State Champ Radio afrobeats
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Nigerian superstar Asake, his label EMPIRE and Jean-Michel Basquiat’s estate announced on Friday (July 14) that they’re curating a special event filled with art, music and drinks in Los Angeles, Calif. next week. The exhibition viewing of Jean-Michel Basquiat: King Pleasure, guided paint and sip session, and album listening party of Asake’s latest LP Work […]
(from left to right) Jonathan Bekele and Spinall at WORLD AFRIKA X AFROLITUATION party at Chinatown Country Club in Boston, Massachusetts on March 24, 2023.
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“An event whose culture and influence reaches far and wide across the globe” – Jonathan Bekele, founder of WORLD AFRIKA
Year started: 2022
Partners: EthioBoyzEnt (partner), NuWave Collective (partner), SuperSmashBroz (DJ/partner), King Collins (DJ)
Primary city: Boston
Main venue(s): Garage, Spirit of Boston, Shojo
What inspired you to come up with this party?
Before the pandemic, I created Anbessa. It was supposed to be a company that [had] different branches like events, clothing, miscellaneous things. It’s obviously based on our culture, the lion is embedded in Ethiopian culture. In the clothing brand, on the back of the T-shirts, you’ll see WORLD AFRIKA. The reason why I spell it WORLD AFRIKA with a “K” is because, initially, the name of Africa was with a “k” from the native countries, before colonization. Ethiopians never got colonized, so I was like, “I would love to keep that same identity with this.”
Back in March of last year, there was a need for a real curated event of experience in the city that focused around Afrobeats in Boston. My one-year anniversary with the clothing brand with the WORLD AFRIKA slogan on it was coming up in April. So I was like, “Let me just throw my first WORLD AFRIKA party.” I had SuperSmashBroz DJing, and it was received well. It gave a different feeling, like they felt like they were back home. And that’s what I want to bring: I want to make people walk out of the party and be like, “OK, I’m buying my ticket for December.”
How did you come up with its name?
When I was creating the T-shirts, one T-shirt [has] two women that graduated from the airline academy in Ethiopia and they have a lion right in front of them, which is the ambessa. And WORLD AFRIKA was [about] traveling around the world because it was based on the aviation thing. Ethiopian Airlines was the first airline in Africa that was really able to travel across. And the second T-shirt was a lion literally walking past an Ethiopian Airlines plane. So that’s where it stemmed from. WORLD AFRIKA is a connection of all the different countries and just grouping them together.
Who typically attends?
Obviously, my Habeshas support. There’s a huge West African population here — a lot of my friends are Nigerian — and Cape Verdeans. Anybody who’s from Cape Verde, all of their people for some reason immigrated to Massachusetts or Rhode Island. The second [WORLD AFRIKA party] was on a yacht in the middle of Boston Harbor that held like 650 people. It was like three levels, different DJs. And the bottom floor was Cape Verdean DJs. But then you’ll also see groups of Asian people that just want to show up and party, dance. You’ll see a bunch of white people slide up. But I would say for the most part, it’s West Africans, East Africans, Cape Verdeans. We did an amapiano party one time, and hella South Africans popped up.
Where does this typically take place or where has it taken place before?
The first venue I did was Garage. The second one was called Spirit of Boston. The funny thing is Garage is closed, Spirit of Boston actually caught on fire two months ago — so they are no longer operational. I went to Addis, and I did two WORLD AFRIKAs over there at Midtown Ultra Lounge right on Bole. One of my good friends, his name is Nate Enzo, owns it. He was like, “What do you think about doing it over here?” And I was like, “Yeah, why not? This will pay for my trip, basically.” So I did it over there, sold out both times. And I didn’t really realize the impact of what I had until that happened in Addis. Because when it happened it in Addis, and when I did the yacht event, I was like, “D–n, this is not just a Boston thing. It’s becoming more than that.”
At the top of 2023, I’ve been at this venue called Shojo. And they’ve been my most consistent venue. So I did one right before I went to Ethiopia, and I’ve done one every single month, so February, March, April, I’ve been there. I also did one in D.C. first week of March. That was nice. I have a lot of connects in D.C. One of my friends, he owns a lounge, and he was just like, “Why don’t you try doing it over here?” And I was like, “Yeah, why not?” And it did really well. I was like, “D–n, if I start out in these small spaces or mid-sized spaces, whether it be New York, Atlanta, L.A., the world will come organically.”
