“I am crying everyone’s tears/ I have already paid for all my future sins”, Sade sings on “King of Sorrow”, the second single off the group’s millennium album, Lover’s Rock. In this vintage interview, lead singer, Sade Adu aptly describes the track as a moment: “Where you feel like everything is on your shoulders”. Despite coming in nearly twenty years after the group’s soulfully indented 1984 debut, Diamond Life, “King Of Sorrow” is emblematic of the intimacy, melancholy and universality that underscores Sade’s music.
The accompanying video for “King Of Sorrow” covers this premise, as Sade embodies a Puetorican mother alternating raising her children with a blossoming singing career. Video director and filmmaker, Sophie Mueller said Sade Adu had provided the inspiration for the video citing her own mother, who also worked as a singer while raising young Sade and her older brother, Banji.
By design, soul music relies on documenting our collective human experiences. Thus, it’s not unlikely to feel removed from Sade’s blues in the same manner, you feel a simultaneously relational aura that tells you the story is as much Sade’s as it is yours too. Sade Adu herself thematically references the classic record with a generalised wide-cast description; “It’s a song for the people” she says. As she sings “The D.J’s playin’ the same song/ I have so much to do, I have to carry on”, the inherently contextual nature of the music is brought to the fore, you become aware her mourning is not because she has been beaten down, it’s because this is not her first rodeo.
Stream “King of Sorrow” via Apple Music here.
Photo Credits: Patrick Demarchelier for The FADER
Toye is the Team lead at Native Nigeria. Tweet at him@ToyeSokunbi
Through a voice recording sent to NATIVE, Lady Donli tells us Letters To Her is about the protagonist—Moonchild—and unrequited feelings for someone she believed was her Sunlight. On Letters To Her, an intimate story is spread out across 6-tracks that you may need to immerse yourself into for full effect. According to Lady Donli’s she composed the who project from her heart, without ever putting pen to paper before recording the songs on the tape. And that sort of eccentricity is what makes the project so peculiar.
Letters to her begins with a jazz influenced track, “Tease” where Lady Donli introduces herself as ‘Moonchild’ and begins the story of her complicated relationship. Complimenting vocals from Yinka Bernie and Garvie give a wider perspective on the mind-games lovers often play. On the second track, “Spell”, ‘Moonchild’ wails about a lover whose affection she is unsure of. Garvie produces the distorted instrumentals heard on “Spell” and it aptly conveys the discomfort that often comes with lack of trust in new love scenarios.
“2/11”, the third track featuring Jable signifies the day her lover left her life as she chants “Nothing’s Been The Same Since The Second of November”. Jable’s vocals sways softly from singing to talking over a beat Garvie produces with drums that could be akin to loud heart thumpings. The open letter continues on “Roses for K”, a somber ballad, where she expresses her anger. According to Lady Donli, “Roses for K’ is about a lover you thought was perfect for you, leaving you.”
Lady Donli’s chant-like meditation on “Yours Sincerely” slowly progresses into a ballad. She tries to convince herself and her lover that she has moved on as she sways between singing and talking throughout the track. The Final track, “Candy” featuring Tay Iwar is a continuation of Lady Donli’s collaboration from last year, “Ice Cream”, featuring Tomi Thomas. The airy synth rhythm may leave you feeling sad but the synergy of the two artists infuses a bit of hope as they acknowledge the loss of love, but are ready to move on.
However, the charm of her debut EP, Letters To Her comes from the selected instrumentals and the relatability. The story format emphasizes the importance of listening to the tracks in order. And the undeniably honest lyrics are sure to resonate with anyone who has experienced hurt that follows unrequited feelings, or the end of a brief relationship.
Steam Letters To Her on Soundcloud:
Featured Image Credits: Instagram/Ladydonli
“Tomiwa is figuring it out…” Tweet at her @Tomiiwaa_i
Last year, M.I made it a note to remind everyone who would listen that he is the best living Nigerian rapper. While fans waited on his talked-up fourth studio album, the rapper spent the most part of 2017 in the media defending his work and basking in past glory. One of such self-wanks was released as a single, “Your Father”, featuring Dice Ailes.
