It has been an amazing year for the Nigerian and its audience with artistes likes of Wizkid and Buju being on top of their game. Every week this year, the Radr team curated outstanding songs to form its Radr essential. For this week’s Radr essential, we will be selecting a song from each of these weeks’ Radr essential in no particular order. Enjoy.
Outside – Buju
Buju did not come to play on this track. The talented afro-pop star is unapologetic about his talent because he knows he can’t be replaced by just finding anybody outside.
The artiste’s crisp vocals, harmonizing talent and writing prowess come together to make this song a piece of sonic art.
New Pammy – Cavemen
This track gives Victor Uwaifo vibes. Maybe it’s the trumpets and drums at the beginning or just the nostalgic old-school highlife feel, we just know we love this new Cavemen sound and we will be stuck on it for a while.
Zinoleesky – Gone Far
Zinoleesky never misses. On the Amapiano-inspired Gone Far, he recounts his journey to stardom from social media virality. In a diaristic narration, he touches on his growth spurt from his days of freestyling to becoming a superstar with multiple hit songs. He’s got another potential hit on his hands with this single, no doubt.
La La – T’neeya
T’neeya baring her heart and echoing her commitment to her lover with graceful, sultry melodies, is the energy we love to see. The Cameroonian-born artiste infuses French and pidgin in her lyrics as she dreamily expresses her vulnerability on this R&B song.
Simi – Woman
Drawing inspiration from Fela Kuti’s music, Simi weaves this tune about women’s woes in society today, despite achieving unimaginable feats in their personal lives and careers. A must-listen for everyone.
Bambam – Runda
A sultry Afro-fusion song with a seductive twist to it. Runda expresses his lustful desires for his muse’s body while also making it known to the world that their love is real. Romance!
Champion Sound – Davido
When two African greats come together on a song, you know it’s definitely going to be flames. On this track, it’s the holy trinity once again; Davido, Focalistic, and Amapiano. This is a proper feel-good song garnished with a little bit of bragging lyrics here and there that will leave you feeling like a champion. Easily one of the best jams released this year.
Money bag – Ria Sean
Ria Sean is hypnotizing her listeners with her smooth as silk vocals. On this track she sings about being shiny like diamonds while being a money bag because that’s what she’s chasing. Listeners will love the lo-fi meets high hat energy the beat of this song has.
Testimony – Buju
Buju knows how to write a song and is not afraid to brag about it like he did on his chart topping track ”outside”. Testimony however, takes a different course. On this track he is singing to his love interest not to leave him as revenge for the things that he did wrong. The hook is catchy, fast and perfect for the dance floor.
Formula- Chimzy
This sedately paced song is perfect for a gentle vibe on the dancefloor. Chimzy’s deep pleasing vocals undulate over the love story the song tells. Chimzy is loving the formula of his love interest and wants to love up on her and bite her like a vampire. Her friends are in her ear dissuading her though and Chimzy has no choice but to continue to chase, it’s definitely a song listeners will enjoy.
Ozumba Mbadiwe – Reekado Banks
We absolutely love this one and we forgive Reekado Banks for joining the Amapiano train late. P.prime did a madness on the beat and REEky baby didn’t let him down. He paid tribute to the Endsars protest and the event of october 2020. By the way, if you’ve been looking for him? Catch him on Ozumba Mbadiwe.
Do – Pheropizzle Ft Mohbad & Kagedimes
Pheropizzle starts this track with a nice rhyme pattern that is complimented by his deep voice. He then passed the baton to Mr feel good; Mohbad who equally brought his enjoyable vibes to the song. Together, they both encourage the listeners to loosen up and challenge them by asking “what you gonna do” repeatedly.
Want It All – Burna Boy Ft Polo G
Burnaboy bonds with Polo G on hip-hop track want it all, tracing his path from the trenches to becoming one of the biggest Nigerian superstars. Polo G matches his energy, delivering a verse about honoring dead friends, navigating deception and triumphing.
Down Low – Krosszn
This beautiful love song is soft and pleasant. Krosszn’s clear vocals combined with the sharp snares help paint a picture of tenacious love in the listeners’ minds. The artist keeps chasing his love interest but it’s proving a challenge for him. All in all the song is an enjoyable listen.
Love Nwantiti – Ckay
Two years after its original release, Ckay’s Love Nwantiti makes a return to charts, peaking as the Number 1 most shazamed song in the world for two weeks in a row and geeting certified in about 9 countries. The heavily melodious tune is unarguably a global hit that affords Ckay the chance to represent the culture internationally.