Why does your party stand out?
I’m able to connect with people, I’m very personable. And I’m very good with business. Dami came to me back in March, and Dami was like, “Hey, Spinall wants to come to Boston.” I know they couldn’t find a venue. Essentially, they came to me, and I had a venue already locked for WORLD AFRIKA that I was going to do on my own. Personally, I could have just done the event and probably took all that money to the head. But I thought bigger — because I was like, “OK, if I have Spinall and I work with Afrolituation and Dami and all of them, this would be great for the brand going forward.”
I think [it’s because of] those collabs and those teams I put together. I really work hard day by day making sure everything is exquisite from the beginning to the end. And I’m always asking people throughout the event, like, “You need anything? You having a good time?” People feel at home there. People leave the event wanting more, and wanting to buy that ticket back home, whether it’s West Africa, North Africa, South Africa, East Africa, Central. That’s my mission to drive that idea home.
Recall your favorite memory at one of your parties.
My favorite memory was we were in Addis, and K-Meta put on a song called “WATAWI” [by CKay feat. Davido, Focalistic and Abidoza]. I’m standing on a couch in the middle of the party. A lot of people don’t know this song. But he didn’t realize at that moment that that was my favorite song of the year. And as the song is playing, I’m screaming the lyrics. At the same time, I’m taking a video and I’m turning, turning, turning and the whole place was filled up. All my friends from the Bay, all my friends from D.C., all my friends from Dallas, New York, Boston, all over the place [were] just mingling and having a great time.
In my mind, I was like, “OK, this is lit. I’m here. And I’m here to stay.” This is something that can be for real for real going forward. I had a serious in-my-head moment of like, “I could do this every week here.” And the funny thing was I did it back-to-back weeks, and they were both sold out. Typically, I take a month off to do it. But because I was in Addis and my time there was limited, I did it back-to-back weeks, and both weeks were sold out. And I was like, “No way! This is for real!”
Nigerian DJ/producer Spinall has officially signed with Epic Records, the company tells Billboard.
“Spinall is one of the continent’s best musical exports. A preeminent curator and driver of culture. His collaborations have the potential to take music from Africa to new heights globally, and we are extremely energized about our partnership with him here at Epic,” says Ezekiel “Zeke” Lewis, president of Epic Records, in a statement to Billboard.
“It’s really, really tough when you’ve been independent for a minute. But after discussing with Sylvia [Rhone, CEO/chairwoman of Epic Records] and Zeke, they gave me the most confidence that I would ever need — bringing me on, speaking to me and listening and being so sweet. Sylvia and Zeke convinced me in the first meeting that I’m home,” he tells Billboard.
“They have a proven record of doing amazing partnerships with different talents from all over the world. So I’m super excited, and there’s gonna be a lot of good music. I’m excited to be working with a set of people who genuinely love music. We just want to spread the gospel of good music all around the world.”
Spinall (real name Oluseye Desmond Sodamola) is already spreading the word through his new single “Loju” featuring Wizkid, which he released today (June 30) as his official Epic debut. “It’s a very special record because of our history together as partners in making some of the best Afrobeats records,” he says of his frequent collaborator, with whom he’s worked on “Nowo,” “Opoju,” “Dis Love” (with Tiwa Savage) and more. “Wizkid is someone I respect a lot. He has done collaborations with everybody on the continent, and he’s still doing it. Every time we link up, the energy is just different. Our friendship is beyond the music.”
“Loju” arrives four months after he released his sixth studio album, Top Boy, on Feb. 17 via his own record label/management company, TheCAP Music. Top Boy — which was featured on Billboard‘s 50 best albums of 2023 (so far) list — contains hit singles “Sere” featuring Fireboy DML (and 6lack on the remix) and “Palazzo” featuring Asake, the former of which has 16.3 million official on-demand streams in the U.S. and 71 million official global on-demand streams.
“Palazzo” peaked at No. 6 on Billboard‘s U.S. Afrobeats Songs chart, while “Power (Remember Who You Are)” featuring Summer Walker, DJ Snake and Äyanna — which was originally featured in The Flipper’s Skate Heist short film and then added to Top Boy — peaked at No. 16 on Hot Dance/Electronic Songs.
“A lot of amazing records on the tape. The whole goal behind that is to spread the music and spread the entire culture of what we do in Africa,” he says.
