Rolling Afropop 2023

I don't know how my esteemed colleagues feel about them, but there's a bunch of new naijapiano songs (Asake's 2:30, Joeboy's Body & Soul, Young Jonn's Aquafina) that sound rather messy.

And special for rob

lol, but I agree it's not that remarkable -- I guess the thrill is gone

fyi the current Zinoleesky banger is party No Dey Stop with Adekunle Gold:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VnXq06m9P4g

Jonz with last year #1 boy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WsEjqV7kZdM
Ruger - Jonzing Boy

He also has a more upbeat (though maybe less personal) single out called Bun Bun with Jugglerz
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n22O3NR1yRI
Ruger & Jugglerz - Bun Bun

and I guess Shu-Peru is the song of the moment
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s1NPXKoTGy0
Kizz Daniel - Shu-Peru

I've heard worse

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_-v1fNdSHs
Asake & Olamide - Amapiano

The new Burna is... lazy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vxnu4MmAF68
Burna Boy - Sittin On Top of the World

For @pitchfork I wrote about @asakemusik’s new album Work of Art, which is phenomenal. Asake’s one of the best artists right now, just the most unimpeachable in the Afropiano / Street Pop zone rn. He had the best Nigerian pop album of 2022 and now 2023!!https://t.co/QSQ3CdmBGe

— Joshua Minsoo Kim (@misterminsoo) June 16, 2023

Since Chale was posted her, why not Mnike? Oozes coolness, and the chorus seeps through directly to hook onto your brain.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_hgm2Mf6Ag
Tyler ICU & Tumelo.za feat. DJ Maphorisa, Nandipha808, Ceeka RSA & Tyron Dee - Mnike

Full version
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxwydXdudWo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IyaVNggovdM
Iyanya & Buju - Sinner

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmytMK1ZjcY
Omah Lay - Reason

That's a very good one and Tom London's career introduction after being Soweto's Finest lead choregrapher

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-oVLcko1cE
Tom London feat. Optimist Musicza and Soweto's Finest - Tom London

Fast review: Dreamlike song. Floating, dense, smooth. The fast delivery and overdubbing on the chorus is serpentine, the keys are like soulful high notes in a prog song, and the whole production slays.

very unengaged this year sadly, but wow "reason" is fantastic, I'll have to check out the whole deluxe edition

"Sinner" is nice too. I just really love BNXN's voice; I revisited Gwagwalada and loved it

Agreed, also he knows how to make music fun

Mid-year is when I start engaging usually. Doing it any earlier feels like you're alone to push the cart, but around June it's like abundance and let me do harvest season on this music.

yeah I was very invested in being an early adopter / hit-spotter for my pet genres for a while, but this year I think that's finally left me

Watched just now this Tyla performance on DSCVR:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-r3XnJAXmI0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88a7rr8KXcE

Hadn’t realized how attractive she is. She has the mannerisms of a popstar down to a T, a great voice and an excellent set of singles so far.

Hope she makes it big.

I had to google the lyrics of Fireboy DML's latest single YAWA because I had a doubt

There is no word for how weird the coloured accent is (Tyla).

I only found out today that A-Star is born and bred in London

Anyway his recent album King of Afrodance is good fun

Billboard's "best albums of 2023 so far" includes Davido and Spinall.

Enjoying Tom London upthread

2023 has been less insanely good for afropop than 2022 was, but isn't it always like that? You can't have Rema, Burna Boy, Wizkid and Asake all do albums every year - and the two we've got were a bit less good than last year. Highpoints for me were seeing Rema and Burna Boy live at Roskilde, my first afropop shows. They both brought down the house.

