Kwate teams up with fast-rising producer Mikaba for new single “Usain Bolt (Speed)”

Posted on by The Native

Edo-born singer Kwate recently shared his first official single of the year, “Usain Bolt (Speed).” The new single comes off the back of 2024’s ‘Shout Out to My Ex,’ his latest project that houses the semi-viral title track, which has found success on streaming platforms and social media. 

Lyrically, “Usain Bolt (Speed)” is a classic grass to grace anthem, with the Edo-native contrasting his modest upbringing to his current affluent status. Sonically, things are more interesting, with the singer collaborating with Mikaba – a fast-rising producer, responsible for songs like Davido’s “Awuke” and Ayra Starr’s “Gimme Dat” – who delivers an infectious beat that fuses traditional Hausa elements with modern Afropop rhythms. 

In a recent press release discussing “Usain Bolt (Speed),” Kwate explains that he’s particular about his approach to music making. Even though a couple of his songs have found some success on social media, the singer adds that he’s not making music that’s necessarily tailored to TikTok or other social media platforms. “Sometimes I think people end up trying to find ways to make TikTok-worthy music, or music that will trend on TikTok. And I think sometimes that takes the heart out of the music. It has to start with authenticity. If you can feel like an artist is being honest and if they are being true to themselves, I think that’s what we as human beings can pick up on, even if you don’t know them personally,” he explains. 

Speaking specifically about his latest drop, he reveals that the record was inspired by pain, recovery and divine speed. “It’s more than music; it’s a testimony. From coma to comeback, this is resurrection.”

Listen to “Usain Bolt (Speed),” here.

 

 

Gilmore Launches VELUM Studios To Support Digital Creators 

Posted on by Wale Oloworekende

Africa’s creative and digital economy is growing rapidly. With over 570 million internet users across the continent and social media penetration increasing by the year, opportunities for content-led careers have never been greater. Popular content creator and skitmaker, Gilmore, knows about the opportunities that abound on the internet after rising to fame thanks to his comedic skits that reflect the lived experience of millions of Nigerians. 

Since he rose to fame during the COVID-19 pandemic, Gilmore has risen to fame with over 100,000 YouTube subscribers and millions of views. Still, in many ways, his success story is an outlier with many talented African content creators lacking access to the structure, resources, and training needed to scale their influence globally. To solve those issues, Gilmore has launched VELUM Studio, an innovative content creation studio built to empower Africa’s emerging talent. Founded by the viral sensation in conjunction with music label executives Godfrey and Giovanni, VELUM Studios is designed to redefine the creative journey for digital creators, bridging the gap between local creativity and global recognition.

“Our goal is simple,” Gilmore says, “to show creators you don’t need limitless resources to succeed. You need an idea, the courage to execute it, and the right support system. At VELUM Studios, we provide exactly that.”

Over the next year, the studio plans to sign and develop up to 100 emerging digital storytellers, drive hundreds of millions of views across digital platforms, and position its talent to access international grants and funding opportunities. To achieve these goals, VELUM Studios is building an in-house team of seasoned media professionals—including videographers, photographers, publicists, and marketing strategists—who will play a direct role in amplifying the work of selected creators.

In many ways, VELUM Studios is the first initiative of its kind on the continent—built to not only spotlight emerging talent but also structure their growth within the global digital economy.

For further details and information, visit the website.

Raybekah And Tha Boy Myles Are In Sync On BIRDS OF A FEATHER (B.O.A.F)

Posted on by Wale Oloworekende

Collaborations are at the heart of Nigerian pop. Some of the most storied records in the history of our music have sprung from artists acting on those collaborative impulses. In recent years, the very nature of those collaborations have evolved beyond just singles to lengthier projects that test the chemistry and bond between acts across a variety of settings. The most famous case would, perhaps, be the trio of tapes that Sarz has worked on with WurlD, Lojay, and Obongjayar respectively. In 2024, Ruger and Bnxn took things up a notch with ‘RnB,’ their surprise seven-track project. 

Rising singers, Raybekah And Tha Boy Myles, take something from that playbook on their new project, ‘BIRDS OF A FEATHER (B.O.A.F),’ dexterously colliding their worlds for a six-tracker that reverberates with the weight of reflections on the modern dynamics of love and relationships and the factors that aid romantic bliss. 

In the five years since Tha Boy Myles piqued interest with his emotive style and soul-inflected music, the singer has risen through the ranks to become a respected curator of the intricacies of  love, attraction, and betrayal. Tha Boy Myles’ rise has occurred tangentially to the come-up of singer, Raybekah, who is regarded as one of Afropop’s most talented rising acts. Born Rebecca Chinonso Arinola, she first piqued interest with her 2022 single, “EX BOYFRIEND,” before working her way up to a debut extended play, ‘Lazy Girl,’ in 2024. 

Like all great collaborations, ‘BIRDS OF A FEATHER’ works because it doesn’t just situate itself in one world. It moves long at its own pace between the universes of its primary creators with a leisurely pace that allows for the conversations its broaches to go down with a light-hearted summons to the dancefloor. ‘BIRDS OF A FEATHER’ kicks off with “Gatchu,” a mellow reflection on the depths of service that romance can inspire as both singers sweetly sing about the things they’ll do for a romantic partner. Sprawling over a bouncy mid-tempo instrumental, Tha Boy Myles and Raybekah swap verses that course with a thrilling intensity. It sets the pace for  “Nights Like This,” a swaying tribute to an escapist dream fuelled by attraction and love. 

The highlights on ‘BIRDS OF A FEATHER’ present themselves when the artists gently nudge themselves into their specific visions for the project. “Wet, Wild & Wicked” finds Raybekah at her most unrestrained as she delivers a stunning chorus about cutting free to enjoy herself while Tha Boy Myles sets the stage for a tungba-influenced extravaganza on the  enjoyable“Roki,” displaying an intuitive understanding of each other that allows them to find a place in each other’s world without misstep.    

 

Speaking about the project, Raybekah said that ‘BIRDS OF A FEATHER’ was dedicated to people who are experiencing love: “It’s for the lovers; everything about how the project was designed and the sequencing is to celebrate love in its essence.”

Also, Tha Boy Myles described it as a project that has been a long time coming. “We’ve always talked about linking up to do something and when we started we just couldn’t stop,” he explains. “We created these songs from a deep place in our hearts and we know that it’ll resonate with our fans.”

Listen to ‘BIRDS OF A FEATHER’ here. 

Studio monkey shoulder is funding ideas to bring music communities to life

Posted on by The Native

Following a successful first campaign, Studio Monkey Shoulder returns to Nigeria for the second year in a row. A brainchild of the Scottish Whisky brand Monkey Shoulder and online radio station Worldwide FM, Studio Monkey Shoulder is a grassroots music initiative created to fund trailblazers who are pushing sonic boundaries while also fostering real-world connections across different regions. Last year, Jazzhole received the Nigerian grant to digitally remaster rare archival recordings that preserve and celebrate Nigeria’s rich musical heritage. 

This year, the competition, in continued partnership with legendary DJ and Worldwide FM founder Gilles Peterson, once again invites the country’s most innovative and ambitious grassroots music communities – everything from from independent record stores to DIY music venues, online radio stations and collectives – to apply for a £10,000 grant (₦20 million) to bring their hugely imaginative music projects to life. 

“I am thrilled to see Studio Monkey Shoulder grow in its second year in partnership with Worldwide FM. It’s been a privilege to work with the communities we supported in 2024, seeing their projects thrive and come to life,” Peterson stated in a press release. “I am excited to uncover more amazing community-driven projects in Nigeria and witness the talent that comes with it as the project evolves in year two.” 

The winner of this year’s grant will join an international creative network that’s designed to elevate community voices and bring their stories to a global stage. Applications for Nigeria’s Studio Monkey Shoulder Fund open on April 28th and close on June 1st.

For full details and to apply, visit this website

 

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How Shallipopi Bent Culture To His Will

Posted on by John Eriomala

One of the most interesting ways that I’ve heard Shallipopi’s music described is that it does nothing for the mind and everything for the body. Recently, I had a conversation with a friend that altered this ethos: music can’t do anything for the body if it does nothing for the mind, the mind has to find those bars and melodies pleasing before backsides move. As “Ahead Ahead” plays in the background of my two-man apartment, one midnight in March, it’s fitting to explore this in more detail, to understand how Shallipopi, self-appointed Pluto Presido, has risen to such heights and what part his Benin roots play in his unrelenting rise to Pop supremacy. 

Shallipopi’s Rise to Fame

Shallipopi’s story begins in Benin. To be fair, all stories start in Benin if you believe in the Bini oral pedagogy that the 825-year-old kingdom is the source of the world. The phrase, “Oba ya, oto s ‘evbo ‘ebo,” alludes to the Oba owning all the lands from Benin to the rest of the world.  25-year-old Shallipopi—born Crown Uzama—started making music in 2016, after younger brother, Zerrydl, did in 2015, as mentioned in an October 2024 Echo Room interview. 

The rapper, who comes from a line of kingmakers—the Uzamas are one of the highest-ranking chiefs who anoint Obas–didn’t experience success until March 2023 with “Elon Musk” which catapulted him from South-South unknown to TikTok star, and then, breakaway mainstream success. He followed up with club banger, “Shapiru,” in April. An EFCC arrest in May for ‘alleged internet fraud’ somewhat stalled his momentum while increasing his infamy, setting the stage for a remix of “Elon Musk” in June and–in typical Hip-hop chronicle fashion—“Ex-Convict” the following month.

Since June 2023, Shallipopi has performed at the O2 Arena and Stade de France, sold out two concerts in London in 2024 on his Plutomania tour, sold out a homecoming concert at the Victor Uwaifo Creative Hub in Benin City. Both of his LPs, ‘Presido La Pluto’ (2023) and ‘Shakespopi,’  (2024) debuted at No. 1 on the TurnTable Charts. The latter was the first project since Davido’s ‘Timeless’ to produce a first-week No.1 record, “ASAP.” His song with fellow 2023 breakout star, Odumodublvck, “CAST,” has over 55 million Spotify streams and earned him four nominations  and a win at the 2025 Headies Awards. With co-signs from the big four, a new deal with Sony Music UK after a messy split from Dvpper Digital, and immense street cred, Shallipopi operates at the upper echelons of the industry. 

The Benin Influence

The Bini—and Edo people as a whole—are music-loving. From Africa’s first gold plaque awardee, Sir Victor Uwaifo, to Alhaji Waziri Oshomah, Majek Fashek and his mystical rain-making rhythms, and an adolescent Benita Okojie at the turn of the century, contemporary Edo musicians have always found their way to national prominence, their influence being a continuation of a long-held tradition. Ethnic groups in Edo State like the Esan and Owan have a strong hold on oral music forms till today. But only a few of these groups can lay claim to sons and daughters who infuse their traditional, ceremonial music like Crown Uzama does, wielding it as all he is, all he will unapologetically be. 

