“If you ain’t know, my name is Safaree…I’m in the motherland, yes I’m finally here” _Safaree, 2018

The result of Afropop’s relationship with foreign artists has become such a foregone conclusion, that the reality of it is not even worth discussing as a surprise. But in the past years, few would have expected that Safaree would also seek to strengthen his share prices by jumping on the fashionable Afrobeats bandwagon today. Samklef has shared a new collaboration with the American rapper, Safaree, called “Low Profile”.

So what does it mean when the biggest stranger to Afropop music we’ve seen thus far quietly drops a collaboration with one of Afropop’s establishing producers, Samklef? On “Low Profile”, Samklef and Safaree recruit themselves for a beat that harkens back to the Nellyville 2002 hip-hop classic, “Dilemma”, resulting into a track that is drenched in Afrobeats percussive instruments and synths produced by Samklef with vernacular Yoruba verses also sang by him. Midway into the track, Safaree declares his entrance with much-ado about pride, “If you ain’t know, my name is Safaree…I’m in the motherland, yes I’m finally here…When I shoot, I score”, introducing himself with a presumptive diagnosis, to Africans who do not know him.

Knowing that his feature could be startling on his own accord, the rapper tells listeners that he has finally joined the rest of his mates who have paid homage to the motherland, where it all began. “Low Profile”, a love soliciting song primed for dance floors, signifies that there are no boundaries and no limitations between Afrobeats’ avant-garde past and acid future.

Listen to Samklef’s “Low Profile” featuring Safaree below.

Featured Image Credit: Instagram/@iamsafaree

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

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