After receiving his BSc degree in electrical and electronics engineering at Olabisi Onabanjo University in Nigeria’s Ogun State, Spinall attended several DJ schools to hone in on his musical talent. In 2014, he launched TheCAP Music, which stands for “TheCrazyAzzParty” and also symbolizes the traditional Yoruba caps he wears, and signed producers Killertunes and Stunna the following year. He had previously signed an international record deal with Atlantic Records U.K. and a publishing deal with Warner Chappell Music U.K. Spinall has released all six of his albums through TheCAP Music.
Last year, he opened for Bruno Mars in Sydney, Australia for two nights and DJed at Jay-Z‘s Oscars Gold Party. “My work speaks for itself…. I’m not new to the big stage,” Spinall says. “There’s no other goal than making happy music. If you look at my discography, that’s what I’ve done over the years and that’s what I’ll continue to do till the day I die!”
For management, Spinall is represented by Tolulope Shodamola, COO/general manager of TheCAP Music, as well as LVRN’s Tunde Balogun (president/co-founder), Amber Grimes (executive vp/general manager) and Justice Baiden (head of A&R/co-president).
As the sun’s long-awaited arrival signals the beginning of summer, we’ve been turning the volume up on the latest releases from African artists worldwide for this season’s new soundtrack. Ghanaian-American Afropop star Amaarae and Nigerian Afrobeats powerhouse Asake dropped flashy, boundary-pushing albums with Fountain Baby and Work of Art, respectively. But they’re not alone — both Omah Lay and Ckay dropped off deluxe editions of their recent albums with additional tracks, while Zinoleesky and Fireboy DML released eye-catching singles to herald future releases.
We’ve highlighted 10 of our favorite new Afrobeats (and related) songs that have come out roughly within the last month. Check out our latest Fresh Picks, and find your new summer soundtrack with our Spotify playlist below.
Reekado Banks, Adekunle Gold & Maleek Berry, “Feel Different”
Nigerian singer Reekado Banks recruits Adekunle Gold and Maleek Berry for the feel-good single about a girl whose love makes them “Feel Different.” All three men try to convince themselves they’re better off alone – with Banks singing “If I fall again, I go look so dumb/ I no wan look so dumb/ So I will never never fall again” and Gold singing “Run, run, run, run/ I be running all alone” with a rock guitar hit underlining his point – but ultimately realize they’d go to great lengths just to be with her.
Bloody Civilian, “Escapism”
Nigerian singer-songwriter and producer Bloody Civilian blends amapiano’s log drums with pitched-up EDM vocal chops on “Escapism,” the first track off her experimental debut EP Anger Management. The repetition of her airy “Shoulda smoked that s–t since morning” line creates a carefree mantra she uses to distract herself from the disorderly world around her. But it’s her lithe, pacifying voice that assures listeners they don’t need to turn to vices to find hope.
Amaarae, “Princess Going Digital”
Amaarae’s plea in “Princess Going Digital,” from her critically acclaimed sophomore album Fountain Baby, is crystal clear: “Take me out the streets.” The synth-heavy, crystalline pop track follows the singer as she finds a potential partner that could put an end to her BS-riddled search for love. Vocalist/producer Maesu – who was previously featured on Amaarae’s “Fantasy,” alongside CKay – echoes her sentiments (literally) while promising the princess whatever she wants – just as long as it’s not commitment. “You know it’s just game, girl, you know how it goes,” he sings.
Tay Iwar & Juls, “Summer Breeze”
Tay Iwar teams up with frequent collaborator Juls for the breezy ode to summer off his aptly titled EP Summer Breeze. On its title track, Iwar’s featherweight melodies float over Juls’ dizzying jazz saxophone riffs and scintillating percussion that’s reminiscent of palmwine music. Lyrics like “Tease me baby and turn me on” and “What a sweet release I need” suggest a “Summer Breeze” isn’t the only thing that gets Iwar going, but it’s certainly one of the most divine highlights of this time of year.
Asake, “Lonely at the Top”
Asake offers a bittersweet reflection on “Lonely at the Top,” from his highly anticipated sophomore album Work Of Art. With a backing choir and introspective instrumentation (courtesy of producer Blaisebeatz), the fast-rising star sings about his chasing his lofty dreams of superstardom, while putting on his blinders to avoid the naysayers — and understanding the isolation that comes with it. But Asake remains unfazed while pursuing success, because there can only be one Mr. Money Ginger.
