Watch Jidenna be broke but live fly in “The Let Out” video

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Jidenna’s debut LP The Chief is yet to be released but he has teased his upcoming album with a string of singles, including “Bambi” and “The Let Out” featuring Migos’ Quavo. In anticipation of the upcoming album, visuals for lead single, “The Let Out”  came noticeably without audio collaborator Quavo.

On “The Let Out” Jidenna relives teenage years living with his parents and sneaking out with friends to party in the club’s parking lot. He’s broke, but looks excited and super fresh as he rolls around in a Honda Civic with his crew.

“Everytime I pull up at the let out it’s a spectacle/Heard the shit was jumpin’ like the wall that border Mexico”

“The Let Out” also features guest cameos by Wonderland producer Nana Kwabena and popular Nigerian  comedian, Chief Obi. “The Let Out” is the fourth single from Jidenna’s upcoming The Chief album which will be released February 17th.

Watch Jidenna crash the nightclub parking lot below:

Featured Image Credit: Jidenna/Instagram

Jidenna Taps Migos’ Frontman, Quavo for New Single, “The Let Out”

Meet Cynthia Erivo, The British-Nigerian Singer Who Took Home A Grammy

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The 59th Edition of The Grammsy did not only disappoint the Beyhive, who expected Beyonce to win the highly coveted Album Of The Year award, it also left a lot of Nigerians feeling robbed. Wizkid and Kah-Lo were both nominated for their contributions on “One Dance” and “Rinse and Repeat” respectively, but were unable to take home music’s biggest prize. However, there was another singer of Nigerian descent who did go home with a Grammy.

Cynthia Erivo, a British-Nigerian singer and actress won a Grammy for Best Musical Theater Album for the cast recording of the musical The Color Purple, she played the role of Celie Harris in the Menier Chocolate Factory production.

Cynthia also performed on the Grammy night, joining John Legend for the “In Memoriam” segment. They performed a cover of Beach Boys’ “God Only Knows”, paying respect to members of the wider music family who passed away in the past year, including legends such as Muhammad Ali, George Michael and Lee “Q” Worldstar”.

Cynthia also won a Tony award for Best Actress In A Musical for the same role. Before her role in the award-winning The Color Purple, Cynthia appeared in British television series Chewing Gum and played a role in the stage-remake of Sister Act.

Featured Image Credit: CynthiaErivo/Instagram

In Case You Missed It, Here are 5 Memorable Moments From The 59th Grammy Edition

Listen to Nukubi’s new single “Local Champion”

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Much sooner than we expected, Synth-funk singer Nukubi has put out his second single “Local Champion” off his debut project Bronze. We’re still not quite over the eponymous “Bronze” and its references to the synth pop movement and visionaries like Dev Hynes. “Local Champion”, despite its misleading name, stays true to Nukubi’s interest in specific sonic influences, but expands the influences from which he draws inspiration, mimicking the emotion monotonous drone of post EDM electronic music, made popular by vocalists like Alice Glass of Crystal Castles. The music arrangement is sparse, barely there even.

Nukubi puts his vocal arrangement through a wash and spin through a vocoder for that effect of being played through a cassette player instead of the lush vocal arrangements that we’ve come to expect from contemporary Nigerian artists. This effect is heightened when he layers his voice for a chamber pop choral effect emphasizing the dour refrain before dipping back into the song’s extended chorus. A fitting follow up to “Bronze”, but not quite on it’s level of ingenuity.

The EP will be released later in the year, and while Nukubi hasn’t confirmed, we suspect there will be a third single before the EP drops. How long is too long to wait for a project, we’re about to find out, because Bronze should have been here yesterday.

Listen to “Local Champion” here.

https://soundcloud.com/nukubi/local-champion

 

Listen to Nukubi’s Bronze

Lindsey Abudei, Ice Prince To Headline 44th Afropolitan Vibes

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After a January break,  Afropolitan Vibes returns for its first of the year on the 17th of February.  Bantu Collective, the team behind Afropolitan Vibes, released its set list for Friday’s show earlier this week with neo-soul singer and songwriter, Lindsey Abudei as headliner alongside rapper Ice Prince and Jaywon. There will also be performances from The Bantu Collective and a host of other upcoming acts.