M.I has now released the official music video for the battle-charged track and it seems like he has been reading one of my favourite books; “How To Steal Like An Artist”. The video directed by The Myth draws heavy influences from Lil Wayne and Big Sean’s “My Homie Still” and Kendrick Lamar’s video for “Humble”. Combining the creative direction of the two videos directed by Dave Meyers Parris, “Your Father” still manages to comes off as artsy though somewhat inauthentic.
There’s a lot of direct copying from MI replacing Big Sean at the moving-chair, to mannequins seen now dressed in native attires while M.I and Dice Ailes rap in front of a house. The spherical 360 degree edits are also lifted from Parris’ works. The bicycle riding is particularly notable coming off Kendrick’s “Humble” video released last year.
But somewhere hidden behind the heavy visual sampling, are some more creative art referencing with museum portrait paintings reimagined as MI, Jesse Jagz and Ice Prince. It’s nice that while M.I raps about being the ‘father’ of Hip-hop in Nigeria, he has no qualms shamelessly showing off his inspirations and just how much he relies on others for creative direction.
You can watch the video for “Your Father” below.
Featured Image Credits: YouTube/MI Abaga
You are meeting Debola at a strange time in his life. He wandered into a dream and lost his way back. Tweet at him@debola_abimbolu
Atlanta, Donald Glover’s acclaimed series, returns to FX on the 1st of March 2018. Ahead of its premiere, a trippy new trailer has been released with Yellow Days’ “Gap in The Clouds” as an accompanying soundtrack. The teaser gives little away in terms of plot details but shows the lead star falling in a trippy 360-degree motion that is sure to enjoy some heavy meme/gif rotation till the eventual release of the series.
From the fragmentary first trailer and the new one, Glover appears committed to putting out unique trailers that sell the atmosphere of the show rather than the plot. This will please viewers who were into the surreal texture of the first season.
The show’s debut in 2016 with 10 episodes devoid of sensationalism and addressing real life issues was a big hit. Fans have since looked forward to the second season. However, Glovers’ busy schedule caused production to be delayed.
According to Stephen Glover, the head story editor and Donald Glover’s brother, “The Robbin’ season” (aka Atlanta season 2) tells a story of the holiday season when robberies exponentially increase in Atlanta. It has been a long time coming but the wait is almost over and we’re super excited.
Stream the new trailer for ‘Atlanta: Robbin Season’ below
It’s a new year and B-Red’s “Connect”, featuring Tiwa Savage has already established itself as an Afro-pop number with a touch of fun to fit perfectly into playlists made about this time of the year. With the drum-heavy baseline typical of Nigerian club songs, B-Red tries to woo a woman he likes with the promise of money, gifts and all that good stuff. Tiwa’s verse doesn’t challenge any of the typical pop music tropes; on the track, she is the woman who notices a man looking at her from across the room and wants to know if he has what she wants.
The video for “Connect” is your average Afropop video; Neon lights, dancers all in a warehouse-like set-up. The song implies he is singing to one woman, but B-red singing with women dancing around him doesn’t exactly convey this narrative.
You can watch the video for “Connect” below
Featured Image Credits: YouTube/HKN Music
“Tomiwa is figuring it out…” Tweet at her @Tomiiwaa_i
“Yeba” is a delightful song. From the first beat, you are compelled to move. You nod and hum along to the song. This is a good song. And then you hear it. Three words that send you into a puzzled pause: “Uncle stop touching”. Those words are very easy to miss, and if you’re not listening intently, you probably won’t hear them. In fact, the first time I heard “Yeba”, I was carried away by the upbeat tempo of the song and how he delivers “ah one … ah two … ah tiri”.
Because African entertainers today—like celebrities all over the world—are saddled with balancing the progressive views of their fan base with their own socio-political biases, the number of artists who can be considered socially conscious are countable by hand. That sample size is bound to shrink even further if one only considers that artists reflect some of the ongoing conversations around gender politics in their music.
Kiss Daniel is not known to be overtly, or even covertly, sexist or misogynist, in his private life or in his lyrics and music. The singer also occasionally dabbles in the art of Instagram skitting, a quality attributable to seemingly good-natured contemporaries like Falz. He projects the image of the quintessential good guy who just wants to love you and make you dance. This is why you aren’t sure what to make of those words.