Omah Lay, “reason”
Executing the tried-and-true strategy of capitalizing off a popular release with a deluxe edition, Omah Lay reissued last year’s Boy Alone with five new tracks, including the powerful, insistent “reason.” Kicking off with a palm-muted guitar riff, Omah Lay layers vocals to hypnotic effect, questioning existence and purpose on a track that is at once consistent with and a departure from what we’ve come to expect from him.
Fireboy DML, “YAWA”
Fusing some of his R&B grooves with amapiano drums and a layered, triumphant hook, Fireboy delivers one of his best singles of the year — which is saying something, considering his output so far. He kicks the track off with a few lines in English before slipping into Yoruba, where he flows more comfortably, and puts a ton of energy and passion into it, which comes out clearly on the track.
Asake, “Sunshine”
Asake’s Work of Art album speaks for itself, and is so cohesive that it’s difficult to single out individual tracks to shine a light on. Luckily, there’s plenty to choose from — and “Sunshine” has one of the more memorable hooks on the album, a song brimming with positivity and Asake’s trademark angelic choral flourishes. It’s sometimes remarkable how agile he is with his flows given the sheer weight of musicality that each of his tracks brings to bear, but he is a rare artist for whom seemingly everything works. Check out the full album if you don’t believe us.
Ckay, “nwayi”
Ckay has carved a lane, both melodically and with his subject matter, as the poster child for “emo Afrobeats” (hence the name of his album, Sad Romance) — and this track is right in the sweet spot, paved by his first two major hits, “Love Nwantiti” and “Emiliana.” He’s become truly adept at these breezy earworms laced with sweet nothings, and this is directly in that lineage.
Zinoleesky, “A1 (Feeling Disorder)”
Brisk to the point of breathless is the Zinoleesky flow, and “A1” is the latest entry in his ever-growing canon. Built around a conflicted story of sex and love — or one instead of the other — the song hurtles into a bridge with brief introspection (“I’m emotionally downcast…”) before picking the pace up right where it left off, with a beat that propels him further every second. There’s a self-assurance to his flow that comes across on every track of his — “A1” is up there among his best.
UnitedMasters is partnering with Nigerian producer Sarz on his 1789 imprint that aims to discover, develop and empower the next generation of African artists and producers, Billboard can exclusively announce today (June 13).
Sarz (real name Osabuhoien Osaretin) has produced records for some of the biggest African artists, such as Wizkid, Burna Boy and Tiwa Savage, and is responsible for spreading the Afrobeats sound to the U.S. and U.K. charts with hits like Drake, Wizkid and Kyla‘s “One Dance,” which became the most-streamed song on Spotify in 2016, and Lojay and Sarz’s “Monalisa,” which received a Chris Brown remix and has amassed 297.3 million official global on-demand streams through June 8, according to Luminate. He also won the producer of the year award at The Headies last year.
LV N ATTN, the parent project of “Monalisa” that Lojay and Sarz released in 2021, as well as WurlD and Sarz’s I LOVE GIRLS WITH TROUBL from 2019 fall under Sarz’s 1789 imprint, which he established in 2018 to discover and develop African artists and producers. (It symbolizes his birthdate: March 17, 1989.) Now, UnitedMasters is coming in to amplify the work Sarz has already been doing by providing its cutting-edge label services and digital distribution technology.
“Sarz, for the last five years, has been developing some of the biggest producers on the continent that have gone on to produce for the Wizkid’s, the Burna’s, the Tems’, the Lojay’s, etc. We wanted to be able to say, ‘How do we add value to you guys and help give you resources so that way you can ultimately develop the talent on the ground?’” David Melhado, vp of music at UnitedMasters, tells Billboard. “You can see why he’s able to spot talent when you hang out with him. His energy is infectious. He’s just doing what he wishes he had. There’s something so powerful in that where he’s like, ‘I’m paying it forward to these producers.’ He’s really creating a movement.”
“I met with David and Julian McLean [director of producer relations/editorial at UnitedMasters], and it just felt right. I could tell we shared the same vision and we’re very passionate about emerging talent,” Sarz tells Billboard, adding that he hopes his new strategic partnership with UnitedMasters will bring “more opportunities to the continent, bring more opportunities to Afrobeats artists and producers globally. I hope to be the bridge between an emerging artist and everything they desire globally.”
