salif Keita came on, that song encapsulated the moment and I was in awe. I immediately went to research Salif, his lineage, his story as an outcast because he’s a person with albinism, and I went to buy everything in his discography up to that point. At a point in my life, he was the only person I listened to, for up to six months. He has so much influence on me, like “Cunie Man”, if you take any of Salif Keita’s big songs with his old band, you will hear it—it’s just that my voice and singing style is different.
Another person is Mighty Sparrow, he’s from Trinidad and he’s phenomenal storyteller. There’s this song that drew him to me, “Sell the Pussy”, where’s he singing about selling cats but it’s clear that he’s singing about sex work. He made me feel like you could sell two ideas or stories in a song that’s not hip-hop, ‘cause that music is closer to African rhythm. I chose these influences because of this album, other projects will have other influences. For this project, I had these guys in mind because their music isn’t affected by pop music, they had their own distinct element that was rooted. Beyond those two guys, I love how Ladysmith Mambazoo pull harmonies together, there’s Koffi Olomide, there’s Rex Lawson—he influenced “Yellow Sisi”, which is basically my club song.
There’s a fascinating skit on the album on culture and religion, two very touchy subjects in Nigerian society that you also sing about on the album. Why did you pick those two things?
That was my dad on that skit, actually. Culture is the way of life of a people over a period of time, and I feel like a culture of peace is marred by a few things, and the major ones are religion and politics. We are multicultural people with a large population, we’ve sunk into the ‘Giant of Africa’ idea and there’s an illusion that we’re the best. We are in landmass that’s smaller than Texas, we have an economy that is smaller than, say, Arizona, but our mouth is larger than…I don’t even know. That’s the power we have and I’m not even knocking that, because there’s no way to pique interest if your voice is not heard, but what we use our voice for is useless. Religion and politics amplify those things, and we let them divide us even though we have more power together.
With religion—I’ll talk about Christianity specifically, because that’s how I grew up—many clerics are manipulating people into thinking there’s only one acceptable way of life and spirituality, so we have people that are blindsided. A lot of these people encourage giving to the church more than giving to your neighbour who is in need. In addition to politicians who don’t care, all of these things make us sceptical of each other, and even when we come together it’s to compare ourselves with others and not to unite and work for progress. The more time goes, the more difficult it gets to make peaceful solutions together.
Let’s talk about the Abuja music scene. Where do you fit in with the moves to create a self-sustaining ecosystem within the city?
The Abuja movement is at the infancy stage with regards to structure, but I’m particularly pleased that there’s no “commercial” sound here and that gives us room to grown on our terms. There’s a lot of trap music going on with Psycho YP, Zilla Oaks and the other guys (Apex Village), and when you go to the shows you’ll find that artists of other genres are doing fairly well, everybody is making moves. Most of Abuja is independent, many of them by choice, and when you look at the dynamics of the city as a chill place compared to Lagos, artists can think and create without being harassed or distracted. I feel like this place will be a proper stronghold in the next five years.
I’m not originally from here but I’ve been accepted here, and this is now like my base. Of course, the plan is to spread the music to the world, but I will always represent this place because it was quiet enough for people to actually hear me out. For now, the missing link is to find a way to improve the profitability of the niche music, ‘cause I make this folk music. It’s just to keep building and find the right people who can help with marketing this sound, whether it’s to folk fans or people who love other genres but can identify with the music in one way or the other. So, with this album and the plans we have going forward, I believe that it will open doors for more Abuja artists to know that they don’t have to conform.
Featured Image Credits: Instagram/chesoofficial
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Luwa.Mp4 Releases Riotous Debut Album, ‘punKstA*’
Across the album’s 12 tracks, Luwa.Mp4 continues his fiery exploration and fusion of genres like Punk Rock,...
Rising singer and rapper Luwa.Mp4 has released his debut album titled ‘punKstA*.’ The underground star who has been on a release spree all year long, announced the imminent arrival of his debut only a couple of days ago with a cryptic trailer video and an Instagram caption that simply read ‘PUNKSTA* MONDAY.’
Before the arrival of ‘punKstA*,’ the rising fusion star had been showcasing his diligence and talent with a consistent output that has seen him put out over a dozen songs since the start of the year. A string of singles led to a 6-pack titled ‘lore skooL,’ while a deluxe version that housed 5 new songs came just a month later.
His debut album’s lead single, “pUNK FANTASY,” arrived in late July, setting the stage for what could prove to be a pivotal moment in the underground star’s burgeoning career.
Across the album’s 12 tracks, the eclectic singer continues his fiery exploration and fusion of genres like Punk Rock, Afropop, Hyperpop, and Rap into something uniquely different. Tracks like “Pure Water,” which was previously teased on Cruel Santino’s Subaru Live Stream, the abrasive, Tecno-influenced “pROMISED NEVERLAND,” and the more laidback “pEEp MY RIDE” put on display the sort of varied, autotune-soaked approach that has set him apart and helped carve a growing niche.
While Luwa decided to go solo on his debut, credited as the only recording artist, the album was brought to life by a cast of talented producers like frequent collaborator TOPSY, Emyboi, JTRN, 3CB, FVKK.ANDI and Jeremy Cartier.