When I started writing this, (before Kiss Daniel’s rejoining tweet), I wondered whether he didn’t realise that sexual harassment was a serious problem, especially in light of the global conversation. Was he attempting to shine a light on something that we already know all too well? Was it supposed to be a light-hearted take on harassment that happens on dance floors? at owambes?
The conversation around content of Nigerian music alluding to or indirectly promoting sexual harassment and assault is not new. Following the release of Olamide’s “Story for the Gods” in 2014, there was a lot of controversy and criticism about it. Artists like Falz and Ajebutter, who can be considered as socially conscious/aware, take a definite stand on whatever issues they choose to highlight in their songs, be it leery uncles, tribalist relatives, thieving politicians, or greedy girls, but this isn’t immediately obvious with Kiss Daniel.
One of the ways I thought of it was that the subtleness of the line was a reflection of the subtle and casual ways women experience harassment and assault and that the apology that follows the line shows that he wasn’t trying to encourage sexual harassment, but it’s hard to see it that way. Women experience sexual harassment everywhere—at work, in schools, on the road, at parties, at clubs, at concerts.
D song teaches our ladies to speak out against wat they haven't consented 2 nd 4 d men to realise dat if a lady says No, No means No. Apologise nd don't go further, hence d reply by d guy…"sorry madam" D fact dat a lady agrees 2 dance wit u doesn't translate 2 sexual consent https://t.co/LbfJuowJbI
While this sounds very nice on the surface, it reads like a PR save; an afterthought that feels out of context with the rest of the track’s loose central narrative.
Women don’t need men to apologize after assaulting them, they need men to not assault them.
Many women have a story of being harassed or assaulted, in which they repeatedly asked, begged, told, the assaulter to not touch them or to stop touching them, all to no avail. This line adds nothing new to the conversation, nor does it teach anybody anything. If Kiss Daniel wanted to address a topic, especially one of this nature, he should first educate himself about the topic, and be more explicit about what lessons he wants who to learn. A great example is Patoraking’s “No Kissing” which explicitly and repeatedly states: ‘if you no give me I no go take o’. If Daniel’s explanation is true, then he’s gone about his motives the wrong way. The lesson should be for men to not touch women without consent. It should be that apologizing after sexually harassing someone doesn’t make the assault okay. Women don’t need men to apologize after assaulting them, they need men to not assault them.
I don’t believe that Kiss Daniel had any malicious intent; he probably didn’t think anything about it. This attitude, and the line itself, is reflective of the blase way we treat women’s experiences of harassment and our conceptualization of harassment.
All too often, when women speak about being harassed, especially in public spaces, the assailant is portrayed as just trying to play with us or just being friendly. Any reaction to the unwanted touch, and less often, apology, that isn’t friendly is seen as being stuck up or too much.
In light of the numerous reports of sexual harassment, sexual assault, and even rape, coming out of Phyno’s concert late last year, the line appears less innocuous. African artists may have gotten off the hook easily in the past despite objectifying women and reinforcing misogynist tropes in their music, but with increasing emphasis on universal themes in music—thanks to this digitally-boosted era for Afropop on a global mainframe—a new standard is expected.
Celebrities must research and pay attention to the possible interpretations of the work they put out. Understandably, everyone has a right to an opinion (no matter how trash it is), but because their private and public lives serve as a benchmark for the rest of society, it is important there is clarity on what side of the fence they stand, especially with matters as sensitive as gender politics and sexual relations.
Lade Tawak was 2nd runner-up in The CREETIQ Critic Challenge 2017. You can check out more of her writing on Athena Talks, Kalahari Review, Africa in Dialogue, and Arts and Africa.
In response to an ad that featured a black child with the slogan “coolest monkey in the jungle”, protesters trashed several H&M stores across South Africa. Footage and images shared on social media showed demonstrators chanting around the company’s stores, stores being ransacked with rails of clothing and mannequins toppled and trampled on. The racist ad met backlash when it appeared on the British version of the company’s online store and shared on social media. Celebrities like The Weeknd and G-Eazy also cut business ties with the company in response to the ad.
Pulling the ad and issuing a series of apologies isn’t getting H&M off the hook that easy though. The Economic Freedom Fighters, a socialist political party responsible for the protests, insists that businesses cannot keep getting away with “undermining black people” and are calling for a permanent closing of all H&M stores across the country.
