Rolling Afropop 2023

From Kenya

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H059rrXKX1s
Vic West - Kuna Kuna

The EP was mentioned by The Breast but no song posted

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPBRGWUgQsA
Victony & Tempoe - Soweto

I wrote a post about Victony on the Naija Albums poll thread, the Soweto video was very much included.

mentioned by The Breast

Pure Akan is one of Ghana's best rappers, combining indigenous storytelling traditions with old-school US rap influences. his two albums, Onipa Akoma (2017) and Nyame Mma (2021), are classics.

he just dropped a new song with Efya, called "Yete Apor". I think I love it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUoIHJnrNgY

(btw, initially he called himself just 'Akan', but from 2020 onwards he rebranded as 'Pure Akan', I'm guessing to avoid confusion with singer Akon. it's a road Buju could have taken as well, 'Basic Buju' would have been just perfect)

another one from Ghana

"2Am", Fameye's new single is just too lovely. it's produced by LiquidBeatz, with whom he also did last year's excellent Songs of Peter album, which I now regret even more not nominating for the EOY. theirs is one of those special artist/producer partnerships (much like Asake + Magicsticks and Ruger + Kukbeats in Naija):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yy8ZsrcF9ws

wau

https://thefader-res.cloudinary.com/private_images/w_1800,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best/ANM23---POSTER-TEXTURE_1_thcznw/burna-boy-and-wizkid-to-headline-afro-nation-miami-2023.jpg

Favourite so far is the Vic West - Kuna track. Real earworm there

Not sure if this has been featured before but it came on after Kuna Kuna and it's really good:

BREEDER LW X MEJJA - "GIN AMA WHISKEY"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bul2_AwOqHY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4j7Fa2PCMow
Kizz Daniel & Empire - Cough

That's an interesting one

le Sénégal vous souhaite une très bonne année !

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hm5bJos1H7w
Attack ft. Bass Thioung • Wichakh

I'm feeling that one

not sure if I had encountered amapiano touches in Senegalese pop before:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_koRwPVvNfs
Mia Guisse • La Vie est Belle

That's really nice!

Went on a little Coupé Decalé rabbithole the other day and found some nice stuff.

This is Shado Chris - CPLM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=412Z_SZCreU

just calmly posting Senegalese bops as I normally do:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zT1yrrDb83c
Akhlou Brick • Man lagn bouga

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ewZRajbJDzo
Akhlou Brick ft. King Kheuch & El Menemo • Deff Effect

no video as of yet for this one unfortunately, but it's another rhythm killer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fkRG31milRc
Dip Doundou Guiss ft. Hussain Dada • #BBDD (Bo Bëggé Degg Dëg)

I made an hour-long mix of some of my favourite Afrobeats/Afropop tracks from the last couple of years, including a lot of faves picked up from these threads. Hope you enjoy it Ilxors :-)

Charlie Stoic - E Choke!: Afrobeats and beyond

Khuli Chana - Buyile
Burna Boy - Last Last
Tetu Shani - Spend My Money
Breeder LW ft. Mejja - Gin Ama Whiskey
Omah Lay - I'm A Mess
Alex Muhangi - Something Good
Ruger - Girlfriend
Rosa Ree - Mulla
NSG ft. MHD - In Da Car
Vic West ft. Fathermoh, Savara, Brandy Maina, Thee Exit Band - Kuna Kuna
Dunnie - Overdose
Muzi - Need Dat
Pongo - Doudou
Prettyboy D-O - Police n Teef
Tulenkey ft. Ice Prince & Falz - Proud Fvck Boys (Remix)
Laycon - All Over Me
Sarkodie ft. Prince Bright - Oofeetsɔ
Obongjayar - Tinko Tinko (Don't Play Me For A Fool)
Fave - Scatta Scatta
Skiibii - Daz How Star Do
Dai Verse x Buju - Sweet Daddy
Rema - Bounce
Lasmid - Friday Night
Midas The Jagaban - Party With A Jagaban

https://soundcloud.com/charliestoicdj/echoke

Years later “Jerusalema “ has reached the Black southern soul and r’n’b American audience:

Friday night driving in my car in Washington DC area the DJ doing a late night special mix on the commercial station that plays r’n’b and some rap ( old school not trap) played a version of “Jerusalema “ and then Beenie Man “Rum and Red Bull.” Then the next night I was at a club seeing a southern soul band ( current southern soul with keyboard and congas and not just retro) Hardway Connection. After their 2nd set , the DJ played “Jerusalema “, and lots of the crowd ( many Black women) started to line dance to it.

Plz visit my new thread … not afropop more afrobeats

Thraed of Nigerian Cruise / Freebeat

Tyla has signed to Epic Records and released a single produced by Tricky Stewart ("Been Thinking"): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i7jSoCzxC0I

le Sénégal vous souhaite une très bonne année !

📹
Attack ft. Bass Thioung • Wichakh

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UeIT8OHwtd0
Asake • Yoga

Do you know what else than the ILM year-end poll is ongoing ?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=frBT2Jx2cvA
2Point1 - Stimela

Minimalistic Kwaito, anthemic House vibe, and Amapiano, it has it all. The cowbell is killing me (positively).

xp
that's really nice! maybe a bit too idk stately or something, but it works as a deserved victory lap

Stimela is a good time

You're right I think with victory lap. Shameless retro and good vibes too, but rather refreshing with its country vibe (they're from Free State).