In December 2023, he told More Branches about how a tough childhood shaped his music. “My background was a rough one so my sound is different, and it shows in the music,” he said. “Only those who grew up in Benin City under harsh conditions will understand my sound.” And that cultural distance also shaped some of the early reception to his other releases. For example, unless you lived in Benin, or a sister city like Warri, you’re not likely to know what the term ‘Oscroh’ or ‘OS’ means. Any insight would be the product of someone in the know—like a classmate of mine, who spilled how secondary school boys in his home Benin City ‘order OS’ (patronise sex workers) after ‘cashing out’ (getting proceeds from Internet fraud or cryptocurrency deals.) This, perhaps, explains the initial poor reception to October 2023’s “Oscroh (Pepperline).” The use of Benin-specific lingo didn’t translate as smoothly as ‘Inside that your Evian,’ from “Elon Musk” seven months earlier. 

Turn to 2025 and Shallipopi has one of the biggest songs in the country (“Laho.”) The chorus  is sung entirely in Bini: “Ghẹ gunmwẹn dẹ ọ, lahọ/Ni paste aza, lahọ/ Don’t let me fail, please/Can I send my account number, please?” The catchy song employs traditional call-and-response rooted in Benin culture and yet it is loved far beyond our shores. Shallipopi’s dexterous use of Bini language has shown up throughout his time as a mainstream star. Many Shallipopi fans know the “Obapluto” sample, they even know about the legal dispute that ensued post-release. But elsewhere in Shallipopi’s discography, another sample leads back to Igodomigodo—the ancestral name for Edo. The intro on his second LP, ‘Shakespopi,’  “ASAP”  samples Alhaji Waziri Oshomah’s 1979 single, “Ikwekiame Nedumhe.” Similarly, “Iyo,” the eighth track on his first LP, ‘Presido la Pluto,’ samples the 1978 Drivers Union Dance Band Uselu Motor Park and Osaro Nomayo single, “Ovbiyemwen,” and much like the sample on “Obapluto,” it constitutes the spine of the record. 

When there’s no sample, there are shoutouts, like on “More Than Me” where he hearkens home with “Straight out of Benin for sure” and the fittingly titled “BENIN BOYS”—“Remy, Ekehuan Road/ Shalli, Sapele”—where he props up his neighbourhood on the Benin-Sapele-Warri Road, and Rema’s on Ekehuan Road in Benin. There’s evidence that Shallipopi’s music is of the people in a way that lots of Nigerian Pop is not. In clips from Mai Atafo’s Spring/Summer ‘24 Show, “Obapluto” blares right after Pa Monday Edo’s “Nogbaisi,” as models in reimagined versions of traditional Bini outfits strut the runway. 

Understanding Afro-Pluto

But what is Afro-Pluto? As he referred to his sound in an October 2023 Factory78 interview: “Not straight-up hip-hop, not straight-up Afrobeats, not straight-up Afro-pop,” he explained.  “Even my music is not more of singing, it’s more of talking. So there’s no one that does that except me.” In a time where every artist and their A&R wants to craft their own unique ‘sound,’ that statement isn’t so outlandish.  His Benin contemporary, Rema, named his subgenre ‘Afro-Rave,’ and only fully leaned into it on October 2023’s ‘RAVAGE’ EP. 

Shallipopi’s music is a fusion of Hip-Hop, Street-Pop, and Afropop. However, Afro-Pluto’s core is Hip-Hop. Shallipopi’s songs—especially on his first two projects—follow a simple pre-chorus-verse-chorus pattern with minimal internal rhymes, di-syllabic schemes, and rhythmic motifs. What he lacks in a vast vocabulary, he makes up for with same-word end rhymes and haphazard lyrics. For example, on “Speedometer” off ‘Planet Pluto,’ he raps, “Who fall go rise up again, on a speedometer/You wan know how men take dey mount/Men are men on meter/It was nice to meet ya.” It’s a simple A-B end rhyme with ‘meter’ repeated multiple times until the homophone lands on ‘meet ya.’ 

On “Evil Receive”—his most cherished musical creation per a February 2024 Floor Mag profile—he rhymes ‘vibe’ with ‘vibe.’ The unpredictability of his lines often falls outside conventional street wisdom. “Network no dey no mean say wi-fi disconnect” on “ASAP” is discernible—things aren’t always as they seem. But “men are men on meter” doesn’t quite translate. There’s also shock value: Legacy South-South rap acts like Erigga and Yung6ix are known to incorporate vulgarity, and Shallipopi follows in their footsteps. It’s a trait that has drawn him as many fans as foes with a hit like “CAST” and its lyrics placing that divisiveness in context. 

Per his lyricism, Shallipopi embodies Street-Pop. Money, sex, fraud, family struggles, resilience, and social injustices like police brutality are subjects that he constantly returns to. He’s a man of the people: the fun-loving, night-crawling people. Shallipopi is unlike Balloranking or Seyi Vibez, Street-Pop acts who balance party staples with spotlighting the ordeals in inner-city streets, and even his brother, ZerryDL, whose storytelling prowess rivals most. In the aforementioned Floor Mag profile, he drives the point home: “Social change and my music, I don’t think they’re close to each other,” he admits. “My music is for fun and to get your mind off troubles.” It takes seeing the Pluto Dance on dimly lit dance floors to process this fully. For all its ties to home, Afro-Pluto evades the dual merriment-enlightenment function that traditional Edo music upholds. 

Afro-pluto embodies Afropop through praise-singing, verbiage, and drawing from pre-existing music. Shallipopi praise-sings on “Ex Convict” like Wizkid did on 2014’s “In My Bed” and Olamide did on 2019’s “Oil & Gas.” In the two years since he burst onto the scene, he’s arguably become the biggest influencer of pop culture lexicon. ‘Men mount’ is an everyday slang to signify movement. ‘Evian’ made it into Zikoko’s Official Afrobeats Glossary. Everyone has been ‘Active’ since “Elon Musk.”  Similarly, ‘OS’ has crossed the threshold that proves its thorough pervasion; misuse, or rather, abuse.

Shallipopi’s producers—especially BusyPluto, who produced all but one track on his first two projects—draw regularly from older Nigerian music. BusyPluto’s zest for older Nigerian music is evident on a song like “Eazy” which interpolates 1996’s “Diana” by Galala legend, Daddy Showkey, a musician of South-South origin. Despite interspersing elements of Afropop and Street-pop, Shallipopi’s music is Hip-hop. When he speaks about fucking his enemies with no condoms on “Never Ever,” he’s echoing Ice Cube on “No Vaseline.” His verses on ostentatious living and the nature of fame are a mainstay of the genre. There’s insufficient innovation to term ‘Afro-Pluto’ a genre. There is no novelty in production—and influential as it is, per increasing adoption, it fails to be sufficiently distinct. 

The Plutomania Effect

Speaking of influence, Shallipopi’s musical impact has been felt the most at home. His younger brothers, 2025 Headies Rookie of the Year winner, Zerrydl, and new kid on the block, Famous Pluto, are ambassadors of Shalli’s homegrown rap brand. Zerry (Divine Uzama) is the most technically gifted of the three, a storytelling maestro with a flair for uncanny pockets. His one million plus Spotify listeners tell of his growing reach. The youngest, Famous Pluto (Osahon Uzama) debuted with “Na Scra” on March 7th this year, bearing similar flows and street wit as his brothers (“One round plus one round equals two bone straight.”) Their cadences are identical. Both younger brothers rap over BusyPluto’s instrumentals and are signed to Shallipopi’s Plutomania Records. Their subject matter is the same: women and the pursuit of financial freedom. 

Still, the impact of Shallipopi’s sound has not only been felt at home. Due to his outsized influence and success, there are a number of acts whose works fall directly in the lineage of his syrupy, drawn-out sound; acts like Tega Boi DC and Reeha, both Plutomania Records signees and crusaders of the Benin sound. There’s Smur Lee, one of only four Nigerian female artistes with over 15 million streams on a song in 2024. The track, “JUJU,” features Odumodublvck and Shallipopi and has over 37 million Spotify streams. Her style is almost a mirror image of Shallipopi’s, with multiple Elon Musk references and fraud lingo littering her latest singles. 

Beyond direct musical influence, Shallipopi’s artistry has impacted his peers who seek his raps over deep cuts (Victony’s “Ludo”), Afropop bangers with far-reaching cultural implications (Rema’s “BENIN BOYS”), and cross-border, market-focused singles (King Promise’s “Continental”). The virality of “LAHO” on the global stage – which has thousands singing along at destination nightclubs, NBA and European football superstars making TikToks, and top-5 placements on global charts like the UK’s Official Afrobeats Charts – forecasts newer zeniths for the 25-year-old phenom. It’s as welcome an outcome as any, just two years into his career in an industry peppered with stories of fadeouts after similar label splits. It also means going forward, Shallipopi is unlikely to veer off his sonic template. But his is a winning formula, so there are no worries. When he enthusiastically says, “Worldwide Plutomanians,” it truly is a worldwide phenomenon.

Skyla Tylaa Is Taking Off 

Posted on by Wale Oloworekende

As a child growing up in South-east London, Skyla Tylaa had a natural affinity for the arts. Whether it was music or stage performances, she found herself exploring these interests intently from a young age. That devotion manifested in multiple ways – her attending the BRIT School and Sylvia Young Theatre School where she performed in a West End production of Annie or her fiddling with several musical instruments while she figured out her creative identity. Through it all, music was a constant, the backdrop to her home life where she grew up between Jamaican and English influences. She remembers being exposed to Drum & Bass, Funky House, and Garage. “I think that’s had a big influence in my DJ career,” Skyla Tylaa admits. 

Progressing into adulthood, those musical influences persisted even if she didn’t always engage with them professionally. Things changed when she started DJ-ing during the COVID-19 pandemic. Possessed by a visceral desire to experience the euphoria of interacting with people through music, she burrowed deeper into DJ-ing. “I couldn’t be in my room and just have people commenting,” she recalls. “I need to see people’s energy, and feel everything in the moment.”

Since then, she’s enjoyed a meteoric rise that has taken the world by storm. Mentored by DJ Tunez, she performed multiple times on the American leg of Wizkid’s ‘Made In Lagos’ tour and came out of the experience raring to go. “Opening for Wizkid on his tour was a transformative experience,” she says. “It taught me a lot about resilience and adaptability in my craft. I was still pretty much a start-up DJ when I went on tour and it made me really realise how important it is to connect with the audience. Touring from city to city with different crowds, it helped me to learn how to read the room and keep the vibe going.”

Almost as importantly for Skyla Tylaa, Rihanna was present at one of those tour stops and was impressed by her set, stopping by after the show to congratulate her. “After that I felt like I could conquer the world,” she says. Since then, she’s been selected by Rihanna to DJ at a Fenty X Puma Creeper launch event in London in 2024, marking a full-circle moment between the women. 

Like Rihanna, Skyla Tylaa is inspired by music from the breadth of the Black diaspora, playing sets that take as much influence from the fervid restlessness of Hip-hop as they do the wavy melodies of House music, and the dancefloor summons of Afrobeats “I love partying! I genuinely love it,” she explains. “When preparing my sets, I’m always thinking of people having a good time. Whatever I can do to connect with them, I’m down to do it!” 