While some argue that vandalism was an inappropriate response to the ad, others maintain it is important to take a clear stand against racism and dehumanization of black people for gain and offending businesses be made to face the consequences.
H&M has released a statement denouncing all forms of racism and bias, and absolving their store workers of any responsibility for the offending ad. All 17 of its stores across the country have also been temporarily closed to ensure customer and employee safety.
Before Soundcloud or even Apple Music ever existed, radio, television and CDs were the only ways to consume music content. Fondly loved albums like Wande Coal’s album debut, Mushin2Mohits were manually played by fans and non-fans alike in this manner. Wanted, his follow-up release, built on this already acclaimed discography, enjoying the leverage of digital stores and streaming platforms that were coming into increasing popularity at the time. However, unlike many artists who have since updated thier digital catalogue with music released before the age of streaming, the classic that set the bar for Afropop and established Wande Coal as a GOAT, still isn’t available on Apple Music.
A few days ago, a fan—seemingly frustrated that his favorite album can’t be found on his favorite streaming site—tweeted at the singer asking how many retweets it’ll take for the album to get uploaded on Apple Music. Wande Coal responded saying 100k retweets but so far, he only 2k accounts have retweeted him while the fan hasn’t even reached the 1k mark yet.
I was gonna say 10kRT's yesterday o 😭 but typed 100k RT's instead lol
He later tweeted a rejoinder saying he meant to type 10k instead of the 100k. But sadly, twitter still hasn’t installed an edit button for uploaded tweets and fans may just have no option but to try to meet the initial 100k retweets. Fortunately, however, he knew better than to replicate Rita Ora’s mistake of attaching a deadline to the post. So we only have to wait until @Wfacehood_jnr’s tweet goes viral before Wande Coal has to hold his end of the bargain.
As it stands, it’s looking like it might take a while, which is just as well. Wande Coal made the record while still performing and recording as a Mo-Hits records artist and understandably, he would have to scale a few legal hurdles to get the album on Apple Music.
Featured Image Credits: Instagram/wandecoal
You are meeting Debola at a strange time in his life. He wandered into a dream and lost his way back. Tweet at him@debola_abimbolu
The “Sound City MVP Awards Festival” commenced at 10:30 pm, after a DJ set that started at 9—an hour after the scheduled time. The event began with a 30-minute performance set from various artists performing their hit songs. However, the fast pacing of the performances left the audience feeling cheated for time.
The show’s host, 2017 Big Brother Nigeria Host, Ebuka Obi-Uchendu, took to the stage at 11pm, signifying the official start of the awards ceremony. At interludes, the ceremony had performances from “Best New Artist” and “Best Pop Artist”, Maleek Berry, Tuface, Tiwa Savage, Small Doctor, Kiss Daniel, Simi and “Best Hip-Hop Artist” winner, Casper Nyovest.
Notable performances came from MI, who gave a short speech advising young rappers to disregard the industry ‘rules’ and write what they believe. Tuface also had something to say concerning the herdsmen insurgency in Benue. But perhaps with the time constraints, justice wasn’t done to the issue.
Davido bagged three awards for“African Artist of the year”, “Best Song” and “Best Video of The Year” out of 8 total nominations. Young John was awarded “African Producer Of The Year” but was unable to attend the event due to his mother’s death. Tiwa Savage and Diamond Platinum were the respective MVP winners for the night.
Other recognised artists for the night include:
Best Collaboration– Pain Killer (Sarkode ft Runtown)
Darkovibes has started off the new year with “Bo Noor [Only U]”, a high-tempo dance song, in collaboration with Nigerian producer, Pheelz. Last year, DarkoVibes released “Shutdown”, a squad anthem that may be worth revisiting for your crew playlists for the year.
“Bo Noor [Only U]” is DarkoVibes’ first single with a Nigerian producers; perhaps Darko has more Nigeria artist and producer collaborations lined up for the year. Afterall, it would help with crossing over and reaching more audience. He displays his versatility and ability to successfully adapt his lyrics and style to various genres within and outside the African popular music variety.
You can stream DarkoVibes’ “Bo Noor [Only U]” below.
