Six months ago British Ghanaian producer and Disk Jockey, Juls released his Leap of Faith EP to almost immediate acclaim. Three days ago, Juls is nominated for the MOBO awards under the Best African Act category. Today, Juls releases new song “Gwarn”, a natural bop, with Burna Boy. “Gwarn” is their second collaboration thus far, following Burna Boy’s “Rock Your Body”.

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Their teamwork again is organic on “Gwarn”, with twangy guitar riffs, synths and mid-tempo drums of Ghanaian highlife.

Over four minutes, “Gwarn” slowly reveals itself through salacious lines that Burna manages to conceal under his not so conspicuous way of speaking in patois. With lines like “You have to know everything your woman need o before you loose her to a bad man like me”, “She wants me to leave everything I dey do and come along with her”, and a voice murmuring remarks like “Pussy Specialist” woven with Twi in the background, you are assured he tells just one story on “Gwarn”, yet it feels deliberately granular with details that never fully crystallise.

Burna speaks in direct English and metaphors. And when rapping or singing, it’s really no news he always seems to be speaking a jargonistic language of his own. Some lines are easy to spot, but that ambiguous lyrical style always works in the song’s favour. Juls here is the one that takes this thing Burna utters with this thing called time and beats.

Stream DJ Juls’ “Gwarn” featuring Burna Boy via Apple music below.

Fisayo is a journalist in search of words. Tweet at her @fisvyo

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