In the last few years, few genres have shown the propensity for inspiring a great time with the regularity that Amapiano does. From Johannesburg to Windhoek, to Lagos, London, and New York,  the log drums and mutating basslines of the  genre have proven integral to a new Pop framework that is as amorphous as it is exhilarating. Since first hearing the genre while on a visit to Ghana years ago, Skyla Tylaa has been hooked. “It was the log drum, the sound, just the vibes that came with it,” she says. “I was like ‘wait – what is this?’ When you hear Amapiano, it’s one of those sounds that no matter what, you’re gonna dance.”

Diving into the genre, she’s picked up valuable lessons from important figures like Maphorisa, Uncle Vinny and Major League DJz while putting her youthful spin on the sound. It’s all coming together for the DJ who’s working with her sister, music heavyweight Jada Pollock, to figure it all out one step at a time. “When I found my passion for DJing, Jada was right there, urging me to dive into the ‘Made in Lagos’ tour,” she says. “I wasn’t sure I was ready, but she believed in me and knew I could handle it. My love for music has been with me since school; it just took some time for me to realize that this was the direction I wanted to pursue. Once I found my calling, her support became endless–she attended my early gigs and pushed me to perform at major festivals like Afro Nation.”

She’s since performed at leading festivals such as Wireless, Piano People and Australia’s Promiseland as well as selling out headline shows across London, London,  and Ghana. For the next phase of her career, she’s actively working on creating music. This month, she released her debut single, “Bombshell,” a searing Amapiano banger that has all the hallmarks of a potential summer hit. “Bombshell” features Tanzanian Bongo Flava act, Diamond Platnumz, as well as South African acts, Tyler ICU, Khalil Harrison, and DJ Exit. It’s a blockbuster showing that sits well in the tradition of the genre. “The idea was initially played to me by Tyler ICU in March 2024,” Skyla Tylaa says. “He and I had a session while he was in London, and this was one of the ideas we worked on. Khalil was already on it, at the time, and I loved what I heard!”

After seeding it into her live sets last summer and starting live teasers with a dance challenge, Diamond Platnumz reached out about potentially working on the song and it was arranged. “I started teasing the new version of the song in my sets and then a whole new viral dance challenge came about online in December,” she says. “From that point, I knew the track had all the elements (features included) to be a big release in 2025 !” For DJ Exit, a chance to be part of a transformative song like “Bombshell” was an opportunity he didn’t want to pass up. “What drew me to this single was the chance to be part of something boundary-breaking,” he explains. “Gqom and Amapiano are both powerful in their own right, but fusing the raw, percussive energy of Gqom with the soulful, hypnotic swing of Amapiano creates a sound the world hasn’t fully experienced yet. This isn’t just another collaboration–it’s a cultural statement.”

The Xhosa word, ‘basazomangala,’ meaning ‘to be shocked,’ is uttered several times on “Bombshell,” and it reflects the message that Harrison was trying to pass on the track.  ““Bombshell” is really about letting people know that there’s still so much more to come from me,” he says. “It’s a celebration of the present moment, but also a reminder that this is just the beginning. We’re all dancing to what’s happening now, but there’s an energy in the air that says the best is yet to come.”

In light of Amapiano’s rise to global prominence and the international acclaim it enjoys, Harrison is right about more things being on the horizon, and Skyla Tylaa agrees with him: “When I was introduced to Amapiano, I fell in love instantly and that time it was just on the verge of global appeal. It’s global now and still growing and that makes me appreciate it even more! I love it, and the world loves it! The feeling is mutual ! We can all enjoy it together!”

For Tyler ICU, having DJs from the diaspora like Skyla Tylaa engage with Amapiano and its culture is a win for the genre. “This shows the power of the genre–it’s not just a sound, it’s a movement,” he says. “When someone like Skyla, who appreciates the culture and brings her own flavour, plays Amapiano in places like London, New York or Toronto, she’s not just playing music, she’s building bridges. That’s how we grow–by letting the world feel it in their own way, but staying true to where it started. It’s important that the roots are respected, but the branches can reach far.”

Just a couple of weeks since its release, “Bombshell” has crossed over 650,000 thousand views on YouTube and continues to be a sensation on TikTok. Like everything Skyla Tylaa has done up till now in her career, it’s shaping up perfectly and has shown that she has a knack for the right collaborations. She intends to keep making music. “This year, my focus is all about music,” she says. “I recently signed with Robots and Humans (Sony) in the UK and Epic in the US, which has given me a different level of drive to really want to create good music. I’m also looking forward to exploring the Afro-house genre and collaborating with other talented artists.”

What OdumoduBlvck’s Greatest School Tour Could Mean For Touring In Nigeria

Posted on by Boluwatife Adeyemi

There’s no denying that OdumoduBlvck’s 2023 mixtape ‘Eziokwu’ established his musical genius. While the half dozen projects that preceded ‘Eziokwu’ almost served as target practice, largely showcasing the early iterations of Okporoko music – his unique melodious rap fusion – it was his major label debut that truly grounded the rapper in Nigeria’s rich Hip-Hop lineage. The album’s far-reaching success culminated in a historic joint tour with fellow 2023 breakout star Shallipopi, which saw the two share the stage across 9 cities in the United States. Similarly, riding the high of his latest mixtape, ‘The Machine Is Coming,’ the Anti-World Gangstar head huncho recently announced a new tour. This time, however, instead of taking his new collection of infectious bangers to stages abroad, the rapper decided to visit different universities across the country for what he calls the ‘Greatest School Tour Ever.’ 

Touring in Nigeria is a subject that has become somewhat controversial over the last few years, splitting opinions amongst many fans, industry experts, and artists themselves. Back in the mid-2000s to early 2010s, local touring was very much the norm. Platforms like Star Music’s ‘The Trek,’ as well as a few prominent local promoters, enabled some of the biggest names like 2face, Olamide, and M.I to hold annual nationwide tours. These tours included stops in cities like Warri, Makurdi, Owerri and many other places that artists are less likely to visit today. University tours were also popular as they presented an avenue for these artists to connect with their younger audience, who mostly served as the bedrock of their fan base. 

The rise of digital streaming platforms, which has partly informed the industry’s rapid evolution over the past decade, coupled with other economic and infrastructural issues, has, however, forced a sharp decline in local touring, making it an almost altruistic endeavour in today’s Nigeria. Afropop gaining global exposure meant that the international market immediately became more viable and lucrative to our biggest stars, and this reshaped their priorities. The extensive, multi-city shows became reserved for diaspora fans, while the local audience, in most cases, are treated to a solitary annual show. 

OdumoduBlvck looks to buck this trend with the ‘Greatest School Tour Ever,’ prioritizing his primary audience before tending to those abroad. In truth, the Lagos-born rapper is not the only one who has embarked on this type of tour in recent times. A couple of years ago, UK-based rapper Kida Kudz and Ckay also went on similar campus tours, with the latter making stops at 10 different universities across the country. Llona, one of the breakout stars from last year, is also currently on a nationwide tour coming off the success of his impressive debut album ‘Homeless.’ The ‘Greatest School Tour Ever,’ is however, peculiar and momentous because of its timing and OdumoduBlvck’s standing as one of the biggest names around. 

At the recent 17th Headies Awards, the rapper became the latest recipient of the Next Rated award, a highly coveted plaque that’s historically reserved for standout acts whose music defines the zeitgeist at a given period. He received the award just two days after he gave an electrifying performance at Afe Babalola University. His latest mixtape, ‘The Machine Is Coming,’ a precursor to his highly anticipated forthcoming debut, currently sits at the No. 2 spot on the Turntable Top 50 Album charts. It is unheard of in recent times: that the Headies Next Rated act, who has one of the top projects in the country, is on a local university tour. The Abuja-native has, however, shown on numerous occasions that he has never really been one to abide by existing standards. The famous opening lines from his breakout single “Declan Rice” (I can do without their Policy I Know), did not only serve as a message to gatekeepers and naysayers but also as a manifesto that declared his mode of operation going forward. 

At the time of this writing, the rapper has only made two stops on his ongoing tour, but his decision to embark on a local tour of this nature already looks to be paying dividends. The first two shows have produced viral clips that capture his star power, the hysteria of his headline shows and his rapidly growing influence, especially amongst younger listeners. The viral clips have already created an increased demand for shows, with many young fans harassing the rapper to add more dates to the tour. With the release of ‘The Machine Is Coming’ and his recent crowning moment at the Headies, it’s safe to assume there’s more attention on him now than ever. While it is, of course, still early days, the rapper’s decision to embark on a local university tour, especially given that he’s currently experiencing a career high, could go on to become a significant moment, one that potentially inspires a shift in the touring landscape in Nigeria.

Ryan Coogler’s Vision For SINNERS

Posted on by Wale Oloworekende

There is an alternate version of African-American history stitched together by music. From the harmonic melodies that followed them off slavers ships to the home-harkening cottonfield tunes that provided succor during the horrors of slavery, African-Americans have always used music to remember and call one another to action. The stakes are seemingly as important in Ryan Coogler’s new movie, SINNERS, where the music of Sammie (played by newcomer Miles Caton), a prodigious blues singer, turns a night of revelry on its head as a horde of vampires attack a juke joint set up by the identical Moore brothers (played by Michael B. Jordan).

Set in the Mississippi Delta in the 1920s, SINNERS is faithful to its timeline in tone and tenor but confronts issues like racism, colourism, and Black ownership that continue to have modern resonance while deftly sidestepping stringent categorisation. It is Ryan Coogler’s first original conception and it bears the defining personal insights and quirks that have made franchises like Black Panther and Creed hugely successful, while sealing Coogler’s reputation as one of the most respected filmmakers of his eras. 

Ahead of the release of SINNERS, we had a brief chat with Ryan Coogler about his latest film. 

Where did the inspiration for ‘SINNERS’ come from?

It came from my relationship with my uncle. He came from Mississippi and he loved Blues music. I would listen to the music with him and that happened for most of my life. He passed away 10 years ago and, since he passed away, I got more interested in the music and that’s where the seed of the idea came from. 

Do you think the movie was made to honour your uncle’s memory?

Yes, for sure. 

‘SINNERS’ is set in the 1920s American South. Why did you settle on that time period? 

I settled on that time period through studying what year would make the most sense for Blues history. What I think this time period represents for African-Americans is that it was the Great Depression and, while studying, I found out that it didn’t affect Black people as much as it affected white people because there was nowhere for Black people to go socio-economically, they were already as down as they could be. Interestingly, it was a time when white people and Black people were in contact with each other due to what happened with the economy. 

You collaborated with Michael B. Jordan again, what made him the right fit for the role?