You can get look at Afropolitan vibes with highlights from Burna Boy’s 2015 performance below.

Featured Image Credit:  AfropolitanVibes/Twitter

4 Moments You Missed At The First Nativeland Festival

ICYMI: Here are 5 Epic Moments From The 59th Annual Grammys

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The 59th Annual Grammy Awards was a glamorous event with winning performances far outweighing the bad ones. Just in case you missed it, We’ve got a lineup of the best moments that happened during the event: Adele gracefully dropping f-bombs, Beyonce’s unborn twins performing, Bruno Mars’ astounding riff, Chance’s spirit-moving gospel performance and dramatic sharing gestures.

Adele dumps F-bombs on Grammy stage

Adele paid homage to pop great George Michael at the Grammys in her second performance of the evening. For her tribute, she sang Michael’s “Fastlove”, a Hot 100 top 10 hit off his 1996 album Older.  A few seconds into the song. Adele stopped the set saying, “I fucked up, I can’t do it again like last year”, referring to her critically-panned performance at the 2016 Grammys.  It’s nearly edgy and unexpected of an artist of Adele’s calibre, but it eased tensions for her eventual killer re-do. See Adele’s performance of George Micheal’s “Fastlove” below.

 

Between Goddess Bey and her twins

BeyonceBeyoncé stole the night with her performance of “Love Drought” and “Sandcastles” off her Lemonade album. Her highly spiritual performance is heavily centered around latent themes from her recent album; motherhood, forgiveness and love.  Beyonce styled herself as not one but at least two religious icons: Osun, a Yoruba deity from West Africa, and the Virgin Mary. Highlights included holograms of her, her mother Tina and Blue Ivy, a levitating chair and the singer tenderly cradling her baby bump while wearing a golden headdress.

See the Beyonce performance everyone is talking about below.

https://twitter.com/BeyonceCapital/status/831296976524345345?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Bruno Mars’ on the guitar

As part of this year’s tributes, Morris Day and The Time performed “Jungle Love” and “The Bird”,  two songs by beloved pop icon, Prince, who passed in 2016.  For the second act of their performance, Bruno Mars joined the band on stage dressed up in Prince’s iconic sparkling purple suit while his symbol glowed in the background. Bruno performed Prince’s “Let’s Go Crazy”, closing the song with an incredible electric guitar solo.

Watch him work his 24k Magic on the strings below:

Chance The Rapper brings God to the Grammys

Chance The Rapper has come a long way from recording a basement mixtape while on a 10-day suspension in high school to performing at the Grammys. The 23-year-old bagged three out of seven nominations for Best Rap Performance (“No Problem”), Best New Artist, and Best Rap Album. For his performance, Chance gave a moving gospel-infused performance of “How Great” and “All We Got” off his Colouring Book mixtape. He was joined by Kirk Franklin, Francis and the Lights, Tamela Mann, and backed by a huge black gospel choir.

Adele and Beyonce re-enact Mean Girls

Beyonce Adele

The 59th Grammy Award had a classic Mean Girls (If you have not seen Cady’s epic crown-breaking scene, shame on you, but click here) moment after Adele broke her Album of The Year gramophone in two-halves and offered one to Beyonce.

Adele later added backstage: “I thought it was her year. What the fuck does she have to do to win Album of the Year?”
Check out Adele’s moving acceptance speech below:

 

Featured Image Credit: Hypebeast/Grammy.com

 

Meet Cynthia erivo, The British-Nigeria singer who took home a grammy

Listen To “Taboo” Off Tena Tenpo’s ‘ For The Ladies On The Runway’ The EP

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Tena Tenpo’s debut EP For The Ladies On The Runway was released via his SoundCloud earlier this month.For The Ladies On The Runway is a parent project to his prior released single “Dirty Designer”. On the EP he uses samples and Afro-Carribean beats to talk relationships, sex and insecurities.

“Taboo”, one of the main highlights of his new project samples Sade Adu’s “Sweetest Taboo”. It opens with Tena Tenpo begging for forgiveness if he has done any wrong. He is seemingly in love with an unnamed girl, but he is also unwilling to open up to her due to pressure from his friends to be a ‘hard guy’.