The sophomore edition of our annual music festival is no doubt our best one yet. In this post, you can check out all the most captivating images from a night everyone will remember for much more to come.
Last summer, ambient chillwave genres seemed to be the go-to sound for emerging artists. Nonso Amadi, Odunsi among others were able to score viral hits with the synth-based compositions. Fasina and Adey maintain the gloss and charm of the ambient aesthetic on their new collaboration, “Split”.
Adey produces the mellow beat for “Split” layered with snippets of sample pop accented by reverb-heavy vocals done by Fasina. Fasina sings with a subdued almost druggy vocal singing the praise of his love interest and the effect her body has on him. But while delving into the things he’ll do to be with the love of his life, he can’t help but blow his own trumpet as well. Adey sings “You Be The One For Me But She No Wan Gree” for the chorus but it’s less wooing than just pouring his heart out.
Though the title, “Split” suggests that Fasina and his love interest have some sort of prior relation, the lyrics never categorically place us anywhere in the timeline of a relationship. His lyrics however come off as intimate backed by Adey’s party-driven instrumentation. The ambient dance-inclined sound has launched a handful of acts into indie-world prominence. Even if it is fabricated out of pseudo-romance and fog, “Split” is a wave you’ll be happy you caught.
Steam “Split” below.
Featured Image Credits: Instagram/fasinamusic
You are meeting Debola at a strange time in his life. He wandered into a dream and lost his way back. Tweet at him@debola_abimbolu
It’s no easy feat that Burna Boy’s “Pree Me” has remained on air since the day it dropped. Between Burna’s ruminations on the track and a relatable “me vs the world” central theme through the record, “Pree Me” seems to have been inherently designed to unveil new secrets with every replay. Perhaps some of these everlasting qualities of “Pree Me”, is what spurred DJ Tunez, who has worked with Wande Coal, Juls and Sarz in recent times, to release a global dance remix featuring Port Harcourt-based producer, D3AN.
While some fans felt cheated by the distance of YCEE’s “Juice” from his traditional hip-hop roots, the song grew to become one of the biggest songs from Nigeria in 2017. Also from last year, the singer released his First Wave EP, showing his adaptability infusing varying music styles; trap, RnB, grime, Afropop and rap. The rapper is kicking off the year with “Say Bye Bye”, Eugy.
A couple years ago, this might have seemed groundbreaking or exceptional. But it’s 2018 and Kanye and Drake already made a killing off the ambidextrous flow pattern. On “Say Bye Bye”, YCee features Ghanaian rapper, Eugy who also has a reputation for harmonizing and rapping from singles like “Dance For Me”.
Their combination on the mid-tempo beat highlights the versatility of hip-hop in the right hands.
You can stream YCee and Eugy’s “Say Bye Bye” below.
The songs off Ajebutter22’s debut album, What Happens in Lagosall have striking stories that capture the Lagos lifestyle from the artist’s perspective. Over the 14-track tape (with two pre-released singles), he gives a detailed description of “What Happens in Lagos”, so it’s only right that the first video off the project will continue in the same narrative.
The video for “Wayward”, the 3rd track on the album is directed by San who retains Ajebutter22’s comedy and party themes in the visuals. To achieve this, popular social media comics, Frank Donga and Ebiye are featured. The pair play the role of party crashers at a Lagos high-society party where Ajebutter22 performs with models in their elements.
The video also contains high-contrast primary colour filter overlays on the sky portraying a surrealist world obsessed with youth, beauty, and feeling good. The celebrity cameos featured in “Wayward” video also reflects Lagos’ experience where music stars like BOJ et al make appearances at parties
You can watch the video for “Wayward” below.
Featured Image Credits: YouTube/Ajebutter22VEVO
You are meeting Debola at a strange time in his life. He wandered into a dream and lost his way back. Tweet at him@debola_abimbolu
For our first mix of the year, DJ Femo delivers a blend of 2017 gems cut from the underground as well as everything over and in-between. This mix features selected picks from certified hitmakers like Burna Boy, Kiss Daniel and Ajebutter22, as well as tracks from Odunsi, Santi, and Fasina amongst others on-come-up, who we will definitely be seeing more of in the coming months.
Stream NATIVE Mix 014 and see our tracklist below.
