There are many conscious music tropes in singer Olu’s debut single under Beam entertainment. A simple but haunting refrain thumped out on ethnic drums, a decidedly reggae instrumental, sanitized enough that you barely hear the strains of Bob Marley and all the stereotypes that have been attached to his music. Strings swell in the right places, a piano picks out single notes, everything seems geared to elicit emotion out of you. It is all very familiar and might have even veered into cliché territory if not for Olu’s voice.

For a singer who grew up in the church circuit (that has given us many of our biggest pop names) she wields considerable control over her voice and all through “The Cry”, it is this control and restraint that makes you sit up and take notice. Olú’s voice is urgent when she needs it to be, funneled into a quiet whisper when the song calls for it, a literal shout at the song’s crescendo. The song’s conscious message is served excellently by this and you are even able to overlook the formulaic conscious song format.

Olú has talent and potential, all she needs now is to find an original sound.

Listen to “The Cry” here.

Listen to Nonso Amadi and Odunsi (the engine)’s joint EP ‘War’