Listen to ‘punKstA*,’ here.
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Shekhinah Returns With Surprise Album, ‘Less Trouble’
The South African R&B star is at her most assertive on her first album in four years.
South African R&B and Pop singer Shekhinah has released a new surprise album titled ‘Less Trouble.’ The Durban star, who had been quiet for most of the year, took to social media shortly before midnight to share the new album’s cover, synopsis, and tracklist, simply stating, ‘If you’re seeing this my album LESS TROUBLE is out now at Midnight,’ in an Instagram caption.
The soulful singer first began teasing ‘Less Trouble,’ her first album in over four years, about a year ago when she released its lead single “Risk,” a bouncy Afropop-inspired collab with Ghanaian star MOLIY. A few months after the release of “Risk,” she put out “Steady,” a dreamy pop number that suggested that something bigger was on the horizon. But then it was largely radio silence about a project until its surprise arrival at midnight.
If 2021’s ‘Trouble In Paradise’ represented a coming-of-age for Shekhinah, subsisting some of the dreamy, youthful exuberance of her debut album for more measured musings on themes like heartbreak and grief, ‘Less Trouble’ finds her at her most assertive, writing and singing with the acuity of someone who is grown, decisive and discerning. The delicate opener “Break Up Season” sets the tone for the rest of the album as she shows little tolerance for shady behaviour and toxic patterns.
Other standout cuts on the album like “Bare Minimum,” a sombre collab with fellow South African award-winning singer lordkez, the ethereal, in-your-face interlude “New Casanova,” and the percussive “What Are We,” where Shekhinah contemplates the nature of a relationship but ultimately demands all or nothing, all drive home a part of the album’s synopsis, which reads ‘A BOOK ON MORE HEARTBREAK BUT LESS HEARTACHE.’
Shekhinah invites a couple of new collaborators on ‘Less Trouble,’ featuring the aforementioned MOLIY and lordkez as well as multi-instrumentalist Mars Baby and Young Stunna across the album’s 11 tracks. Mpilo Shabangu handled the majority of the album’s production, while other producers like Michael Morare, her longtime collaborator, Mthintheki Mzizi, and Vuyo also contributed to the album.
Listen to ‘Less Trouble’ here.
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The NATIVE’s First Impressions Of Amaarae’s ‘Black Star’
‘Black Star’ marks another evolutionary arc for Amaarae, and The NATIVE team offer our thoughts after a...
Change has always been a constant theme in any discussion about the career of Ghanaian-American star, Amaarae. Since she emerged as a singular voice in the late 2010s, she has evolved from a sirenic Afropop-adjacent singer into a Punk-Pop firestarter with minimal fuss. ‘Fountain Baby,’ her 2023 sophomore album, was a sweeping departure from the lilting melodies and shapeshifing cadences of the hypnotic ‘The Angel You Don’t Know,’ emphasizing her commitment to charting new courses with her music.
In the lead-up to her new album, ‘Black Star,’ she has wholly embraced a Pop aesthetic and sheen that was reflected on the album’s promotional singles, “S.M.O.” and “Girlie-Pop!.” Now that the album has arrived, the singer has advised listeners not to go in expecting a continuation of the soundscape on ‘Fountain Baby.’ As keen followers of Amaarae’s career from its start, we are sure that ‘Black Star’ marks another evolutionary arc for her, and we offer our thoughts after a few listens.
WHAT WERE YOUR EXPECTATIONS OF AMAARAE GOING INTO THIS ALBUM?
Kemnachi: I had zero doubts that she would impress me again. Amaarae always comes correct. She is audacious with her choices, taking creative risks most artists would not dare to imagine, and somehow rendering them seamless, deliberate, and effortless. Her music has a way of enveloping me: it’s fluid, slightly dangerous, and yet irresistibly sensual. Every project feels like an immersive world she has curated down to the finest detail. With ‘Black Star,’ I knew it was not going to be a mere collection of songs but another meticulously constructed realm.
Bamise: I expected something fun, genre-bending, and sonically diverse in the fashion that Amaarae’s music typically is. I may have taken the album title a bit too literally, though, because listening made me realise I had an eye out for some Pan-African statements or something to spark discourse on African identity, but I didn’t quite catch any of that.
Boluwatife: Amaarae has largely delivered throughout her career, so I knew she was going to come correct again. She’s one of those forward-thinking artists who take the kind of risks most others wouldn’t, but she always manages to make it work. She’s proven to be a musical omnivore who constantly meshes her wide-ranging influences into something new, fluid, icy, and more often than not, sensual. I knew ‘Black Star’ wasn’t going to be any different.
WHAT SONGS STOOD OUT ON THE FIRST LISTEN?
Wale: I liked “Girlie-Pop!.” I feel like it captures Amaarae’s vision of pushing Afropop into the future. She’s also really grown comfortable with music and lyricism and will not dumb down her message for anybody. The instrumental for “Girlie-Pop!” is also a wonder; it’s so dense, but there are pockets for Amaarae to be emotive about her feelings. Top song!