I loved In The Garden from the Davido album, which isn't the hit. But it's so good.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFStBh7AMZQ

And I think Adekunle Gold made his best album yet with Tequila Ever After? Opener Chasing Peace of Mind is incredible, combining the naija sound with amapiano rhythm as so many others do, but then getting Habib Koité from Mali to put some desert guitar on top of it, and taking the afrofusion to the next level.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDqaVLUvrvs

Lojay is on the new French & Swae - Wish U Well

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zyuCgK3_W-E

Ayra Starr coming to DC in September

Loved that track from Adekunle

Yay! Ruger has a new album out called R U The World

MTV video awards nominees :

Best Afrobeats
Ayra Starr – “Rush” – Mavin Global Holdings
Burna Boy – “It’s Plenty” – Atlantic Records / Spaceship Entertainment Ltd.
Davido feat. Musa Keys – “UNAVAILABLE” – Sony Music U.K. / RCA Records
Fireboy DML & Asake – ”Bandana” – Empire Distribution
Libianca – “People” – Sony Music U.K. / RCA Records
Rema & Selena Gomez – “Calm Down” – Mavin Global Holdings Ltd / Jonzing World Entertainment / SMG Music / Interscope Records
Wizkid ft Ayra Starr– “2 Sugar” – Starboy / RCA Records

MTV winner was Rema and Selena Gomez

The stuff from this summer is very good

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvO36ngj2P4
Oxlade feat. Dave - Intoxycated

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQ1UyrBljgw
Reekado Banks & Adekunle Gold & Maleek Berry - Feel Different

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7CHVcjwpAg
Fireboy DML - Yawa

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBNKFH7Xj70
Qing Madi & BXNX - Ole

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2td9-16fsc
Victony - My Darling

Realizing we haven't posted Stamina

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2pz7y8Sl0co
Tiwa Savage, Ayra Starr and Young Jonn - Stamina (produced by Magicsticks)

Still Focalistic biggest fan on ILX, such baffling fun music, so creative

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g73VxMU8Rp8
Focalistic feat. Ch'cco, Mawhoo, Eeque, Thama Tee - Wena my Dali

Ditto Chley
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2byDgJ8AyA
Diamond Platnumz feat Chley - Shu!

There are loads of piano-adjacent music from Tanzania, also newcomers:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhWQ2SXTO-Y
Abigail Chams x Marioo - Nani?

wish i'd heard tyla's "water" before last week. sounds really really nice during these final days of warm weather in ny

"girl next door" w/ ayra starr from earlier this year is awesome too

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F7C6FhmE37M

(i would also pay real money for a crazy cousinz remix of this song)

Mnike is the song of the year.

GoodNation Feat Lojay & Joé Dwèt Filé - Routine Lover
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2UZvdg_uH4
^Digging this. Especially the bassline.

Victony is really the revelation of the year for me, though I guess the potential was clear from his first EP. After the tasty production of Juls on My Darling, his latest is produced by Kzito. Adding Babylon because it's also on the playlist.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IdWlB1A4Ye8
Victony feat. Babyboy AV - Jaga Jaga

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-cPaiU31AtA
Patoranking feat. Victony - Babylon

Jaga Jaga is gorgeous. These subtle percussions are the future.

Water has a video btw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XoiOOiuH8iI
Tyla - Water

I think Asake is only afropop artist on Pitchfork’s best of albums list 2023 so far

Amaarae? I don't know what I would add to those two. I can't stop listening to the Burna Boy album, but it's not his best, and who else has really delivered a consistent album?

Those Victony tracks are fire

Rema guested with Ice Spice on Saturday Night Live on her second song

one of my friends is obsessed with "water" so i pointed him to some of her other songs ("getting late" esp.) to make sure he knows she's, you know, developing a catalog and isn't just amounting to one hit song. he seems legit excited abt her. international star tyla incoming!

From every video and performance I’ve seen of her, Tyla definitely has that IT factor to make it big with the right push.

I did a "which afropop song will break through next" poll with my students a while back and they all agreed water was irritatingly catchy to the point of being boring. They did vote for it though.

It’s number one now on Billboard US afrobeats chart

Water doesn't do half as much for me as some of her prior stuff. Not sure I'd describe it as "irritatingly catchy", I'm not hearing much hook here