Get U by Krs.
Tyrant by Kali Uchis ft. Jorja Smith
Nobody by Wizkid
Cancer by Odunsi ft. Santi
When You Feel Lonely by Mavado
Ready Now Interlude by Genio Bambino ft. Santi Ghana Bounce by Ajebutter 22
Wys by AYLØ
Navajo by Masego (Meek remix)
Footwork by DO
Love by Konshens (Meek remix) Gwarn by Juls ft. Burna Boy
Only You by Bobson
Faraway by Ade ft. BBJN Yeba by Kiss Daniel
Mo Ni by Tiqeu ft. Minz
Coco by Juls ft. Odunsi & Santi
Wayward by Ajebutter
Don’t Let Me Go by DJ Spinall ft. Simi
Gbe Fun by RVGE ft. Ade Freaky by Fasina ft. Minz
XnOs by Oma Mahmud ft. Fasina
Last year, M.I released “You Rappers Should Fix Up Your Life”but his brash tone failed to prompt a resurgence with more rappers turning to pop to score radio hits. Though M.I’s scolding bars were aimed more at singing rappers (think YCee and Dice Alies), sadly even the rappers on the street could use some fixing-up.
Since DaGrin’s success at indigenous rap laid the blueprint for Olamide-esque rappers to spit bars reflecting the street’s ethos, we’ve enjoyed a diverse take on the lyrical art. But lately, indigenous rappers all sound the same. Reminisce is only the latest in the staggering list of rapper ditching the conventional rap melodies for gqom house music.
On his latest single, “Problem”, Reminisce performs a laid-back set with his street-inclined vocals. Once you strip away the hip-hop narrative and focus on just the music, Reminisce gets a lot of things right on “Problem”. It is the perfect song for today’s pop climate and retains some of the truth-speak expected in hip-hop. As soon as the dust settles on the dancefloor driven vocals, he touches on street culture saying “Wo Ni Pon Pon Len Se Tele Sugbon Tempos Change/ Shaku shaku Lo Wa Ni Igboro Bayi, E Wo Chain”.
In the wake of the media confusion surrounding the purpose of Sounds From The Other Side as an album or mixtape, many wondered and even hoped Wizkid had plans for another project to truly call ‘the album’. This belief was further stoked by the album’s packed guest feature list and the apparent package for foreign ears. And though it was loved both at home and abroad, Nigerian fans couldn’t help but ask for more.
@wizkidayo what should we expect from the real STAR BOY this year????
Twitter might get a lot of bad rap for being an unedifying peephole into the dark private crevices of people we respect, but Wizkid’s chummy online attitude poises him as a well-adjusted celebrity. The Starboy’s conversations with his cultish fandom come off as musings of like minds many a time. Recently, during one of such exchanges with a fan, Wizkid confirmed that he’s recording a new album here in Nigeria, in response to a fan asking about his plans for 2018.
Well, i'm recording a new album in Lagos Nigeria…and ….eeehhh.. we'll see… https://t.co/XgqFdRsABG
Fans have expressed delight at the subtle hint at of getting a ‘more Nigerian’ album, but reactions are still mixed as others feel slighted that their favourite songs from SFTOS will get sidelined so quickly. We still have 11 more months before the year ends and we wouldn’t bet against Wizkid releasing the album before the year runs out. While we wait for a more official album announcement and a release date, Wizkid’s recent tweet suggests that we can expect a new single from the Starboy soon.
Maleek Berry’s debut with Last Daze of Summer was rendered with just the right amount of breezy Caribbean influenced harmonies to keep it in circulation through the whole of last year. After watching him step out from behind the producer booth to become one the most rotated Afropop artists of this era, we wondered if perhaps his penchant for taking risks could turn around and bite him in ass when he promoted his new FirstDaze of Winter EP saying “Time To Flip The Script”.
Fortunately, his statement was less literal than we thought.
Despite the wistful theme hinted by the project’s name, Maleek Berry is able to clear doubts with pre-released singles, “Been Calling” and “Pon My Mind”. Though their lyrics aren’t the most optimistic, he made a note to retain his dancefloor viability with catchy instrumentals. Fusing his competence in melody with an earnestness to tell a story, ‘First Daze of Winter’ makes up for where ‘Last Daze of Summer’ may have been lacking with the more emotionally-set narrative.