Listen to “Taboo” and other songs on Tena Tenpo’s For The Ladies On The Runway below.

Feature Image Credit: Tenatenpo/Instagram

Listen to Tena Tenpo’s sexy new single, “Dirty Designer”

 

The Shuffle: Re-live the nostalgia of Styl Plus with “Runaway”

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Introductions won’t be needed for every 90s baby’s favourite group from the early 2000s, because cuts like “Runaway” still exist to remind us Nigerian music didn’t always suck. But if you’re reading this right now, you deserve two congratulations. The first is for crossing paths with Styl Plus again, the other is on your growth through the years because you’re now as old as days.

In the groups early days, a slew of singles and videos off an untitled commercial EP hit everywhere; radio, tv, alaba etc. The unnamed collection housed smash hits “Olufunmi”, “Call My Name” and—the often ignored but equally ranked—third single, “Runaway”.

“Runaway” is built slow and mellow with a tempo that matches the weight of its message. All three (Shiffy, Zeal and Tunde) sing in perfect harmony about possibilities of running into oblivion with a lover. A closer look at the lyrics of their individual verses gleans three shy men who couldn’t quite ever find courage to talk to said amour. It’s supposed to be romantic, but it listens like a one sided conversation you have with yourself at 4am in the morning when you have been drinking and seriously considering making some fun phone calls.

Styl Plus may have unintended it, but in this season of love, “Runaway” will remain a testament for all unsaid ‘i like you(s)’ and awkward crushes that died within.

Re-live the nostalgia of the “Olufunmi” years with Styl Plus’s “Runaway” in the video below

Revisit MoHits peak era hit ‘Pere’

Listen to Ibeyi’s haunting new single “Lost In My Mind”

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French Afro-Cuban twin-sister duo Lisa-Kainde and Naomi Diaz also known as Ibeyi have laid relatively low since their appearance in Beyoncé’s global event Lemonade.  “Lost In My Mind” is their first studio release since their self-titled debut project back in 2015. The new single has been part of their touring set since 2015 and it was featured in a French comedy Ouvert La Nuit.

On “Lost In My Mind” Lisa-Kainde sings about loss and loneliness on empty streets with a voice heavy with longing yet warmed with happy memories. The song intensifies with every second as electronic and percussive elements merge to serve as the backdrop for her vocals. Lisa’s refrain, “That’s what happens when I’m lost in my mind,” begins each verse, less a chorus than a reminder that prefaces her tortured dreams that follow. She ends on a chilling note with a warning not to get lost in your mind.

This welcome offering follows their minimalist trend set by their debut album. There’s still no news yet about a release date for their sophomore LP, but we’re looking forward to what they have in store.

Listen to a cut of Lisa-Kainde’s haunting voice on “Lost In My Mind” via Spotify below

Featured Image Credit: ibeyi2/Instagram

 

Listen To Dáramólá’s Tribute To Beauty and Love on “Lotto”

Kuvie brings the big guns on “Dumb”

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Perhaps you haven’t heard of Ghanaian producer Kuvie, and we don’t blame you. He’s one of those consummate producers who let’s the work speak for itself. And his work is speaking, so much so that he got signed early last year to Mc Galaxy’s McG entertainment as their first producer.

 

Having an ensemble of rappers and singers on a song is a gamble. There’s the risk that one rapper might end up overshadowing everyone else, or worse, no one has enough time to truly find their rhythm and you end up with a couple of half sixteen bars and no real chemistry. There is even the rare scenario where everyone drops mediocre verses that the producer has to now salvage. But every now and then the right producer finds the right team and creates magic. Ghanaian producer Kuvie does this on his new single Dumb off his fresh off the press EP Senses.

Dumb’s ensemble roster includes Ghanaian acts Ria Boss as Hajia Kitty, Jasmine Mack, Naadu, BBgB and Baba Sana. The vibe is classic 90’s hip-hop, with a minor synth sample that references Dr Dre’s Next Episode. The production is sublime with sparse instrumentation, just enough to complement the ensemble. The 90’s hip-hop influences don’t stop with the production, when Jasmine Mack belts out the song’s hook you are instantly reminded of Kelly Price and there is not an iota of trap or any of the contemporary delivery styles when the rappers drop their bars. Dumb will make you nostalgic for the best of the 90’s and reaching for your old school Spotify playlist, and all this speaks to how great Kuvie is as a producer. Definitely one of the best songs you’ll hear today.