Those signed to 1789 will be able to access “everything that you would get from a major label, from marketing to digital marketing to playlist pitching and, when the time is right, we can scale up and do radio campaigns,” says Melhado. He adds that the partnership will also provide artists and producers “transparency around the money they make” through UnitedMasters’ mobile app, where “they’ll be able to see their streams in real time,” as well as “brand partnerships with some of the world’s biggest brands [NBA, ESPN, WhatsApp], and they all have ambitions to be a part of the global music conversation.”
Adds Steve Stoute, UnitedMasters CEO/founder, in a statement: “We are extremely excited to be in partnership with Sarz and 1789. Sarz, a true hitmaker, has a keen ear for talent and has proven that he cares deeply about the artist development process. Our shared mission in supporting artists from Africa through education and resources will empower them to unlock their true potential.”
United Masters began discussing how to enter the African music conversation two years ago, when Stoute sent Melhado Billboard‘s 2021 feature on Wizkid following the global success of his Tems-assisted smash “Essence.” Melhado told Stoute, “‘When it’s time for us to go expand to Africa, I got a big network there.’ He’s like, ‘Yeah, you should go in December,’” Melhado recalls with a chuckle. Melhado and McLean ended up traveling to Nigeria in December 2021, where the two were hosted by Melhado’s good friend Bizzle Osikoya, a Nigerian A&R expert and music executive who founded the talent management and music services company, The Plug. “We went out to really see what the culture was, the music, the food, the fashion, the art, and really engulf ourselves in the community there but really try to figure out, ‘Where can we add value?’ We didn’t want to just go to Africa and throw money at it. We wanted to not be opportunistic from a perspective of, ‘Let’s just go sign some artists,’ but we wanted to be able to make sure that we were going to be really impactful and additive to the music scene there. We wanted to be able to find the right partner, and that’s ultimately what we did with Sarz.”
In 2015, the 34-year-old producer founded The Sarz Academy, a non-profit organization dedicated to cultivating African artists and producers and helping them launch successful careers. “I’ve always been passionate about helping people’s journeys, even unofficially I’ve mentored so many producers in the Afrobeats space before I thought about starting an academy,” he says. “It took me at least 10 years just grinding in the industry to find my position. And I thought, if I can mentor these guys, they could probably do it in two years or three years.” The academy’s esteemed alumni includes Kel-P, Legendury Beatz, P.Priime and Tempoe, who have gone on to work with Wizkid, Burna Boy, Rema, Fireboy DML, CKay, Angélique Kidjo and Teni, among many others. “I plan to break out of Africa. I am doing it for global Afro music,” P.Priime, a 2018 graduate of The Sarz Academy, told Billboard in 2020. Two years later, he was a part of the #YouTubeBlack Voices Songwriter & Producer Class of 2022 and earned credits on Wizkid’s Made in Lagos deluxe album that went on to receive a 2022 Grammy nomination for best global music album. Another 2018 graduate, Tempoe, went onto produce CKay’s “Love Nwantiti (Ah Ah Ah)” the following year, which has since garnered 2.46 billion official global on-demand streams and spent two weeks at No. 1 on Rhythmic Airplay.
After meeting Sarz through their mutual friend Osikoya in March 2022, Melhado and McLean traveled back to Nigeria this past October to witness The Sarz Academy firsthand. “He had producers and artists from all over Nigeria. There were artists that flew in from London, from Costa Rica, to Nigerians who came from Canada to be a part of this experience. They all lived in a house. And they just created some of the most amazing music that I’ve heard in a long time. The collaboration, the desire to get on, the hunger — all these kids had that. It was inspiring overall,” says Melhado. “At that moment, I knew that we had the right partnership and the right partner.”
Sarz says the music coming out of last year’s Sarz Academy will be compiled into an album that will be released next month. Three singles — “Jam One Kele” by Sarz, Millymay_pod, Gimba and Fxrtune; “Good to Me” by Sarz, Perfext and Gimba; and “Body Wicked” by Sarz and Millymay_pod — have already been packaged as The Sarz Academy Presents: Memories That Last Forever 2 and released under 1789 and UnitedMasters on DSPs last week. One of the artists, Gimba, was also recently featured on the single “Blessings” with DJ Tunez and Wizkid.