I think Mike has a unique combination of range and charisma. Charisma is something that can’t be learnt, you have to be born with it and, a lot of the characters in this movie, are extensions of their charisma. You have to believe that these guys can come back into town after seven years and throw a party and get people to show up. For me, that was the biggest part of it. I wanted an actor that was flexible and charismatic in two different kinds of ways. Smoke has his own charisma but he’s an introvert whereas Stack’s charisma has to be more of a projection, and that’s very difficult because you have to be born with that charisma. Also, you have to know how to manipulate through acting techniques, and Mike is uniquely capable of that.

NATIVE PREMIERE: Tanika Is Stepping Out On Her Terms With The Kida Kudz-Assisted “FAST FWD”

Posted on by Wale Oloworekende

Across a career that’s in its second decade, Tanika has proven to be a force in her own right, holding her own on collaborations with Black British stars like Stormzy and Wretch 32, as well as popular record producer Naughty Boy–working with the Grammy-nominated beatmaker on his acclaimed ‘Hotel Cabana’ album.  

Following a stint as an actor, she returned to the studio in 2021, releasing a new extended play, ‘333,’ in 2023. The project carried all the hallmarks of Tanika at her tantalising best: lilting cadences, well-paced narratives, a songwriting that reaches for the heart of the matter. 

On her latest song, “Fast Fwd,” she’s growing into her own and stepping into a new era. In many ways, “Fast Fwd,” a hypnotic, sultry anthem, is landing just in time for summer revelry. Produced by her longtime collaborator, Naughty Boy, her silky vocals land effortlessly on the mid-tempo instrumental and pulsates with her desire for her love interest. 

Joined on the song by her fiancé, Kida Kudz, they make an interesting duo and replicate the synergy they had on “Nobody,” off Kudz’s 2021 ‘Top Memba.’ Distinctively marked by use of neon lights, the video for the song captures the effervescence of romance that Tanika hums about throughout the song. 

From working her way out of London’s Myatt’s Field to becoming a star with millions of streams, Tanika is now setting her sights on the bright lights of superstardom. Ahead of the official release of the single, we had a brief chat with Tanika about her career, the influences for “Fast Fwd,” and working with KIda Kudz on it. 

Her answers, which follow below, have been lightly edited for clarity.

How would you describe where you are in your career right now? 

I’m just enjoying the journey. 

What does the release of “Fast Fwd” signify for you? 

It signifies  love. 

Why is Kida Kudz a fit for the song? (

To be honest, we didn’t plan to do another song together. I have worked on two records with him before (“Nobody” and “Tasty Time” ) but we never thought to shoot a video for it.. “Fast Fwd” felt like a real testimony of our present moment in the relationship. 

You’ve worked extensively with Naughty Boy and he’s helped with “Fast Fwd,” what’s your relationship like and why does it work? 

Naughty Boy knows me very well. We’ve known one another for over 10 years, so he knows what fits me musically. We gel.  I think him knowing me and being a fan of Kida’s music made it all work. Naughty Boy does his listening before he makes a beat for you.  A lot of producers don’t really understand the importance of knowing the artist musically but he does. 

What were you aiming for with the video? 

To be honest, I’m aiming for nothing. I’m just enjoying the journey. It’s been a very long road and I know I still have a long way to go.

Catch an exclusive view of “Fast Fwd” below.

Fanti Carnival Returns to Lagos This Easter with a Vibrant Celebration of Afro-Brazilian Culture

Posted on by The Native

The historic Fanti Carnival is set to make its grand return on Easter Sunday, April 20, 2025, bringing the streets of Lagos Island alive with colour, music, and culture. With roots dating back to 1890, the Lagos Fanti Carnival is one of Nigeria’s oldest and most vibrant cultural traditions, celebrating the deep ties between Nigeria and Brazil through a dynamic fusion of Afro-Brazilian heritage and modern creativity.

This year’s edition is supported by the Lagos State Ministry of Tourism, Arts, and Culture, in partnership with Robert Taylor Media and the Brazilian Descendants Association of Lagos. Together, they aim to honour the legacy of the Afro-Brazilian community in Lagos — descendants of formerly enslaved returnees who shaped the city’s culture, religion, and architecture.

The carnival procession will kick off at 12:00 PM, starting from Old Defence Road and will end at the JK Randle Centre, with accreditation beginning at 10:00 AM. Attendees can expect a stunning showcase of traditional costumes, Afro-Brazilian drumming, dance, and performances from local creatives reinterpreting heritage for a new generation.

Whether you’re drawn to the dazzling pageantry, the live performances, or the chance to connect with a rich cultural history, the Fanti Carnival is an unmissable event this Easter. 

Tickets are now available, and more information can be found via the official Fanti Carnival website or their social platforms.

Review: Davido’s ‘5ive’

Davido understands the mechanics of moments more, perhaps, than anyone else in Afropop. Blowing up in an era of Nigerian Pop that prioritized singles over full-length projects, the singer’s earliest years were spent orchestrating grand hit after hit that lasered their imprints on popular culture and effectively sealed his reputation as one of the most important Afropop acts of all time. Years later, when Afropop started to expand beyond the continent’s borders, attract international audiences,  and tilt towards a global audience that required more than the bite-sized slice of cultural ingress that singles provided, the singer recalibrated his approach and shifted to the full-length efforts that were becoming ubiquitous. 

Since the 2019 release of  his balmy sophomore album, ‘A Good Time,’ the singer has been one of the most prolific mainstream Afropop acts, releasing four albums in six years, a stark contrast to the solitary album and extended play released in the first eight years of his career.  Those albums have also not been scrappy throwaways: there are few albums as representative of the stunning rise to global popularity that Afropop enjoyed circa 2019 as ‘A Good Time’ and 2020’s ‘A Better Time’ were. And both records stood out as beacons of normalcy during the unprecedented disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic. Even 2023’s ‘Timeless,’ a thrilling finale to his series of time-indented albums,  was a swaggering return to the scene after a deeply hurtful personal loss that provided resonant tunes like “UNAVAILABLE” and “KANTE.”

On ‘5IVE,’ his latest album, there’s nothing new to learn about the Afropop giant and the forces that animate his best work. Make no mistake, Davido is still an Afropop juggernaut capable of constructing moments of downright elation, but there’s a palpable sense of listlessness that creeps into this project, and that hasn’t found its way  anywhere near Davido’s work since his bloated and uneven debut, ‘Omo Baba Olowe: The Genesis.’ And maybe that’s the problem, Davido has never promised to reshape the DNA of the genre with his releases. What he has always done effectively is to synthesise the liveliest aspects of the soundscape to meet the moment on his own terms. On several occasions on  ‘5IVE,’ he sounds frozen in time, seemingly disinterested in working his way out of the rot that Afropop’s mainstream finds itself in. 

It shouldn’t have been this way: the pre-released trifecta of “Be There Still,” “Awuke,” and “Funds” are bouncy polychromatic slappers that seemed to promise another big Davido moment on the horizon as he talked us through his favorite fashion brands, wisecracks, and gestures for his loved ones. In fact, the words on album opener, “Five By Alhanislam,” cast Davido as a phoenix rising and a free man about to seize the moment. Instead, what we get is a singer who’s still clinging to the ghost of topics that have served him well in the past without breaking new ground in his exploration of these themes. Take “10 Kilo” for example, where the singer is obsessing over a lover and unabashedly expressing his desire for her — it simply doesn’t have the theatrical eloquence of previous iterations like “Assurance” and “Jowo” nor does it have the unshakeable zest of tracks like “Fall” and “IN THE GARDEN.”

In the last two years, Davido has been at work to clean up his act, belatedly settling into his marriage after turbulence brought on by his infidelity, spending more time with his children, and straddling the divide between boardroom and stage with a practised efficiency. He’s acknowledging the clarity this new lease on life gives him on “Anything.” Louddaaa’s muted percussion serve as the base for his musing on where his life is, what he’s getting up to, and the distractions he’s turning away from. “Different girls on my phone but I steady lock up,” he sings on a stretch that points out just how long he’s been at the top of Afropop. Davido’s reflections do provide one of the album’s high points on “Nuttin Dey,” an uplifting number about accepting life’s ebbs and flow that leans on an early 2000s Nigerian Pop flow while looping in the call and response of Afrobeat with a sprinkle of Amapiano’s signature log drums. A similar impulse about owning the narrative of one’s life produces the Chris Brow-featuring “Titanium” but intent doesn’t always translate to execution; instead what we are left with is a rote, unimaginative song whose chorus seems to try to echo the sentiments of the Sia and David Guetta original. 

Still, collaborations are an important part of the Davido experience and some of the best songs on ‘5IVE’ benefit from the imagination of his guest choices. Victoria Monét demonstrates her impeccable writing skills on “Offa Me,” a delicate R&B ballad that blends Monét’s silky vocals and Davido’s throbbing emotiveness. South African vocalist, Musa Keys, steals the show on “Holy Water” with a symphonic whispered chorus that perfectly tees up Davido and Victony for memorable verses on a song that pays homage to private school amapiano. Shenseea and 450 provide a different dimension to Davido’s saccharinnic crooning on “R&B” while the aforementioned “Funds” benefits immensely from Chike and Odumodublvck’s dynamism. 

The writing and sequencing slump that pervades ‘5IVE’ does not entirely erode Davido’s incredible instinct for curation. In fact, there are indelible reminders of Davido’s ear for melodies and instrumentals that just work. “CFMF,” written by Victony, sounds like an incredible record that just didn’t make the cut for his ‘Stubborn’ album; in Davido’s hands, it’s whimsical and airy as is the pseudo-reflective “Don’t Know.” Both are rarities on an album of incredible highs and jarring lows. The truth of the matter is that while Afropop has gone on to become a global sensation, there is a gaping hole at the heart of the genre that cannot be ignored anymore. That sense of amissness is magnified across the length of ‘5IVE’: the ideas are undercooked or incoherent and, too often,  stumble to a finish line that elicits a sigh of relief rather than the transcendental elation that the best Davido songs used to hold a promise of. 

Vlisco’s “The Garden Of Sisterhood” Campaign Comes To Life in New “MAYANGA” Video

Posted on by The Native

Dutch textile brand Vlisco recently unveiled its latest campaign ‘The Garden Of Sisterhood,’ as part of its women’s month celebration. The campaign, which looks to extend Vlisco’s rich legacy in African fashion and its ongoing celebration of creativity and cultural storytelling, takes inspiration from Congolese musical icon Fally Ipupa’s latest single, “Mayanga.” The song’s accompanying music video was shot in the Ivory Coast, and seamlessly balances Ipupa’s signature soulful Rumba music with intricate floral motifs and soft, elegant colour palettes that celebrate the strength and individuality that blossoms through community.

In addition to Fally Ipupa, Vlisco also tapped up Ivorian fashion designer Loza Maléombho and Nigerian director Daniel Obasi to contribute to ‘The Garden Of Sisterhood’ campaign. Maléombho’s unique designs and Obasi’s striking storytelling helped contribute to actualising Vlisco’s distinct aesthetic and vision of merging heritage, creativity and fashion. 