Give Dumb a spin here.

Listen to a cinematic story about “Festival Bar” by Davolee

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With neither international features or recognition in the bag for Olamide, he’s spent the last few years re-reinforcing his local mainstay with music releases and (literally) sold-out concerts. His local strength has also largely kept the dredge-y Yoruba rap culture alive by keeping a keen ear for discovery of talent. His latest progeny Davolee first featured on “Pepper Dem Gang” off Olamide’s The Glory album. His time on air was short, but Olamide’s imprint, YBNL just rolled out a new single and video for Davolee titled “Festival Bar”

“Festival Bar” is a personal documentary of Davolee’s experience as a bartender at a real life bar with the same name and location. He details happenings at Festival Bar leading up to the bust of a new female bartender who was robbing the bar owner by inflating costs of drinks and pocketing the difference. The story is tightly knitted by Davolee’s grounded thug flow and slick edgy confidence without motives or morals.

At the end of “Festival Bar”, Davolee promises more stories to come. Perhaps, a short musical hip-hop drama won’t be too much to ask for. See the video for Davolee’s “Festival Bar” below

Jean Feier is all about the sauce on “Recipe”

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German Ghanaian rapper Jean Feier has never strayed from purist rap. As one of the few successful female Ghanaian rappers, Feier’s decision to follow the craft at its purest as opposed to going the pop route might not have made her as popular as her contemporaries but it has found a core, unshakeable audience.

Her debut EP 93M Child under Ghanaian rap collective KCMG released in December 2014 paid homage to first generation rap while looking boldly to future genres like chillwave. Since then she’s built a body of work under the collective, expanding her repertoire and honing her sound.

Her new single Recipe featuring KCMG label mate King Klub is testament to the growth that Feier has made in the last two years, especially in her songwriting. Recipe is super cheeky, delivered in her breathy conversation style cadence,  bragging with the best of them about her talents and personality. Krainsound, the producer on the song works a madness. Deep bass thrums underneath the sparse percussion, giving soul to the vocal hums used in place of synths or wind instruments, the perfect backdrop for Klu to shine with his impressive guest verse that reminds of Q-tip at his prime. Hip-hop purists will definitely bump to this.

You should too.   

Listen to Recipe here.

British Council Announces Lagos Theatre Festival Theme, ‘Rhythm Of The City’

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Over the years, The Lagos Theatre Festival has earned its place as one of the most diverse performance art events. Last year, the festival showcased 106 performances featuring 35 companies, classic and contemporary works and grossing nearly around 5,500 theatre-goers.

This year’s edition tagged “Rhythm Of The City” will set out to capture the spirit of Lagos through sounds associated with various repetitive activities woven into the intricate fabric of the city.  The six-day event will kick off on the  28th February and run through to 5th March 2017.

“Rhythm of the City” will feature 5 specially selected curated shows from the UK and Nigeria. 35 companies from Nigeria, Zimbabwe and South Africa will also be showcasing works from different genres of performance arts including drama, comedy and experiential theatre.

For more information about the festival and performances, check out the official site.

Watch a highlight from last year’s festival below:

 

 

Featured Image Credit: Asiri/Twitter

 

Check Out Shonda Rhime’s New Comedy Show Based On Luvvie Ajayi’s  Book ‘I’m Judging You’

Watch Kiss Daniel Cruise Through Hollywood In “Duro” Video

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Kiss Daniel’s 2016 debut New Era was a definitive one for him and he has been hard at work churning out visuals for tracks on the LP. His latest video is for “Duro”, a fourth to “Jombo”, “Sin City”, and “Upon Me”, three videos he has released since dropping New Era.

“Duro” is shot and directed by Patrick Elis and it features panorama shots of the beachside scenery and cuts of Kiss Daniel cruising around Hollywood’s infamous Sunset Boulevard. He’ drives through the strip while serenading his love interest about personal sacrifices and the depths of his love.

It’s a pretty simple concept, but it’s more Kiss Daniel than we have seen in a while, so we will take it. See video for Kiss Daniel’s “Duro” below.