Daniel Akins: I need to hear “B2B” at the next rave I’m at. Amaarae is in her Dance era, and I’m here for it. Kiss Me Thru The Phone pt 2” with PinkPantheress is the collaboration I knew I needed, and I’m glad they finally linked up. It’s a clear standout on the project; their ethereal style complements each other.
Shina: “B2B” was the one that did it for me. That is my favourite track on the project. The number of times I ran it back was unhealthy for a first listen. It was also really fun to catch the Don Toliver “Best You Had” sample. I need to hear this outside!
HOW WELL YOU THINK THE GUEST APPEARANCES ENHANCED THE LISTENING EXPERIENCE?
Israel: The guest features on Black Star aren’t mere flexes. They’re strategic, theatrical, and sometimes emotionally resonant. They enhance, yes, but they do so on Amaarae’s terms. A standout for me was PinkPantheress on “Kiss Me Thru The Phone pt 2.” The tradeoff is that a few songs feel like dazzling cameos rather than an integrated conversation, yet overall they enhance the album’s drama, texture, and bravado with precision.
Daniel Banjoko: Everyone showed up and delivered, no weak links here. Instead of just guest spots, they felt like vital pieces of a bigger puzzle. Charlie Wilson on “Dream Scenario” nailed his part especially, making the track sound exactly like its name promises.
Moore: The guest appearances on ‘Black Star’ feel very intentional; each one enhances the album’s world without overshadowing Amaarae’s vision. PinkPantheress’s signature airy delivery meshes with Amaarae’s experimental pop sound. Naomi Campbell’s commanding voice on “ms60” is an unexpected but powerful addition, adding drama to the track. Each feature feels carefully chosen.
WHAT SONG IS THE BIGGEST SKIP?
Bamise: Not to be a party pooper, but I don’t get the PinkPantheress collab, “Kiss Me Thru The Phone pt 2.” It feels like a PinkPantheress song with less pop in it, and just borrows the title of the iconic Soulja Boy song but has no other similarities. It’s between that and “ms60.” For me, the chorus of that sounds like something I’ve heard from Amaarae before, and I doubt its absence would have diminished the album.
Shina: I feel like biggest skip is a strong word for a solid project, but if I have to pick a song to skip, it’ll be “ms60.” I think it’s easily forgettable.
Wale: It’s hard to single out a song that stuck out to me, but hearing Naomi Campbell on “ms60” threw me off. It’s just too contrived to bear for me.
WHAT SONG HAS THE BIGGEST HIT POTENTIAL?
Boluwatife: My gut answer would probably be “She Is My Drug,” just because of how she beautifully reworks the melodies from Cher’s “Believe.” DJ remixes of this song could go crazy. But if I were to think a bit more logically, TikTok would probably lap up “Kiss Me Thru The Phone pt 2.”
Daniel Banjoko: “Kiss Me Thru the Phone pt 2” goes crazy. Amaarae and PinkPantheress are the perfect match. This collab feels like it was destined to happen, and it delivers in full. Honestly, I can’t believe it took this long, and now I just need more tracks from these two, ASAP.
Moore: “Kiss Me Thru The Phone pt 2” has the biggest hit potential on the album. The song has a nostalgic, sad party girl vibe that makes it appealing, and it’s also catchy and well-produced. PinkPantheress consistently performs well on platforms like TikTok, and her fanbase overlaps in a really interesting way with Amaarae’s. The collaboration feels organic and exciting, and will likely create a lot of buzz.
OVERALL FIRST IMPRESSIONS
Wale: There is a very visceral quality to how Amaarae expresses desire that I don’t hear very often in a lot of music. It’s abstracted and warped in futuristic textures, but it’s very profoundly human, and it’s always great to hear that even as she advances the sonics of her delivery. I do, however, have an issue with the thematic scope of ‘Black Star.’ I thought there would be overt references to her experiences of navigating her Ghanaian identity, but those references are limited to samples and interpolations. It’s still an incisive listen and a triumph for finding ways to advance music from Africa.
Bamise: It’s Amaarae; she can never go wrong. But for me, this is the album that excites me the least from her catalogue. Other than how bass-heavy some songs on the album are, like “S.M.O.” and “She Is My Drug” among others, it feels similar to other projects I’ve heard from her in a way that’s not exactly refreshing or mind-bending. I may have gotten spoiled by how diverse and eclectic Amaarae’s music tends to be, but I wanted more from her. I expected more gangster, Hip-Hop Amaarae. Thematically, I didn’t get anything that gives the Black Star of Ghana, or black stars are ruling the world. Will I listen again and enjoy every bit of it still, though? Yes, I will.
Shina: So first off, this is a solid body of work. I love the fact that Amaarae stuck with the Dance, Electro-Pop route she was going with throughout the album. The features also played their part, adding their unique touches to each record. I would say, though, a feature I would’ve loved to hear on this project is 070Shake. I think she would have been perfect on “100DRUM,” but we don’t always get what we want, do we? Thematically, I think Amaarae could’ve leaned heavily on her Ghanaian heritage, seeing as the title and cover of the album are a nod to that. Maybe Amaarae just wants us to dance, and that’s what I’m just gonna do, and you should too.
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