In a statement discussing the collaboration with Vlisco, the Congolese superstar described it as a beautiful experience. “They understood my vision of working with talented artists and honouring the beautiful women who wear Vlisco fabrics. By creating exclusive designs for me and the remarkable women in the cast, Vlisco really brought our artistic vision to life, harmoniously fusing music and fashion,” he said. 

Similarly, Marlou van Engelen, the creative director of Vlisco, expressed that it was an honour working with Fally Ipupa. “His song ‘MAYANGA’ perfectly reflects our admiration for the women who shaped us, inspire us, and mean so much to us. For us, it’s not just about fashion; it’s about the stories told through our beautiful prints. And I believe the best stories are always told together,” she said in a statement.

 

 

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The Freewheeling Vision of TG Omori

Posted on by Chibuzo Emmanuel

There are two types of producers in the industry: those who approach the art with a keen sense of business—they know how to sniff out opportunities, and are generally aware of industry-wide trends and currents—and those who set the tone, who set the standards. The latter group is the animating force of the industry, TG Omori says in a 2022 interview with Korty EO. During the interview, he’s slouched in his seat, framed against the backdrop of a grand piano, wearing a bandana, dark shades, and a silk Hawaiian shirt—the first few buttons undone to reveal a glistening silver chain. In the intervening moments—fractions of a second—before Korty responds to the loaded assertion he just trotted out, the air is thick with balmy anticipation and nervous excitement “Which group do you belong to?” She asks, lancing the tense air that had inflated sharply like a balloon. “Me? Which group do you think I belong to?” He fires back, his mouth drawn into a smile. 

Music video production, is at its heart, an art form that is significantly beholden to the vision and whims of the music artist and label executives. Music video directors—rightly—have to walk the tightrope between sufficiently distilling the essence of a song into a video and managing the desires and whims of an artist and their representatives. The problem, however, is that in between all of this, there’s often little wiggle room for the director to execute his ideas significantly. The result is often a situation where the music video director becomes diminished from an artist to a little more than an artisan. TG Omori, however, has in his long career railed against this. There’s no doubt that like his peers he has to straddle the demands of the song and the vision of his clients, but he does this without effacing his distinctive creative language. He has a fluency in packing his work with heady joy, a joy that pervades and steadies Nigerian society despite the many challenges it’s faced with.

TG Omori stumbled into music video direction by chance. He had been struggling as an actor, begging directors for roles as an extra—his skits and sketches from this period are still available on the internet—when it dawned on him that achieving success as a performing act was incredibly difficult. He noticed that a lot of upcoming actors were struggling to get by and often had to abase themselves in the process of currying favors with directors. The role of film director slowly started to worm its way into his heart, driving a wedge between him and his acting aspirations. Finally won over, he made the pivot to filmmaking, eventually settling on music video direction on account of its relative ease. 

His early works lack his distinctive style, instead taking inspiration from directors before him. Consider YCee’s “My Side” which he directed in 2018. The video opens with YCee perched atop a high-rise building. The colors are muted, contrasting his current works which generously deploy bright hues and saturated lighting. There’s a gorgeous scene where YCee is framed against a wall with slits. Shafts of light stream in from behind him, creating a transcendent portrayal of an animated silhouette enveloped in light. The entire video evokes the elevated minimalism of Moe Musa. Think of the opening scene where YCee saunters atop a high-rise building, it’s a motif that has been deployed countless times by Nigerian directors, but something about that scene—the minimalism of the setting juxtaposed with dynamic camera movements—brings to mind Moe Musa’s video for Olamide’s “Bobo.”

While his early works lack his signature–the distinctive exuberance we’ve come to know him for–they hold kernels of what would come to be. Even in the muted ambiance of “My Side,” we see an early iteration of the pristinely dynamic camera movements that sweep through his oeuvre. In the video of Olamide, Wizkid & ID Cabasa’s “Totori,” released in 2019, his directional language starts to take form. He was contracted at the last minute to film the video—he had less than a day to come up with a concept, marshal his crew and steward the logistical aspect of the shoot, and yet in this pressure cannon, a gem was formed. 

The video contains just one main scene—one of the few vestiges of the shoot’s hurried nature. We see Wizkid and Olamide encircled by an energetic crowd. A circle of dark bodies sways to the beat, handkerchiefs flailing in the air. We also see the flamboyant lighting that has come to define TG Omori’s work. There are light sources outside the frame but the scene itself is illuminated by a clever array of light sources. Moving headlights cut through clouds of smoke, LED lights and tungsten bulbs of varying colors suffuse the atmosphere with warm iridescence. The effect is the feeling of being transported to a rave. What’s perhaps most striking about this video is that, having been hastily formulated, it contains a single scene, and yet not one minute of it feels boring or repetitive. 

Having worked across virtually every area in Nigeria’s sprawling music scene T.G Omori’s lore has taken on an almost mythic quality over the years. However, nowhere is his impact more pronounced than in the Nigerian Street-Pop scene. Today, Street-Pop has largely ridden itself  of its underground status. Artists like Seyi Vibez, Shallipopi, and Asake imperiously lord over charts in the country, each boldly raising the banner of their respective cities and hoods. But this wasn’t always the case. In Afropop’s early days, Street-Pop was relegated to the margins, sneered at by industry gatekeepers for its brash flourishes, even though the mainstream routinely tapped it for inspiration. By the early 2010s a new generation of Street-Pop acts—Olamide, Phyno, and Reminisce amongst others—would elevate Street-Pop’s profile to historic heights. But it still maintained an insidiously tense relationship with the mainstream. 

The first signs of an industry-wide shift–the shift that has blossomed into Street-Pop’s hegemony today–arrived in 2019 at the height of the Zanku movement. The addition of “movement” underscores just how significant Zanku was. On one front, it’s the title of Zlatan’s titular 2018 hit and an acronym for the phrase “Zlatan Abeg No Kill Us.” But it’s also used to denote a distinct flavor of Street-Pop characterized by skittering drums, cascading percussion, and a laissez-faire style of delivery—heralded in late 2018 by Street-Pop folk heroes like Zlatan, Chinko Ekun, and Naira Marley. 

When culture critics reminisce on the Zanku era, the focus is usually on the artists who spearheaded it, but T.G Omori’s contributions to that period of Street-Pop’s ascendancy are impossible to ignore. While the artists shaped the sounds and dance steps that defined its grassroots appeal, it was T.G Omori who gave it its distinctive aesthetic. His early collaborations with Zlatan—most notably on “Shotan” and “Bolanle” offered a template for how the videos of the era could be presented on screen: hyper-stylized yet rooted in the whimsical chaos of street culture. His use of slow motion, jump cuts, and dynamic tracking shots turned what would otherwise be yet another ephemeral trend in Afropop’s dynamic history into a cinematic experience that embodied the feeling of the era. 

His video of Naira Marley’s “Soapy” is especially telling.  Arriving in the wake of Naira Marley’s arrest by Nigeria’s anti-graft agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commision (E.F.C.C.), the video very cleverly satirizes the experience, framing him, as well as others who were arrested alongside him—Zlatan and Rahman Jago, amongst others—as  heroes as opposed to criminals. It’s important to grasp the significance of this. Street-Pop acts had always been treated with suspicion. There almost seemed to be a tacit consensus that regardless of their success or status, they mirrored an unsavory part of society, and so they deserved the asterisk that seemed to loom over their every move. The arrest of Naira Marley and his posse only served to further strengthen this narrative. TG Omori’s video, however, spun an alternative narrative, a hagiography perhaps, from this fraught situation. The video opens with annotated mugshots of the group, their names tacked onto each mugshot. Through TG Omori’s lens, prison becomes transformed from a place of despondency to a sanctuary where friends happily muck around, regaling themselves with games and bubbly dancing. 

TG Omori’s influence in shaping emerging sonic movements extends beyond the Zanku era. It’s impossible to recount Asake’s rise without considering the video director’s input. 2022 marked Asake’s singular and meteoric rise to fame. His music blurred the boundaries of genres, creating an amorphous sound spread across the continent with intensity. His ascendancy also broke the boundaries between Street-Pop and mainstream Afropop, marking the dawn of a new era. TG Omori played a pivotal part in Asake’s early days, crafting a freewheeling visual aesthetic to match Asake’s disposition for subversion. In the video of Asake’s “Peace Be Unto You,” we see his freewheeling ethos at its peak. The song’s themes span faith, hustle, success, and street credibility. In the hands of a lesser director, the video would have followed the familiar script of a grass-to-grace narrative. TG Omori, however, rejected that cliché in favor of a more abstract approach. 

Each of the themes explored in the song is distilled to a representative scene, the scenes are then cleverly stitched into a brilliant whole. The opening sequence sees Asake on a motorcycle, a formation of riders trailing behind him. As he rips through the freeway, doting fans wave and scream in adulation. Watching this scene, one is tangibly enveloped in the feeling of street credibility, the sense of ascendancy, that Asake explores in the song. It’s poignant and symbolic, conveying the essence of the song in a manner that would be difficult to achieve with a literal narrative. Similarly, the video of Seyi Vibez’s “Shaolin,” TG Omori’s inaugural work following a health-induced break, defies any discernible narrative logic in favor of a freewheeling approach. The video’s boisterous energy almost seems like a bold assertion of his continued reign; as if to say “I’m back like I never left.” 

In August of 2024, through a series of heart-wrenching videos, as well as tweets, TG Omori let the public in on his health challenges. In a tweet, he revealed that his only brother gave him a kidney, so he could live again. He revealed that the transplant failed and, later, brought on thoughts of mortality. In one harrowing photo he posted on his Instagram stories, he’s hooked to a life support machine, the words “I don’t want to die” superimposed on the image. In the intervening moments, prayers and well-wishes poured in from all corners of social media. In recent months, however, he appears to be in better health and has fully thrust himself back into work, with “Shaolin” being the first of many projects he has lined up. 

Eight years after his directorial debut, he remains not just relevant, but the frontman in an industry that’s as cut-throat as it gets. It’s uncommon in Nigeria’s music scene—for a video director to maintain this level of dominance for nearly a decade into the game. It’s his fidelity to subversion and his unique perspective on the art of videography that has earned him his position as Nigeria’s foremost video director. To watch a TG Omori video is to be transported into a world of his creation: where the sun pulses with exuberance, foliage throbs with palpable life, streams of light vibrate with saturated colors, and the streets are perpetually packed with graceful black bodies. It is a world where, regardless of the tyranny of fate, joy manages to always streak through. 

Maya Amolo Is Committed To Giving You The Sweetest Time

Posted on by Boluwatife Adeyemi

“Sweetest Time,” Maya Amolo’s latest single, is a soothing, lovesick confessional that mixes intimate, heartfelt lyricism with wistful production courtesy of Ugandan musician and producer SOULCHYD aka MAUIMØON. Alongside fellow Kenyan singer Ywaya Tajiri, the self-acclaimed sweetest girl delivers a lustrous duet that sees her soft vocals, which perfectly complement Tajiri’s more robust voice, skip and flit across moody synths, intensifying the spotlight on her wholehearted delivery. “I can feel you rushing through my system / Every single day it’s my religion,” she sings passionately halfway into the record. The whole thing sounds like the aural equivalent of a warm blanket; a truly affectionate record that immerses and envelopes its listeners in its warmth. This is the brand of vulnerable, understated R&B music that has been helping Amolo gain significant attention since she debuted in the pandemic year. 