Featured Image Credit: Youtube

Watch Out For Cameos of Wizkid And Maleek Berry in Mr Eazi’s “Leg Over” Video

Styl Plus Come Out Of Hibernation With New Single, “Aso Ibora”

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After their last single in 2008, we mourned the final moments of one of Nigeria’s greatest boy bands, Styl Plus. It took them nearly nine years—with only a handful of singles in between— but the group is back with a new single, “Aso Ibora” just in time to Valentine’s Day no less.

Shiffy and Zeal repossess the group’s nostalgic R&B style without ex-mate Tunde on their new single. “Aso Ibora” is a Yoruba word that loosely translates as blanket, here it is used as a metaphor to mean they would always keep their loved ones warm

Styl Plus shaped music of the early 2000s with hits like “Olufunmi”, “Imagine That” and “Call My Name”. Sadly, the group went the same crash and burn path of all boy bands anywhere else in the world. Tunde left to pursue a solo career while Shiffy and Zeal have remained as Styl Plus. It’s unclear if the group plans to stay for long with a come-back project, but we’re looking to find out.

Listen to “Aso Ibora” below

 

 

Featured Image Credit: StylPlus/Eskimo Records

 

Dammy Krane’s Gearing Up For A Comeback Concert And EP. 

Best New Music: Dáramólá’s “Lotto” is a shimmering tribute to beauty and love

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The rise of new wave African R&B artists is underway and if last year’s underground drafts—Nonso Amadi, Tay Iwar and Odunsi—are anything to go by as indicators, the future of Nigerian music we’ve all anticipated may finally be here. Daramola, another artist in that Afro-R&B class, made a late 2016 entry with “Lotto” the lead single off his upcoming The Last Time I Tried album.

Save for links to plush social media profiles on his SoundCloud page, there is very little information on Dáramólá (even on his website). Luckily, “Lotto” opens with unmistakable personality channeled through a simple narrative of love, near-ethereal beauty and leaving bad places.

‘I pray that you’re worth all my failed relationships’ Daramola sings plainly on the pre-hook. These iterations are some of the most defining parts of “Lotto”. Daramola’s voice rings of a kind of honesty only found in folk music. Even when the bounce kicks in on the verse, he emotes lyrics into melodies and swings between the alternating tempos without veering off course. “Lotto” is African R&B meets, fringe poetry meets tints of Yoruba folk music shrewdly laced on an EDM-inspired refrain.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BQJassOhSkH/?taken-by=itsdaramola

Daramola’s The Last Time I Tried album is slated for release on the 24th of this month. In the meantime listen to “Lotto” our best new music for this week below.

 

 

Featured Image Credits: Instagram

Best New Music: Paradise Motel’s “Holy Ghost” Is Indie rock with an undercurrent of Naija

‘Best New Music’ Is a column we publish every Monday to bring you a review of our critics’ choice-Pick.

See Kunle Idowu In Trailer For “Hakkunde”

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Actor Kunle Idowu, popularly known as Frank Donga stole into hearts of Nigerians with his antics on the popular NdaniTV comedy skit series, The Interview now he’s bringing that essence to a full-length film, Hakkunde. Hakkunde is a story centred on resilience and self-discovery of a young man trying to survive in an environment set to break even the will of the strong hearted.

Similar to his infamous Frank Donga character, Akande (Kunle Idowu) is an unemployed young man down on his luck who escapes to Kaduna from Lagos seeking employment and an identity for himself. He meets new people, slowly adapts to life in the distinctly different environment and picks up himself along the way. Ali Nuhu, award-winning Hausa actor, Rahama Sadau, African Film Award winner and veteran actor, Alhaji Isa Bello are a few of the top notch actors that make up the cast. The story was produced and directed by Asurf Oluseyi and written by Tomi Adesina.

An official release date has not been set but we’re keeping an eye out.

Watch the official trailer below:

Feature Image Credit: Youtube

 

Watch Gbenga Saka’s Short Film, ‘Jump’

Yagazie Emezi gets featured By Vogue Italia and New York Times

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Photographers and designers alike build their portfolios via recognition and features, and in the world of high art and fashion, no nod comes close in career impact like Vogue;s.