Oh I meant Asake wrt victory lap. I don't know anything about 2Point1

lovely Ruger trifle with DJ Neptune - this is “Bienvenue”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7lN1W3Y_Qv4

“Stimela” is a big banging Decemberrrr favourite, I approve

"yoga" is great, nice to hear him slow it down a little bit

Shock in South African news as rapper AKA was shot dead outside a restaurant in Durban yesterday night. He was 35.
He dies a year after my friend who introduced me to him with one of his favorite songs, Fela in Versace. They now share very similar dates of birth and death. Destiny really botches things up. Shit.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1CRoYZeD0Q
AKA - Fela in Versace

Beauty Dlulane, who heads a parliamentary committee on arts and culture, condemned AKA's murder, describing it as a "hit". She called on authorities "to protect South Africans from this new scourge of what seems to be contract and revenge killings where performing artists and DJs seem to be targeted".

this is chilling, especially coming less than three months after the assassination of DJ Sumbody, also when he was on his way to a celebration

In more uplifting news, veteran soca star Machel Montano is doing a Friday February 17 carnival show in Trinidad with Wizkid, Rema, Ayra Starr, and a bunch of soca acts and others

Doglatin: Great mix! Loved most of these songs already and several I’m listening for the first time.

Anyone longing for the old days of afrobeats can hear Ayra Starr's take on it. Which has Awilo Longomba haunting in the background. It's good. But yeah, give us an album.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLucolSS-Wo
Ayra Starr - Sability

Thanks so much Moka! Yeah a lot of the selections are fairly obvious but I just wanted to stick to my tried and true faves from the last couple of years or so. Glad you enjoyed it!

I'd love to hear Rema on the remix of Sability.

Sability is cool. I feel like I don't have much of a sense of Ayra Starr as an artist yet though (poss my problem not hers).

I like this barely-there Zinoleesky track "YanYanYan" that runs on charisma fumes (I had no idea what he looked like until this video...I'm straight but wau) and threatens to turn into a v good ama song in the final seconds:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMChLgtZ1J8

rob is in love!!! that’s so cute!
I agree that Zino definitely has a way about him

lol, I don't want to get weird here, but that is one striking looking human feline hybrid being

No homo please, this is not the Beatles thread damnit !
JK, it's not weird rob, I have the hots for Omah Lay myself.

Coming back to AKA because there's a scandalous backstory.
First, I normally never watch something that graphic, but I was shown the video. It must be from the surveillance camera of the restaurant from which AKA is seen leaving with his friends. It's very clear how it happens. A guy on the pavement signals to the killer that the group is coming. The killer takes his relaxed time to cross the road (busy traffic), circles around to avoid suspicion. AKA and his friends are still hugging and saying goodbye when he dashes and shoot AKA at close range, before re-crossing the road and disappearing into the night in a matter of seconds. We looked at each other with my partner and agreed this guy must have killed a lot of people.
Now, if the killing is dramatic in itself, what about the backstory ? Suspicion immediately fell on the family of the ex-girlfriend, young model Anele Tembe who it's rumoured AKA pushed off the balcony of a hotel room two years ago. In a letter that has resurfaced from June last year, the family and their lawyers are pressing the national public prosecutor to press charges against AKA. They were denied, and the official story is that she committed suicide. The family makes its position very clear that they are convinced it was murder, and it's known that South Africa justice system is corrupt. AKA leaves a young daughter behind, not from the model, but from DJ Zinhle.

xp

similarly it's not a secret I'm hopelessly devoted to Oxlade's striking sounding vocal instrument:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xz8sJBDSzvM
Michael Brun ft. Oxlade • Clueless

JayO - 22 ... from the UK but feels as of a piece w/ afrobeats influenced R&B as anything else... his last single was also remixed by victony. this had been going on viral on tiktok for at least a month before coming out yesterday so it may end up being a hit, we'll see

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fwyKHN-znrA

went back to the tyla song... pretty forgettable sadly. for some reason they're having trouble cracking the code w/ her? feels like they're trying to push her into a more westernized idea of dance/R&B but it ends up just feeling generic in a tinashe sorta way. i'm still holding out hope nonetheless

This girl always bangs so hard. Limpopo strikes again.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ut3lDyGoqVU
Sho Madjozi - Chale

Chale owns me.

Chale sounds massive. Video doesn’t quite fit the vine of the song though.

Rick Ross amapiano jams is all I ever wanted

someone posted this clip in the comments to a Naira Marley tweet - intriguing, to say the least:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NjF-u6Ht870

the actual recording of it, perhaps surprisingly, slams pretty hard:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rKaESxBnYaI
Yomisings ft. Topskidometer • Bestie isonu

Wow, I think Chale is my first great song of 2023. The bouncy synth-lines make it sound like a mix of amapiano and ratchet, and that's basically the best thing in the world right now.

LOVING Chale and the Yomisings song

I'm not quite sure where this falls in terms of genre, but gosh I love these sweeter-than-life South African ballads

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ID57psUzWO0
Lizwi Wokuqala - Umbuzo

Not exactly Afropop 23 but am enjoying Instagram Live of Washington DC go-go band doing Wizkid & Tems's "Essence"

I miss Davido, been playing a lot of his stuff recently. he hinted at a March comeback back in December, but we’ll see how it goes. I just hope he’s alright.

Libianca - People ft. Ayra Starr and Omah Lay

Well of course a song with that refrain is going to have Omah Lay on the remix

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sivims7tSH4

Another shocker in South Africa as this time it's 28 year old Costa Titch (rapper, Amapiano) who has died on stage in Johannesburg after a seizure. They couldn't revive him. I don't think there are details as to cause of death yet.

No... For crap's sake. RIP Costa Titch - a true talent