UnitedMasters’ partnership with Sarz includes supporting his endeavors at The Sarz Academy, as education is one of the company’s core missions, according to Melhado. “We didn’t just come into the business trying to tell everybody they needed to be independent. We had to walk them through what it is like to be independent, and for artists on the [African] continent, we want to be able to help artists with those tools and educate them,” he explains. “Our ambition is to be able to support these artists, see them at the beginning of their career and ultimately take them to global superstardom.”
Burna Boy is back with the new summer anthem “Sittin’ on Top of the World,” which he released Thursday (June 1) via Atlantic Records. The African Giant makes a triumphant return nearly a year after he released his sixth studio album Love, Damini on July 8, 2022, which peaked at No. 14 on the Billboard […]
It’s come to the end of May, which can only mean one thing: Summertime has arrived. And with it, we have a new crop of songs by a slew of African artists that are set to dominate playlists across several continents for the next few months.
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Whether it’s amapiano, Afropop, R&B, neo-soul, highlife or just uncategorizably beautiful music, there’s more that’s come out this month that we could include here. But to try to help you cut through that flood of feel-good vibes, there are a few songs that have particularly caught our ears — by the likes of Teni, Tyla & Ayra Starr, Asake & Olamide, Kizz Daniel, Kwesi Arthur and Oxlade & Flavour.
We’ve highlighted 10 of our favorite new Afrobeats (and related) songs that have come out roughly within the last month. Check out our latest Fresh Picks, and catch a vibe with us by listening to our Spotify playlist below.
Tyla & Ayra Starr, “Girl Next Door”
Africa’s Gen-Z It-girls Tyla and Ayra Starr come together to caution their wandering lovers not to leave them for the “Girl Next Door” in their first collaboration. Both artists somehow keep their cool, as Tyla touts her many options and Ayra warns, “And you know I won’t waste no time/ I can have another you by 9.” But their passionate plea in the repeating chorus (“Don’t you leave me for the girl next door, girl next door”) revs up the sizzling amapiano-meets-R&B beat (courtesy of producer P.Priime) that’s prime for getting any party started this summer.
Tay Iwar & Twelve XII, “Undercover Lover”
Tay Iwar injects his silver-tongued, neo-soul sound into “Undercover Lover,” which finds him and fellow Nigerian artist Twelve XII detailing their dalliance with a beautiful woman. Lyrics like “Somethin’ good for the moment/ Just for the moment” and “Her personality no matter at all/ ‘Cause she’s lookin’ so fine” make it crystal clear they’re not looking for anything serious, and the groovy, atmospheric production further emphasizes the chill vibes.
Teni, “No Days Off”
Teni has taken “No Days Off,” as evident by her latest single. The Nigerian artist raps about her homies (Tobi, Bunmi, Brenda and Wale), hometowns (Lagos and Atlanta) and everything else in her life that she’s had to leave to the sidelines for her career. In a press release, Teni explains that “No Days Off” started as a freestyle and “was made everywhere in the world – that’s why it really is called ‘No Days Off.’ It was made in Lagos, it was made in LA, some parts of it were also made in Cape Town.” She invites listeners to her own world by enveloping them in a kaleidoscopic sound comprised of airy synth melodies and frenetic Afropop percussion that will have anyone yelling, “Motherf–ker, will you come on play that sh– back!” by the end of the track.
Asake & Olamide, “Amapiano”
Asake links up with his YBNL Nation boss Olamide on this scorching “Amapiano” club banger. He salutes the South African house genre for being a “big vibe” while adding his own spin to it, from the lively violin and saxophone to the larger-than-life crowd vocals. Meanwhile, Olamide flexes his mesmerizing flow when he raps, “One thing I know, I’m happy I know/ Amapiano, all of my P I know.” “Amapiano” will accompany Asake’s previously released singles “Yoga” and “2:30” on his upcoming sophomore album, Work of Art, due June 16 via YBNL Nation and EMPIRE.
Nonso Amadi, “Paper”
Amadi reflects on his personal and artistic growth “from seeds to a flower, uncoiling naturally for you,” according to a press release, on his debut album When It Blooms. On the highlight track “Paper,” the Canadian-based Nigerian singer makes the case for why he deserves a bigger bag. And regardless of renowned Nigerian producer London’s scintillating, playful percussion, Amadi’s clearly not playing when it comes to his paper as he sings, “Tell me why the hell you calling/ I don’t wanna know what you’re talking/ When I see the cash am all in.”