Over the last few months, Vogue Italia has beamed its spotlight on Nigerian designers and photographers. The magazine’s latest project ‘Talent on Set’ showcased works from photographer Jerri Rotimi, and apparel cuts from designers Orange Culture, Gozeel Green and McMeka amongst others.

Last weekend, the publication featured photos by Nigerian-Sri Lankan photographer and cartoonist in its Photo Story, with cuts by Nigerian designers Iamisigo and Tzar.

 

This adds another international feature to Yagazie earlier recognition by New York Times last week, for her ‘Portrait of a Liberian woman’. New York Times featured Yagazie in its “Nurturing New Storytellers in Africa and Latin America” article with the picture attached in a slideshow of selected photographs that told simplistic stories of Africa and Latin America.  Yagazie’s work was featured alongside other pictures in the set to debunk stereotypes of war and famine that distort the actual reality of third world countries.

Check out her other photographs and comics on her Tumblr.

Feature Image Credit: YagazieEmezie/Twitter

Meet David Uzochukwu, The Nigerian Photographer Behind Nike’s Latest Campaign.

 

 

Watch Chance The Rapper’s Amazing Medley Performance at the Grammys

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Chance The Rapper had a Grammys he will never forget. Whilst he himself admitted that he prepared a speech with the hope of picking up one grammy, to pick up three awards on the night is truly phenomenal, all off a mixtape. And not just any awards – as well as winning a grammy for Best Rap Performance (“No Problems” ft. 2Chainz & Lil Wayne), he won two of the most coveted awards of the night – Best New Artist and Best Rap Album (Coloring Book).

Shortly after picking up his third trophy, he turned in one of the great Grammy performances of recent times, especially for a debutant. Joined by members of The Social Experiment, Kirk Franklin and Francis Starlite, he ran through an uplifting medley of his now Grammy Award winning album Coloring Book.

 

Here Are All The Winners From The 2017 Grammy Awards

These Are The Winners From the 2017 Grammys

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“The Biggest Night in Music” went down last night, and these are all the winners.

Album Of The Year:

WINNER: 25 — Adele
Lemonade — Beyoncé
Purpose — Justin Bieber
Views — Drake
A Sailor’s Guide To Earth — Sturgill Simpson

Record Of The Year:

WINNER: “Hello” — Adele
“Formation” — Beyoncé
“7 Years” — Lukas Graham
“Work” — Rihanna Featuring Drake
“Stressed Out” — Twenty One Pilots

Song Of The Year:

“Formation” — Khalif Brown, Asheton Hogan, Beyoncé Knowles & Michael L. Williams II, songwriters (Beyoncé)
WINNER: “Hello” — Adele Adkins & Greg Kurstin, songwriters (Adele)
“I Took A Pill In Ibiza” — Mike Posner, songwriter (Mike Posner)
“Love Yourself” — Justin Bieber, Benjamin Levin & Ed Sheeran, songwriters (Justin Bieber)
“7 Years” — Lukas Forchhammer, Stefan Forrest, Morten Pilegaard & Morten Ristorp, songwriters (Lukas Graham)

Best Rap Album:

WINNER: Coloring Book — Chance The Rapper
And the Anonymous Nobody — De La Soul
Major Key — DJ Khaled
Views — Drake
Blank Face LP — ScHoolboy Q
The Life of Pablo — Kanye West

Best Rap Performance:

WINNER: “No Problem” — Chance the Rapper Featuring Lil Wayne & 2 Chainz
“Panda” —Desiigner
“Pop Style” — Drake Featuring The Throne
“All The Way Up” — Fat Joe & Remy Ma Featuring French Montana & Infared
“That Part” — ScHoolboy Q Featuring Kanye West

Best Rap/Sung Performance:

“Freedom” — Beyoncé Featuring Kendrick Lamar
WINNER: “Hotline Bling” — Drake
“Broccoli” — D.R.A.M. Featuring Lil Yachty
“Ultralight Beam” — Kanye West Featuring Chance The Rapper, Kelly Price, Kirk Franklin & The-Dream
“Famous” — Kanye West Featuring Rihanna

Best Rap Song:

“All The Way Up” — Joseph Cartagena, Edward Davadi, Shandel Green, Karim Kharbouch, Andre Christopher Lyon, Reminisce Mackie & Marcello Valenzano, songwriters (Fat Joe & Remy Ma Featuring French Montana & Infared)
“Famous” — Chancelor Bennett, Ross Birchard, Ernest Brown, Andrew Dawson, Kasseem Dean, Mike Dean, Noah Goldstein, Kejuan Muchita, Patrick Reynolds, Kanye West & Cydel Young, songwriters (Kanye West Featuring Rihanna)
“Hotline Bling” — Aubrey Graham & Paul Jefferies, songwriters (Drake)
“No Problem” — Chancelor Bennett, Dwayne Carter & Tauheed Epps, songwriters (Chance The Rapper Featuring Lil Wayne & 2 Chainz)
“Ultralight Beam” — Chancelor Bennett, Kasseem Dean, Mike Dean, Kirk Franklin, Noah Goldstein, Samuel Griesemer, Terius Nash, Jerome Potter, Kelly Price, Nico “Donnie Trumpet” Segal, Derek Watkins, Kanye West & Cydel Young, songwriters (Kanye West Featuring Chance The Rapper, Kelly Price, Kirk Franklin & The-Dream)

Best New Artist:

Kelsea Ballerini
The Chainsmokers
WINNER: Chance The Rapper
Maren Morris
Anderson .Paak

Best Pop Duo/Group Performance:

“Closer” — The Chainsmokers Featuring Halsey
“7 Years” — Lukas Graham
“Work” — Rihanna Featuring Drake
“Cheap Thrills” — Sia Featuring Sean Paul
WINNER: “Stressed Out” — Twenty One Pilots

Best Pop Vocal Album:

WINNER: 25 — Adele
Purpose — Justin Bieber
Dangerous Woman — Ariana Grande
Confident — Demi Lovato
This Is Acting — Sia

Best Dance Recording:

“Tearing Me Up” — Bob Moses
WINNER: “Don’t Let Me Down” — The Chainsmokers featuring Daya
“Never Be Like You” — Flume featuring Kai
“Rinse & Repeat” — Riton featuring Kah-Lo
“Drinkee” — Sofi Tukker

 

Best Urban Contemporary Album:

WINNER: Lemonade — Beyoncé
Ology — Gallant
We Are King — KING
Malibu — Anderson .Paak
Anti — Rihanna

Best R&B Performance:

“Turnin’ Me Up” — BJ The Chicago Kid
“Permission” — Ro James
“I Do” — Musiq Soulchild
“Needed Me” — Rihanna
WINNER: “Cranes in the Sky” — Solange

Best Traditional R&B Performance:

“The Three Of Me” — William Bell
“Woman’s World” — BJ The Chicago Kid
“Sleeping With The One I Love” — Fantasia
WINNER: “Angel” — Lalah Hathaway
“Can’t Wait” — Jill Scott

Best R&B Song:

“Come and See Me” — J. Brathwaite, Aubrey Graham & Noah Shebib, songwriters (PartyNextDoor Featuring Drake)
“Exchange” — Michael Hernandez & Bryson Tiller, songwriters (Bryson Tiller)
“Kiss It Better” — Jeff Bhasker, Robyn Fenty, John-Nathan Glass & Natalia Noemi, songwriters (Rihanna)
WINNER: “Lake By the Ocean” — Hod David & Musze, songwriters (Maxwell)
“Luv” — Magnus August Høiberg, Benjamin Levin & Daystar Peterson, songwriters (Tory Lanez)

 

 

ICYMI: Here are 5 epic moments from the 59th annual grammys

Sunday Healing: Listen to DAP The Contract’s “Too Young”

Posted on by The Native

At this point we’re very familiar with DAP’s uncanny ability to fuse lyrical mastery and sheer musical brilliance, no matter the subject, and this time, it hits much closer to home. ‘Too Young’ is a tribute to a friend who really was too young to pass away. Some tributes are cloying and lacking in quality on the musical front, but this is a combination of a soothing acoustic guitar and pure vocals, with a raspy imperfection that make it all the more emotional.