Born and raised in Nairobi, Kenya, Amolo always had an affinity for music. The singer and producer, who took on piano and guitar lessons as a child, has previously credited acts like Brandy, Erykah Badu, Prince, and Kenyan musical icon Eric Wainaina as her early influences – and it’s easy to see how Amolo’s style draws from this strong lineage of musicians whose music is equally expansive, soothing and vulnerable. After years experimenting with different styles, recording covers to beats she ripped from YouTube and posting them on her Soundcloud page, Amolo released her debut project ‘Leave Me At The Pregame’ in 2020. 

 

The EP, which quickly soared up the charts in Kenya, served as a brief but emphatic introduction to Amolo’s minimalistic take on R&B. Standouts like the emotive opener “Puddles,” “Lush Green”, and “Jokes” showcase her clever and poignant lyricism that reflects on themes of love, depression, and self-healing. Along with sparse, melancholic production and the icy sensuality of her voice, Amolo delivered a remarkable debut that made her one of the most promising figures in Nairobi’s alternative music scene. Two years after ‘Leave Me At The Pregame,’ the Kenyan rising star released her debut album, ‘Asali.’  

‘Asali,’ which translates to “honey” in her native Kiswahili, showcased Amolo’s progression as both an artist and a human being, as she swapped out the sad-girl tunes that filled her debut EP for more vibrant and intricate records – thanks in part to Sir Bastien and Kenyan producer and rapper Lukorito – that explore themes of growth and the complexities and rich luster of love. The album’s lead singles, “Foundry” and the self-produced “Can’t Get Enough,” found relative success on streaming platforms, placing Amolo as one of the continent’s most exciting new R&B voices. About a year after the release of ‘Asali,’ Amolo updated the album with 8 new songs on a deluxe version that featured Kenyan stars like Bensoul, Xenia Manasseh and Zowie Kengocha. 

In August 2024, a few months after she delivered a splendid Colors performance, Amolo released a new project titled ‘What a Feeling.’ The 5-track EP, which essentially serves as an ode to Amolo’s home city, Nairobi, sees her experimenting with an array of dance sub-genres without straying too far from her R&B roots. While the project still retains much of the melancholy and elegance that defined her earlier work, there’s a hypnotic and pulsating energy that courses through ‘What A Feeling,’ that highlights a shift in the singer’s sensibilities. Amolo’s honeyed vocals gently seep through subtle Dancehall, Electronic, R&B and House-inspired production and the accompanying visualizer, a mashup of camcorder footage of her and her friends in Nairobi, also adequately captures the charming and nocturnal vibe of the tape. 

The project produced standout tracks like the sensual “Let It Flow,” the title track and “Take It,” which later got remixed by Ugandan singer Soundlykbb and rapper SGawD. With Amolo’s latest release, “Sweetest Girl,” the Kenyan rising star continues her intricate exploration of R&B music, merging it with varying styles to produce her own distinct and refreshing variant. There’s no telling what Amolo might do next, but with only a handful of releases to her name so far, there’s undoubtedly more to come from the talented singer as she looks to solidify herself as one of the genre’s most prominent faces across the continent.

T.I Blaze Updates ‘Shakur’ EP With Deluxe Version 

Posted on by Wale Oloworekende

Over the last few years, street-pop, a guttural version of afropop, has surged to mainstream popularity, birthing stars like Asake, Seyi Vibez, and Shallipopi. On the homefront, a generation of younger stars also put unique spins on the sound. Singer, T.I Blaze, has been a notable star in the sub-genre since his 2021 single, “Sometimes,” and a subsequent remix with icon, Olamide, launched him into a different stratosphere.

Since “Sometimes,” Blaze has established his profile as a reliable source for songs that reflect the pulse of the streets while archiving his come-up story across a debut album (‘El Major’) and three extended plays like ‘The Fresh Prince Of Lagos’ and ‘Dangerous Wavy Baby.’ His 2024 EP, ‘Shakur,’ further underscored his evolution as an artist, featuring slippery numbers about escapism, his thoughts on life in the fast lane, and brotherhood with features from rising stars like Tml Vibez and BhadBoi Oml. 

In 2025, the singer has picked up where he left off last year, releasing “Trenches Luv,” a balmy February release that examines the dynamics of romance from his point of view as a young adult moulded by the hard realities of life on the street. The success of “Trenches Luv” has led to a deluxe version of ‘Shakur’ with the singer adding seven new songs to the original version of the project. Impressively, on the new version of the project, TI Blaze taps up Ayo Maff and Ghanaian star Arathejay on “My Brother” and “Mario Remix,” respectively. 

Led by a galala-inflected opener, “Track 1,” ‘Shakur (Deluxe)’ is both raw and complex with the singer sounding refreshed on songs like “My Brother,” “Dodge,” and “Introduction.” In many ways, this project is an invitation for listeners to explore the many facets of T.I Blaze’s artistry as well as a portent to celebrate his roots and offer a glimpse at his evolution. 

Listen to ‘Shakur (Deluxe)’ here. 

Review: Rigo Kamp’s ‘Rigo Kamp’ EP

Back in the mid-2010s, when alté started transforming from a niche SoundCloud phenomenon to an all-inclusive creative haven, the music branch of the scene basked in a sense of eclecticism that stood in sharp contrast to the staid conformity of Nigerian Pop. The flows were different; the themes explored and expounded on by acts like Odunsi (The Engine), Cruel Santino, Tay Iwar and others sounded lived-in and cogent to the experiences of the young people who pressed play on their music; and the beats didn’t stand in one position, dipping into the sonics of different eras and borrowing from a range of genres–it all felt like an endless search for wonder. 

In many ways, Rigo Kamp’s music evokes the starry-eyed purity of that early alté epoch, when acts created work that affirmed their consciousness while attuning their community to newer soundscapes. His sound is at once eerily familiar and ambitiously transcendental, moving between Alt-Pop, R&B, and Soul with a practiced precision. For the uninitiated, the Abuja-born, Lagos-based singer has been turning heads for a while. Last year, he performed at the inaugural edition of The NATIVE’s unDer Live, alongside well-regarded up-and-coming acts like Kold AF, Superjazzclub, and Toye. Later in 2024, he made his debut with the double-pack release of “Summer/Morning Sun,” landing recognition as Apple Music’s Up Next artist in November 2024 and joining an alumni that includes Rema, Tems, and Burna Boy. 

In a statement shared with The NATIVE following the release of “Summer/Morning Sun,” Kamp said that a project was on the way and would explore “where I was and where I am right now.” In truth, his self-titled debut makes sense of his past and his present and aims to set the stage for his future while dealing with romantic hopes, personal pressure, and familial bonds across its 18-minute runtime. For the most part, ‘Rigo Kamp’’ is moored by a sense of melancholy, but it doesn’t stop the project from providing moments of downright elation. 

“Marathon,” the project opener, starts off as a Juju-influenced bop in instrumentation and lyrics before mutating into a spirited soul refrain that anchors the rest of the track. “Tell Tiwa Savage I get Stamina/ This one no be sprint the game na marathon,” he sings in the song’s riotous opening section. It’s the sort of lyric you’d usually find on a mainstream Afropop banger, but here, it serves as a portal to an astral terrain where Kamp emotes about a would-be lover’s character with a nod to the Juju sound popularised by Sir Shina Peters. It all comes off wonderfully and is a powerful reminder of how alté music can bridge the gap between generations and sounds. 

There are several Odunsi (The Engine) production credits on ‘Rigo Kamp’ and he also serves as the project’s executive producer, helping the rising singer craft a body of work that captures Rigo’s zest for life much like Odunsi’s lauded tape, ‘Time of Our Lives,’did when it was released nearly a decade ago. Where ‘Time of Our Lives’ was cheery and outward-leaning, ‘Rigo Kamp’ is quirky, dark, and mysterious but no less earnest. Kamp’s feelings are not abstracted or muted for an attempt at arcane sophistication. He’s unabashedly paper-chasing on “Forbes List” and he’s not afraid to admit the paranoia that comes with seeking prosperity. “Will I ever make it?” he asks rhetorically on the song. In another part of the song, he’s even pondering if his quest for material success makes any sense. That fidelity to feeling is what makes Rigo Kamp such an engaging listen. 

The answer to Kamp’s existential musing on material wants and needs comes on the next track, “Summer,” where he rhymes, “Get that money yes you need it, you deserve it,” in the song’s opening seconds. Originally released as a single alongside “Morning Sun,” “Summer”  positively affirms the concept of winning through a Pop framework. It’s the sort of song to turn on a celebratory morning or tune in for motivation on bleak, rainy days. Within the project, the groovy essence of  “Morning Sun” serves as a counterbalance to the heart-wrenching candour of “Miss You” where Kamp is wistfully longing for a lover to live in the moment with him without tuning out over a soul-inflected instrumental. It’s a well-written song that manages to capture the melodrama of a contentious relationship without drowning in the messiness that characterises flailing romances.

Earlier this year, there was a lot of online chatter about the state of the alté community and the heights many expected its members to hit. Many argued about how success should be defined in the alte scene, but the truth is that the true measure of that success has always existed in the intangibles. For them, the journey has always been of greater importance than the journey, and in the sense, Rigo Kamp sits in that unique tradition undoubtedly. Rigo Kamp comes to an end on the pseudo-confessional “Move On” where the singer recounts his come-up story and the changing tide of his career over a buttery soul instrumental. At the tail-end of the song, he calmly recognises the cost of the journey, singing, “Some will go/ I move on/ Some will stay.” They are the words of an artist who knows his path and what it requires of him. 

NATIVE PREMIERE: Rigo Kamp Runs Ahead Of The Pack With The Visuals For “Marathon”

Posted on by The Native

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:

 

South African House Duo, Black Motion, Return With Rhythmic “Khululeka”

Posted on by Wale Oloworekende

South African house music pioneers, Black Motion, are back with a deeply moving and rhythmic new release titled “Khululeka.” True to its meaning in isiZulu— “be free” or “find peace”—this track is an anthem of liberation, urging listeners to let go, embrace love, and heal through the power of music.

With their signature percussion-driven melodies and the soul-stirring vocal chants of King Monopoly, “Khululeka” transcends the dancefloor. It is a spiritual and emotional journey, carrying an energy that is both uplifting and transformative. Whether in personal reflection or in the collective movement of a crowd, the song invites listeners to surrender to its message and rediscover love—both within and around them.