Iyanya & BNXN, “Sinner”
A seductive song in both lyric and feel, this collab between Iyanya and BNXN has an alluring aspect to it that is hard to get out of your head — and a falsetto hook that is somehow even more of an earworm than the verses, perfect for a late night vibe that still keeps you moving. Also check out BNXN’s single “Pray” — its choral and orchestral feel fills the soul, and it just barely missed out on inclusion here.
Oxlade & Flavour, “OVAMI”
Oxlade already landed a huge hit this year with “Ku Lo Sa,” and “OVAMI” is in a similar vein, with his soulful vocals soaring above the production. Bringing in veteran vocalist Flavour to add a different element to the second verse was another smart move; Flavour had another great song in the last two years with “Levels,” and he fits in seamlessly here. Essentially a love song, it transcends with its irresistible melodies.
Kwesi Arthur, “Penny”
This one from the Ghanaian rapper is a laid back groove about the come up, thinking back to the days when he didn’t have any cash and now looking around and realizing that not only are those distant memories, but that there isn’t really a limit to how far things can go. What makes this one stand out is that the sentiment doesn’t feel flamboyant or boastful, but more matter-of-fact — this is going to happen, but let’s just keep in mind how far we’ve come.
King Promise, “Terminator”
An ode to finding peace in life — despite what the title may imply — “Terminator” is a melting pot of styles and languages, with a simple overriding message clearly articulated in the second verse: “And my happiness comes first/ I never come life to stress, yeah.” The Ghanaian nails the mix of production and lyricism that gets the feel across almost effortlessly — that being the goal, in the end, of course.
Kizz Daniel, “Shu-Peru”
The perennially upbeat Nigerian Afropop singer came through with another fun groove for the summertime, flipping Salt-N-Pepa’s “Shoop” in the process. As a thesis statement for an artist, does it get more appropriate than Kizz singing: “We are the happy people / We are the world”? It fits him perfectly.
Nigerian superstar Tiwa Savage will embark on a North American tour this summer, which was announced Monday (May 22). Produced by Live Nation and Duke Concept, the nine-date jaunt will start Aug. 24 at Washington, D.C.’s The Theater at MGM National Harbor and go through other major U.S. cities like New York, Chicago, Atlanta and […]
Nigerian Afrobeats star Seun Kuti was arrested Monday (May 15) after being accused of assaulting a police officer in the commercial hub of Lagos. Kuti was detained at the Lagos State police headquarters after turning himself in, according to police spokesperson Benjamin Hundeyin, who tweeted photos of the celebrity in handcuffs. The son of Nigerian […]
Rema and Selena Gomez’s “Calm Down” ascends to No. 1 on Billboard’s Rhythmic Airplay chart, jumping to the top of the May 6-dated survey.
It’s Rema’s first Rhythmic Airplay No. 1, earned with his first charting title. The format now has two straight No. 1s by first-time leaders, following Coi Leray’s six-week reign with “Players.”
“Calm Down” is the first No. 1 by an artist in a first Rhythmic Airplay appearance since Steve Lacy, whose “Bad Habit” led for a week last November.
As for Gomez, “Calm Down” is also her first No. 1 on Rhythmic Airplay, logged with her 14th charting title. She boasts a pair of previous top 10s: “Good for You,” featuring A$AP Rocky (No. 4, 2015), and “Same Old Love” (No. 6, 2016).
Concurrently, “Calm Down” lifts 3-2 for a new high on Pop Airplay. It also bullets at No. 24 on Adult Pop Airplay and No. 35 on R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay.
On the all-format Radio Songs chart, “Calm Down” held at its No. 4 best on the April 29-dated list with 72.4 million audience impressions in the April 21-27 tracking week, according to Luminate.
The April 29-dated Billboard Hot 100 found “Calm Down” at No. 7, after rising as high as No. 6 so far. In addition to its radio airplay, the song earned 15.7 million official U.S. streams and sold 5,000 downloads April 14-20.
The collaboration has also topped the Billboard U.S. Afrobeats Songs chart for 34 weeks running, the longest rule since the ranking began a year ago in partnership with music festival and global brand Afro Nation.
“Calm Down” is the second single from Rave & Roses, Rema’s debut studio album, released in March 2022. Since its release, the set has earned 291,000 equivalent album units.