The lyrics read like a letter to someone that a lot of people loved, someone who people can’t understand or imagine why he died. Listen and you may feel tears coming on, but then you’ll smile as you hear words that are equal parts tear jerking and as organic as something you’d whatsapp to your friend, when you haven’t seen them in a long time and hope they’re alright. You hear real concern when he says “I hope you eating good, I hope you’re drinking water”, and you pick up your phone to ask just that to those you’ve been too busy to check up on.

Losing a loved one is such a hard thing, and listening to ‘Too Young’ is a soulful, necessary reminder that tomorrow looks promising, but it’s not promised. The phenomenal visual for the album is out this week, in the meantime, listen to the single below.

5 Vibe-Out Essentials from Mr Eazi’s ‘Accra to Lagos’

Posted on by The Native

For a man like Mr Eazi whose entire brand is built on a constant state of chill, the pressure to make a mark with Accra to Lagos, must’ve been unusually crushing. After all, this is a man that came from promoting events in uni, to selling out shows of his own in Lagos with only singles and a handful of features. Against this backdrop of roof-level anticipation for his debut body of work, Mr Eazi delivers a shimmering mixtape that hints at a potential worth supporting for the long haul.

Off Mr Eazi’s Accra to Lagos mixtape, check out 5 of the following album-defining cuts.

Business (feat. Mugeez)


Estranged R2Beez collaborator, Killbeatz is on the deck on “Business” and it’s evident that Eazi is merely tapping into a pre-existing sonic bond between Mugeez and his old producer. Still, Eazi holds his own by stretching his voice thin to hold longer less tired notes (a style similar to what we have heard from Mugeez in the past). Over the last year, Afropop has increasingly become a fusion of African vocals with fringe sounds like edm, dancehall and trap (see Wizkid, Davido, Korrede Bello respectively). But like many songs that truly embody the road-trip theme of Accra to Lagos, the acoustics come at unexpected places, the bounce is sustained and you can still hear that authentic African soul calling at you with a postcard from Mr Eazi.

Feelings

From its simplistic lyrics and social media references, you already get the feel that Mr Eazi was just going for the lowest hanging radio hit with this one. But “Feelings” is not a bad song. YBNL collaborator Young John continues to impress the same magic fingers he used to craft steady hits for Lil Kesh and Olamide over the last two years. Plus, history will do well to remember that Mr Eazi created the Afro-wave vibe and he should be justified to ride it in any direction no matter how obscure to reason.

Accra to Lagos


If you have ever wondered if the deal Eazi inked with Wizkid’s Starboy Records would impact his sound in any way, you should listen to title track “Accra to Lagos”. Eazi builds a consistent flow, rumbling calmly along a baseline that plays like flowing water. He stays low even when the melody goes high and tells a familiar story almost similar to Wizkid’s “Ojuelegba” only faster-paced and stripped down for a more grounded acoustic sound.

Short Skirt (feat. Tekno)

Maleek Berry traced the same footpath he took to create sub-psychedlic Afropop dance hits, “Kontrol” and “Eko Miami” for “Short Skirt”. Tekno is along to keep things fresh and Eazi stays infinitely laid back. This seems to be Mr Eazi’s greatest strength, his deadpan voice has evolved into a style that matches his personality. The confidence allows him to sit vocals comfortably on a wide range of instrumentals no matter how simple or complex. On “Short Skirt”, the poesy is simple but poignant. Eazi asks his lover hold him down like she would hold down her skirt. It’s slight, but nothing on the LP rings quite as honest as asking a lover for protection like they would protect their own body. It takes the phrase ‘one plus one is one’ a little too literally and we could all use a bit of that in this season of love.

Right Now (Bonus Track)

“E get plenty, plenty things, wey I for talk o, you already know”

Many Afro-R&B songs over the next year are going to sound somewhat like Mr Eazi’s bonus track, “Right Now”. Like Tekno’s “Pana”, “Right Now” is tempered down, sleekly mellow and strangely emotive; only better written and stripped of a club bounce. On this love-story-in-reverse, Eazi comes to terms with the inability of his lover to have him as a main. Though he casually lists proof of all the times she has cheated on him, he offers to settle for a low-key side arrangement nonetheless. It not nearly as sexy as he wants it to be, but that’s only if you miss the point of his story.

Download Mr Eazi’s Accra To Lagos via iTunes here.

Listen to Mr Eazi on Legendury beatz’s “Heartbeat”