On the third track, “Own It”, Maleek Berry continues with themes already heard on the previously released tracks. Over the mid-tempo piano-led beat with synths, tin-pan drums and vocal samples, Maleek tries to win the heart of a love interest singing “Girl I’m Here To Stay/ Gimme A Shot Make I Calm Down/ You Got Me Drunk On Your Love Now”. This romantic melodrama continues on “Sisi Maria” where he gives a more vivid description of his love interest and the romantic plans he has for her; “E Be You Wey I Wan Marry/ Na My Pikin Wey You Go Carry/ I Go Buy You Plenty Diamond/ Oluwa Provide I Go Dash You Mansion”.
On “What If”, he strays farther than ever from his familiar dance-inclined melodies to perform what is probably Maleek’s first ‘traditional’ R&B ballad. The track delivers the heart-wrenching punchline of ‘First Daze of Winter’; “Now The Summer Is Over”. Perhaps spurred by the absence of the dancefloor-ready beats, the lyrics on “What If” are a lot more expansive than on the rest of the tracks, and this allows him to fully address his unrequited love.
But before conspiracy theorists start spinning tales that Maleek Berry is transitioning to R&B and leaving his Afropop fans behind, the last track on First Daze of Winter, “Pulling Me Back” places him firmly within Afropop territories. He admits that “No Matter How Hard I Try I Can’t Ignore” and though it’s obvious he’s referring to his said love interest, fans will be glad to know that even when Maleek Berry is feeling blue, he can still make dance music “For The Gyal Dem”.
Stream First Daze Of Winter via Apple Music
Featured Image Credits: Instagram/maleekberry
You are meeting Debola at a strange time in his life. He wandered into a dream and lost his way back. Tweet at him@debola_abimbolu
Despite the immense popularity of our Bumplists, we’ve had to pause its weekly updates while working on a better way to present this uniquely curated picks of the best songs from across the world.
As part of NATIVE’s big plans for 2018, we’re rebooting the Bumplist exclusively on Apple Music, in line with our recently announced curatorship for the same streaming giant.
See the breakdown and playlist for this week’s Bumplist below:
Legbegbe (feat. Idowest, Obadice & Kelvin Chuks) – Real Self
You have heard songs like “Legbegbe” before, many times, everywhere. These songs literally live by the code of the infamous ‘Blades of Glory’ interlude from The Throne’s “Niggas In Paris”; ‘No one knows what it means, but it’s provocative’ . Like Small Doctor broke out of the streets with “Penalty” last year, Real Self is expected to come up next, thanks to this viral number released at the tail end of last year. “Legbegbe” is an EDM-set shoutout to cellphone dealers on the streets of computer village, Ikeja. It’s exactly the kind of meaningless song you can expect to rise into oversaturation from complete obscurity.
2/11 (feat. Jable) – Lady Donli
To really put “2/11” in perspective, you’ll need to check out the remaining five tracks off Lady Donli’s latest project Letters To Her. The 6-track tells a story of lost love, “2/11” is fitted into the midpoint of tracklisting as a jarring ode to the particular date a great love walked out of her life. The intimacy of “2/11” makes it perhaps one of the saddest songs on Letters To Her, thankfully, it’s also one of the best off the project.
In The Morning – Odunsi
Curiosity and high expectations trailed the promotional images for Odunsi’s “In The Morning” after the corner edge of the artwork revealed the track would be released under Universal Music Group. Luckily, Odunsi has never been the type to devalue expectations with a subpar output, especially for a major label debut. “In The Morning” thrives in simplicity, thanks to a combination of Caribbean drums glossed with acoustics, it’s the strongest artistic indication thus far of Odunsi’s gradual but eventual coming of age.
Night Rain – Tomi Owo
For fans who loved Tomi Owo’s debut single, “Versus”, “Night Rain”, her latest single is the reward for the singer’s year-long silent spell with nothing but a handful of live session performances uploaded via her SoundCloud account. “Night Rain” is a soulful tribute to new emotions and cleansing from old pain.