Since their formation in 2010 in Soshanguve, Black Motion—made up of Murdah Bongz (born Robert Mahosana), and Thabo (born Roy Thabo Mabogwane)—has become a dominant force in global house music. Their debut single, “Banane Mavoko,” put them on the map, and their albums, including the gold-certified Fortune Teller and the platinum-selling Ya Badimo, have cemented their status as pioneers of the genre. Their collaborations with artists like Oskido and Black Coffee, along with accolades such as multiple South African Music Awards (SAMAs), have solidified their place at the forefront of African electronic music.

Over the years, Black Motion has partnered with brands like Ballantine’s, Sony Xperia, and Coke Studio, and they are looking to partner with more under their new label Intascore, expanding their influence beyond music. With a combined social media reach of over 2.2 million followers, their music resonates with audiences worldwide, uniting people through rhythm, culture, and movement.

Review: Ruger’s “BlownBoy Ru”

 

There’s no shortage of talent in Afropop. The scene brims with gifted artists shaping the genre’s trajectory with distinct identities and sonic innovation. Yet, only a few possess the magnetism and force of personality to command attention like true superstars. Ruger, however, is cut from a different cloth. Right from the moment he emerged on the music scene –  pirate-esque eye patch covering one eye, pink-dyed hair and an aura that felt instinctive – he carried himself with the assuredness of someone who had always known he was destined for stardom.

Even beyond his commanding presence and showmanship, Ruger possesses a sonic malleability and fluidity that makes him one of the few artists injecting new life into Nigerian Pop. Since his 2021 breakout hit “Bounce,” he has built a catalogue that leans heavily into Dancehall’s rhythmic elasticity, making it a core tenet of his artistic identity. That connection to Dancehall isn’t incidental. Ruger is a natural successor in a lineage of Nigerian artists who have long folded the genre’s DNA into their music, from percussive grits of the Konto and Galala architects – Marvelous Benji, Danfo Drivers, African China, and Stereoman – who, in the late 1990s and early 2000s, morphed its cadence into homegrown street sounds; to Cynthia Morgan, Patoranking, Timaya, and Burna Boy, who have ensured that the genre’s imprint in Nigerian Pop remained unmissable.

With ‘Pandemic,’ his debut EP, and its follow-up, ‘The Second Wave,’ Ruger fashioned himself into a swashbuckling maverick, laced his music with profanities, and delivered it all with a devil-may-care embrace of hedonism. By the time he had stamped himself as both a hitmaker and one of Afropop’s most assured new voices, his debut album, ‘Ru The World,’ crested that peak in his artistry and firmly stands as a totem of his artistic ambitions. 

As 2024 rolled in, Ruger severed ties with D’Prince’s Jonzing World and stepped into a new phase with the launch of his new imprint, “Blown Boy Entertainment.” Since then, the pink-haired hitmaker has operated with even greater autonomy and continues to push his artistry further while embracing a bolder sense of self. In a moment that caught many off guard, he put aside his publicised online feud with BNXN to deliver the surprise joint EP, ‘RnB’ in 2024. Even before his latest project, ‘BlownBoy Ru,’ Ruger remained relentless, consistently rolling out melodic, club-ready records that reinforced his knack for crafting undeniable anthems. A collaboration with Tiwa Savage on the pre-released “Toma Toma” saw him tapping into the raw, percussion-heavy bounce of Baile Funk.

For every young Nigerian artist who grew up with the odds stacked against them, the ultimate dream is to “blow” – to cement a place in the saturated industry and extend their reach beyond borders. Ruger is one of those dreamers who made it happen. Now, with his sophomore album, ‘BlownBoy Ru,’ Ruger affirms an undeniable truth. He has blown, and nearly five years after his first hit single, there’s no question about it.

Much of the sonic architecture of ‘BlownBoy Ru’ is engineered by Kukbeatz, the longtime producer behind Ruger’s sound since his breakout, ensuring that his Dancehall-inflected style remains both distinct and immersive. That chemistry is on full display from the album’s opener, “REintroduction,” a fiery, chest-thumping song where Ruger reasserts his dominance over a propulsive Dancehall rhythm.

His patois-laced delivery oozes bravado as he declares, “Right from SS3, that’s when I knew that I’m gonna be a big star,” with the assurance of someone who has always had sight of the bigger picture. That rhythmic switch-up toward the song’s outro – where the hard-edged groove gives way to a Northern band’s chant-like refrain – is a deliberate moment of expansiveness and a nod to the growing wave of Northern sonic influences seeping into mainstream Nigerian Pop. 

The balance between familiarity and expansion is a recurring motif that runs through “BlownBoy Ru.” At its core, the album thrives on Ruger’s ability to craft irresistible earworms that reflect his  swaggering bravado and romantic entanglements. “Muah”(Soulmates) is a prime example: a scintillating, slow bop peppered with sensual guitar riffs that see Ruger play the smooth-talking lover boy trying to woo a love interest. “Baby nwa, tell me the reason why / Why you no wan kiss muah?” he sings, his delivery laidback but insistent. He swaps the smooth-talker persona for outright flexing. “Giveaway” finds him teaming up with Zlatan over a drilled-out beat. “Na mint full my jeans / We dey do giveaway,” he boasts, but it’s Zlatan who steals the show. It’s a track that highlights one of Ruger’s strengths: knowing when to let his collaborators shine without losing control of the song’s momentum.

Still, even in his most boastful moments, there’s an undeniable self-awareness of his playboy persona on the pre-released “Jay Jay” – named after the Nigerian football legend, Jay-Jay Okocha – he draws a parallel between his smooth navigation of romance and the ex-footballer’s dazzling footwork on the pitch. “She asking, ‘Boy, what are we?’ / We better be what we have been,”  he croons with his voice coasting over the punchy Dancehall groove. It’s a sentiment he circles back to on “Dudu,” a slow-wine of a track that sees him trade verses with the Jamaican Dancehall singer Kranium, to craft a late-night burner soaked in hedonistic indulgence. Yet, despite his insistence on keeping affections surface-level, vulnerability flickers in the shadows. On “Rub Minds,” he lets his guard down and craves something deeper: “Send me your location, baby / Maybe make I rub minds with you.”

There’s an undeniable pull toward regret on “Wish You Well,” featuring the Jamaican Dancehall star Valiant. Ruger wishes an ex-lover well, even as the emotions in his voice betray the pretense of moving on. That thread of romantic reckoning continues on the moodier cut, “Toro,” a slow but memorable Afropop jam where he acknowledges his faults and pleads for reconciliation. If the album’s first part is littered with sexual indulgence, its second is shaded with the reality that even the smoothest playboy isn’t immune to heartbreak.

The album doesn’t shy away from its more unfiltered moments. “99”  is heavily laced with profanity. On “Runaway,” which enlists Reggae and Dancehall act Haile, he finds himself stuck in the throes of a toxic relationship. The striking verses peppered with log drums give the track an urgent, kinetic pulse. That braggadocio returns full throttle on “Hell Cat,” where Ruger channels his patois delivery once again.

On album closer “BlownBoy Anthem,” Ruger steps into full disclosure mode with the Kukbeatz-produced track. First teased as a freestyle in the wake of his departure from Jonzing World, the track is a gloves-off reckoning with his journey so far – his wins, his lessons, and the steadfast self-belief that has carried him through. The song’s most cutting moment arrives when he sings, “And I denounce every loyalty to some godfather, This year I’m about me.” It is a line that is perhaps intended as a direct shot to his former label boss. As an artist that is ever attuned to pop culture references, Ruger taps into the viral mantra that became the unofficial slogan of 2024 – “No gree for anybody” – when he sings “This year we no go gree for anybody, Pa, pa, pow for anybody.”

Ruger’s choice of collaborators on ‘BlownBoy Ru’  is as deliberate as his artistic direction. His Dancehall-inflected sound has long positioned him as a bridge between Nigerian Pop and the Caribbean’s rhythmic lineage, and here, he deepens that connection. The presence of Kranium, Valiant, and Haile reveals his commitment to a sonic identity that thrives on Dancehall’s pulsating energy. Longtime collaborator Kukbeatz also plays a crucial role in ensuring Ruger’s signature sound remains intact, but this time, the production stretches its limbs, exploring sharper drum patterns, and an expanded palette that dips into R&B, Brazilian funk, and drill. 

And yet, for all its sonic influences, ‘BlownBoy Ru,’ is unmistakably a Ruger album, draped in his signature mix of sensuality, vulgarity, and the kind of unfiltered braggadocio that has long been Ruger’s trademark sound. But this time, there’s more braggadocio, more chest-thumping, and a sharper assertion of self.  At times, this confidence teeters into unsettling territory. On “Jay Jay,” he shrugs off emotional entanglements when he sings, “If a girl worry me, I delete her / Put her inside the bin bag.” It is a jarring line that makes his smooth-talking bravado feel more callous than playful, and one that drew loud criticism from female listeners, who found it insensitive especially considering the gender-based violence that continues to pervade Nigerian society. Still, at its core, ‘BlownBoy Ru’ sidesteps the dreaded sophomore slump with a bold and cohesive body of work that encapsulates the thrill, turbulence, romance, and victories that come with rapid ascent. A reflection of a young pop star moving with certainty and fully in control of his craft. 

Review: Joeboy’s “Viva Lavida”

 

On Joeboy’s third album, ‘Viva Lavida,’ it’s clear he has not gotten tired of loving wholeheartedly, or writing the most heartwarming music about it. In 2019 he shot to the limelight via his ‘Love and Light’ EP, brimming with a puppy love that many assumed would wear off after life’s harsh heartbreaks melt his affectionate side, as they so often do. His debut seemed a little too naive at times: “Beginning” had him place all of his possessions on offer, up to and including his life, in exchange for the affections of a woman he was only beginning to fall in love with. Even breakup tracks carried emotional weight: on “Don’t Call Me Back” he speedruns all five stages of grief in under three minutes, eventually landing on a half-sure acceptance: “Don’t call me back when you see say I don dey with another kele.”

Six years later, the 27-year-old Joeboy has not dulled his sense of love and passion, much to the benefit of his audience. His debut album, 2021’s ‘Somewhere Between Beauty & Magic’ did not allocate the overwhelming proportion to love songs that his debut EP did, but when he did love he loved hard: on “Focus,” “Lonely,” “Door,” and “Show Me,” he showed this side of him most earnestly, and those are indeed the songs that resonate most with listeners, and in turn, have reaped the largest commercial returns. 

Joeboy is an artist that defies placement and categorization. In an industry of Big Threes, new Big Threes, and other such strata, he remains largely in his own lane. It’s partly a function of an approach to his career that prioritises promoting the art over the artist, which is good. But it also reflects a sense of stagnation that has hovered over his career the last few years. At his breakout, he was a member of a small contingent of stars – including Rema and Fireboy – destined to rule Nigerian music in its next half-decade, or about now. Today, he’s outgrown “upcoming” classifications by any metric, but has not arrived at the destination his debut charted for him. It puts him in an awkward spot in a country that enjoys ranking its talents. 

Two years ago, ‘Body And Soul’ was an ambitious attempt to solidify his status beyond doubt. It was packed with very successful singles like “Contour” and “Alcohol,” even though the latter was over a year old at that point and hardly fit into the album’s narrative. The record in its majority possessed endearing characteristics, particularly Joeboy’s eye for affectionate music, and the harmony of him intermingling with other honey-toned vocalists like Oxlade, Kemena, and CKay. 

After a fairly amicable split with music artist-turned-mogul Mr. Eazi and his emPawa record label, Joeboy is back in charge of his career. His new self-owned label, Young Legend Ltd., grants him a fresh start, and his first album under the imprint reflects the freedom he operates with. Where another artist in his position might feel pressured to reinvent himself to keep up with the industry’s shifts, Joeboy instead leans deeper into the elements that have defined his artistry so far. In some places he is nearly as dewy eyed as the teenager that debuted with “Baby Girl” eight years ago, like on album opener “Innocent”: “And the other day wey you wonjour me/ See I still come through and I pamper you/ Anytime your heart break oh/ If you tell Joeboy pon deck, I will plaster you.”

In true Joeboy fashion, ‘Viva Lavida’ exposes the full spectrum of romantic affairs, from flirtatious fun numbers that narrate the beginning of a relationship – “Magdalene” highlights sexual attraction against an irreverent backdrop of the New Testament – to more morose tracks that paint the sad, slow end of one. “SMH” and “Streets Are Lonely” find him down the same dark alley as “Don’t Call Me Back” – “If you don’t love me just say it/ You really wanna leave just say it,” he sings on the latter.

‘Viva Lavida’ is his first album without Mr. Eazi as executive producer. Among the cohort of his replacements is Tempoe, the genius behind megahits from Omah Lay, CKay and Joeboy himself. The producer stamps his foot heavily on the album’s musical direction, wearing hats from songwriting to production to co-helming “SMH.” The album benefits greatly from his input, allowing Joeboy to explore a range of sonic pockets within his midtempo Afropop scope. Percussion is colourful and varied, from the Hausa-influenced groove of “Free Of Charge,” to which a brilliant Olamide lends a verse, to the Pon Pon rhythm of “SMH,” which is built on a sample of Indian singer Srinivas’ “Neela Nilave.”. Perhaps Tempoe’s greatest contribution to ‘Viva Lavida,’ though, is his unexpected lending of backup vocals – serenading verses on “Abena” and the silky choruses of “Streets Are Lonely” and “Madgalene.” A dose of brilliant mixing, mostly provided by Oxygen, another executive producer, grants these layered vocals a lush summative shine. Joeboy scripted ‘Viva Lavida’ (which translates as “live life”) as an ode to life and love; the role of his co-creators is to make the album sound as colourful as it reads. They are probably a major reason why Joeboy, presenting his fifth project in six years, can still sound as fresh as he does on ‘Viva Lavida.’

Another of Joeboy’s favorite collaborators, Kemena, returns here, making his mark behind the boards for “Innocent” and “Streets Are Lonely.” Another well delivered feature – a la “The Best For You” off ‘Body And Soul’ – would have fit neatly into this album, but Joeboy goes in a different direction with his guests this time, favouring diversity over homogeneity. Elana Dara, Brazilian singer and a well-picked feature, is one of the album’s brightest sparks, slotting brilliantly beside Joeboy on “Sunset.” They duet for some of the album’s most important lines, longing for “Someone to call my own/ somewhere to call my own.” Sometimes love is simply about finding a safe space in someone else. 

Wizard Chan arrives to close out the album with “I’ll Be Okay,” a sequel to “Alone” off his 2024 album ‘The Messenger,’ that ties up the loneliness that track bemoaned – “I steady focus on my race/ ‘Cause I know nobody will feel my pain/ If I make mistake or if I fail” – in a neat religious bow: “I’ll throw my pain and sorrows away/ Okay, I’ll be okay… He turned the water into wine/ And so he will turn my pain too.” This feature stands out for how it veers from the album’s set direction, but it is preceded by a pair of songs that began the path to the divine: “Hey Father” and “Sinner.” Joeboy’s dive into religion in search of introspection is both novel and laudable, especially against the backdrop of contemporary Afropop, but it hardly fits well with the rest of the album that comes before.

If ‘Viva Lavida’ has any real weakness, it is in the lukewarm writing that hampers some of its choruses. He may not get as many “pen game” plaudits as many of his peers (and he does not shop for them, either), but Joeboy is one of the better romance songwriters of his generation, one of a few who would take the time to spell out desire when a lazy innuendo would serve for most. A few choruses here find him guilty of the same: in the vacuous repetitiveness of “Dance, Abena, Dance” on “Abena,” and his materialistic, haphazard approach on Adenuga: “My money plenty, Adenuga/ You’re driving me crazy like a uber/ Come and chop all my kaluba.” If Joeboy wishes to remain on the creative pedestal his music has placed him on thus far, he will need to steer clear of Afropop’s cheap tropes. 

Still, ‘Viva Lavida’’s flaws are so few and far between that they do not morph into a hindrance to its listening experience, only an unwelcome distraction. For the most part, Joeboy’s new album proves he can maintain his image as the famed loverboy even after being separated from the label that helped him shape it. It gets uneven in places, but a mixture of introspective depth, collaborative and cultural diversity and Joeboy’s seemingly inexhaustible wealth of lovelorn writing makes it another solid addition to his arsenal.

RAMPA LAGOS SERVES UP AN AFROHOUSE SPECTACLE 

Lagos has long been Nigeria’s unrivaled party capital. Still, when Keinemusik’s Rampa was announced as the headliner for an exclusive Afrohouse rave, the city’s electronic music faithfuls braced for something different. This wasn’t just another rave night — it was a statement. Produced by M.E Entertainment, a new player in Nigeria’s event space, the rave promised a fusion of global house finesse and Lagos’s homegrown energy.  

But ambition comes with friction. From the jump, the strict ticketing system set the tone: press who arrived after the event’s start time reported hurdles at the door – somewhat understandable when you count the fact that they were advised to come as early as the opening sets so their passes would be sorted first. Meanwhile, the lineup – a mix of international allure and local heavyweights like Aniko, Blak Dave, TXC, JarLight, and more – had fans debating whether the best of Lagos’ talent was given the spotlight they deserved.  

By the time the night peaked, it was clear this event would be remembered for more than just the music. Between Burna Boy and Olamide’s surprise appearances, a celebrity security scuffle, and Rampa’s hypnotic command of the CDJ-3000, the rave became a microcosm of Lagos itself: rousing, chaotic, and impossible to ignore.  

The Velvet Rope Experience

If there was ever any doubt that Lagos’ nightlife thrives on exclusivity, this event erased it. The ticket prices were well above the city’s usual rave standards, so consequently, the crowd was a mix of high-net-worth partygoers and die-hard Afrohouse fans willing to splurge. The Royal Box Event Centre, a relatively new venue in the city’s entertainment circuit, did a good job of justifying its percentage of the ticket prices — it was spacious and air-conditioned, well-rigged for electronic music lighting, and fitted with a sound system that delivered every kick and synth swell with precision.  

But the real spectacle was the guest list. Burna Boy arrived mid-show, slipping on stage while Rampa spun his hit “Say What.” Olamide, Naomi Campbell, and London soon joined him amidst all the pomp, and before long, the rest of Lagos music and music business royalty were on stage, drinks in hand, partying with Rampa and the rest of the DJ lineup. 

The crowd’s energy surged each time a new celebrity was spotted, but so did the tension. At one point, a scuffle broke out between security details of two high-profile attendees, a brief but jarring disruption that underscored the night’s underlying friction: Was this a rave or a status flex? The heavy police and private security presence, while expected at an event of this caliber, occasionally felt more suited to a political summit than a house music gathering.  

From Start To Finish

The music, for its part, was never in question.  

Blak Dave and Aniko, two of Lagos’ most respected selectors, opened the night with a percussive, groove-heavy warm-up, weaving together Afrohouse, Three-Step, and Melodic House influences. Their sets were masterful, but the early slots meant much of the crowd was still trickling in. Tariq, an attendee, would later wonder – why wasn’t either given peak hours? Lagos knows and loves these DJs, and their relegation to the opening acts felt like a missed opportunity.  

The energy shifted when TXC, the South African female DJ duo, took over. Famous for their electric set at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, their performance this past Sunday was no different. Their set did a great job of blending tribal rhythms with contemporary Afrohouse bangers. By the time Remixia, Massuma, and Daecolm cycled through, the dance floor was a notably diverse sea of swaying bodies in small nuclear clusters, sweat glistening under the venue’s laser-cut lighting.  

Then came Rampa. The Keinemusik co-founder stepped up just past midnight, and from the first drop, “Thandaza,” a collaborative gem with &Me and Adam Port, he had the crowd in a trance. His set was a journey, ebbing between deep, meditative grooves and explosive peaks. At one point, Burna Boy and Olamide joined him on stage, grinning as the crowd roared. For all the celebrity distractions, this was the night’s purest moment: a global house icon and Nigeria’s biggest stars, in rhythmic consonance.

There was yet another surprise at the end. JarLight, tasked with closing, refused to let the night die. At 5:03 AM, with the sun threatening to rise, he abruptly spun his set to an end, which in turn made the residual crowd persistently request one more song. When he finally relented, dropping a final, unreleased ID, the exhaustion was palpable — but so was the euphoria.  

Venue & Production – A New Standard for Lagos?  

In a city where even high-end venues often struggle with sound bleed, poor ventilation, or overcrowding, Royal Box Event Centre delivered. The acoustics were crisp, the lighting was immersive without being overwhelming (as depicted in the tidbits of social media posts that have been pouring in), and the layout was spacious yet intimate, allowing free movement without killing the vibe.  

Behind the scenes, M.E Entertainment, despite being first-timers, executed a largely seamless production. There were some hiccups – overzealous security, press access issues, and perhaps a reliance on star power to carry the night. But for a debut event, the ambition was admirable. Lagos’ nightlife scene is notoriously unforgiving, and M.E proved they could play in the big leagues

Celebration or Controversy?  

In the days following the event, social media buzzed with polarised takes. Plenty hailed the rave as a watershed moment for Afrohouse in Nigeria, proof that Lagos could host world-class electronic music events. A rather conspicuous few critiqued its VIP-heavy atmosphere, arguing that the essence of a rave – community, freedom, and a music-first ethos – was diluted by celebrity spectacle.  

The scheduling of local DJs also sparked some murmurs. Should Aniko and Blak Dave have been given prime slots, or was their role as openers a strategic choice to ease the crowd into the night? And while Rampa’s set was transcendent, did the high ticket prices justify the experience for those who came purely for the music?  

A Night of Extremes, and You Know What? Fair.

This rave was a collision of contrasts. On one hand, there was Rampa’s flawless set, JarLight’s unforgettable close, and a venue that raised the bar – and on the other, exclusivity overkill and a nagging sense that Lagos’ homegrown talent deserved more shine. But maybe that’s the point. Lagos is a city of extremes, and its nightlife reflects that. This event was a cultural snapshot, capturing the city’s relentless ambition, contradictions, and undying love for music that moves the body and soul.