One Hit – Cohbams Asuquo
“Give me one hit, let me blow like Olamide” Cobhams sings on this power ballad every artist on the come up can relate to. “One Hit” is a longing for immense growth and for the fulfilment of potential. Though unintentionally, “One Hit” underscores the overarching desperation to do as they say and to ‘blow’, even if it comes at the cost of your soul.
Like – Reekado Banks
Against all odds—Wizkid clone accusations and all—Reekado Banks has been here and he’s still here; making earworms that snake into airplay and remain there. Occasionally his gems go somewhat unnoticed but they are simultaneously distinct and familiar when DJs shuffle them onto the deck at clubs and parties, “Like” exemplifies this unique ability. Reeky simply references some of his contemporaries’ buzzwords and melody on the Del B-produced beat. It’s almost corny, but your replay button will be locked on nothing else for a minute once you get past the third listen.
Melanin (feat. Patoranking) – Sauti Sol
When you consider how ingeniously talented Sauti Sol is, it feels as though Africa is yet to fully fall in love with the group. This may not be unrelated with the ‘boy band curse’: an inevitable potential for a mass fan heartbreak, because even blood is not enough to keep boy groups bound together in these parts. But Sauti Sol has not let up its foot off the gas, in the last two years the group has increasingly leveraged West African Afropop for a truly pan-African appeal by collaborating with Yemi Alade, 2Baba amongst others. Save for its corny title (and premise, if you’re also tired of hearing every other song about the black woman’s skin), “Melanin”, is a dancefloor slow-whine bop with enough core dynamism of subject matter to easily slip into heartbreak and romance playlists; essentially the perfect pop song.
Best Man – Quavo and Travis Scott
Huncho Jack, Jack Huncho dropped in the dead of night, after months and months of hype from all parties involved. As you’d expect from anything involving Quavo and Travis Scott, there were more than enough hits – to last us till Culture II and Astroworld, at least. What they also both brought from their solo endeavours was the propensity for a deep, introspective outro (see: “Apple Pie” on Rodeo, “Out Yo Way” on Culture). “Best Man” is a vulnerable ode to your bredrin who have your back for life.
Party Here – Octavian
A co-sign from Drake means a lot in any country these days, and no two countries know this better than Nigeria and the UK. So when Drake is seen signing along to your track, you must be doing something right. On “Party Here” (a re-released single from the London rapper Octavian), he floats effortlessly on a track ready for the dance.
The Weekend (Funk Wav Remix) – Sza, Calvin Harris
A perfect remix to an already perfect song.
Bartier Cardi (feat. 21 Savage) – Cardi B
Cardi snapped. 21 Savage is the year’s unlikeliest bonafide pop-star.
What If – Maleek Berry
When Maleek Berry threatened to “flip the sound” as part of the promotion for Last Daze of Winter, fans wondered if this new sound will measure to the old one. Fortunately, as the pre-released singles, “Pon My Mind” and “Been Calling” already suggested, the singer knew better than to flood the 6-track EP with strange sounds. While most of the tape remains rooted in Maleek Berry’s Caribbean tinged Afropop melodies despite their somber themes, on “What If” he lets go of the familiar dance inclined melodies to sing a somber R&B ballad that delivers the project’s heart-wrenching punchline; “Now The Summer Is Over”.
Stay – WavyTheCreator
Crafting a sound after just one single takes some doing, but WavyTheCreator seems to have it figured out off the bat. On her latest single, “Stay” she continues her melody building antics with Tay Iwar’s backing vocals to unfolds the songs layers like an origami, with intimacy and enigma at its core.
The Bumplist is The NATIVE’s official weekly playlist – what we love this week, in no particular order
Given the amazing year Maleek Berry had in 2017, it’s hard to believe First Daze of Summer, his debut project was released back in 2016. Like all classics, the project is a gift that keeps giving as he continued adding to his catalogue of accomplishments such as his two nominations at last year’s MOBO awards. Fans have anticipated his follow up project since he cheekily hinted at it on twitter while releasing the EP’s lead single, “Pon My Mind”. And finally, we can listen to the next chapter in Maleek Berry success story, FirstDaze of Winter.
Featured Image Credits: Instagram/maleekberry
You are meeting Debola at a strange time in his life. He wandered into a dream and lost his way back. Tweet at him@debola_abimbolu
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