Sexy Papa- Ijekimora
Ijekimora is a fresh face on the Nigerian music scene. She’s offering listener’s fesh vocals and an upbeat vibe with her track Sexy Papa. Though relatively short, this song is definitely one to jump on the dancefloor with.
Sad Girlz Luv Money Remix – Amaarae ft Moliy, Kali Uchis
Oh there’s dollar bills around” is not what you would have expected to hear, from what the title suggests. It’s a waist-winding record for the ones who love to secure the bag.
Peace of Mind – Kdiv Coco
This is another song for lovers. Kdiv coco, a new act shows great potentials as he flexes his euphonious voice. The song is garnished with the right amount of harmonious humming and sweet-sounding melodies that seems addictive. Kdiv sings about the importance of his love interest in his life and how much he’s willing to make her feel special.
Crazy Tings – Tems
Following her traversing into the global market and a recent appearance on Drake’s CLB album, Tems releases the first single ahead of her highly anticipated EP. On the groovy Afrobeat and dancehall fusion backed by guitar strings, Tems demands for space from a toxic situationship she finds herself in. She kicks off the record by calling out her man for always lying and manipulating her, but she eventually asserts that he’s not worth the stress and kicks him to the curb.
Like Me- SGawD & Jess ETA
SGawD and Jess ETA show off their vocals and writing prowess on this ballad. The harmonies on the song are both haunting and sensual, a perfect mix for a good song.
Mood -Wizkid ft Buju
Buju shows once again that he is lyrically compatible with every artiste he hops on a track with. Wizkid and Buju are a seamless, harmonious match on this track about being in the mood to chill their love interest. Can Wizkid miss? We think not!
Ameno Amapiano (Remix) – Goya Menor Ft Nektunez
“You want to bamba?” If you have this line from a famous tik tok sound stuck in your head,you are not alone. We also can’t get enough of the sound and that is why we have searched for it and included it in this week’s essential. On this track, against the background of vibey amapiano beat, Goya spits wisdom. He makes good use of his thick voice and gives priceless advice that will see the listeners through the streets.
Alone – Oladapo
On this track, Oladapo singa about how he wants only his love interest. He’s ready to spend all his money on her alone to secure her love. The song is upbeat and the emotion in the vocals really sells the track to the listener.
Laba Laba – Pandamonae
Pandamonae sings over this dance inducing, jazz infused instrumental. Pandamonae clearly sounds like he’s having a lot of fun with the vocal delivery and lyrics of this song. His excitement is infectious and the listener will hop on his wave too.
Essence – Wizkid ft Tems and Justin Bieber
At first one may be skeptical of Justin hopping on an afrobeats track but like a true artist, he blends in seamlessly, taking a chorus all to himself. Tems’ vocals shine on this track and her signature emotional trill just makes this song the evergreen track that is.
Pray – Victony
His first project after surviving a gruesome accident, Victony is not only grateful for his life, he’s also grateful for the prayers of his mother and loved ones. On the track the chorus goes “they wanna know” multiple times and Victony touts that what he went through, he did alone but his mother’s prayers were with him too.
Joromi – Dagizah ft Mohbad
Dagizah and Mohbad are going to thrill the ears of listeners with this catchy love song. The artistes sing about not wanting their love interests to leave them on rolling basslines and sweet harmonizing vocals.
Money & Laughter – BOJ, Zamir, & Amaarae
On this Trill Xoe produced track an incredible sonic trio take the stage. Amaarae’s soft vocals are a beautiful compliment to BOJ and Zamir’s deeper baritone. The artistes sing a laid back track about being intoxicated by their lovers. Amaarae sings ”you dey high me like pami o”. Listeners will enjoy this sedate paced track about love, drinks and banter.
Party Next Door – Bella Shmurda
A regular awesome duo, Dangbana Republik and Bella Shmurda never go wrong on a track together. Hence, the artists sing about the euphoria of losing themselves in a party from dusk till dawn. The track, which is a delightful mix of an excellent afrobeat instrumental and Yoruba lyrics will set a fire to the feet of every listener.
Alexis Texas- CRUISE GANG & Marv OTM ft SGaWD
CRUISE GANG and Marv OTM are a powerhouse on this moderate-paced track. This track has both early 2000s RnB influences as well as trap influences which were now twisted and blurred together to produce this very catchy song. The sharply delivered lyrics only make the song more enjoyable and catchier for the listeners.
Omo x100 – Reminisce ft Olamide
The kings of street music and indigenous rap come together on this exciting track. Reminisce raps about transitioning from a young club hopping rapper to being a dad and still killing it in rap and film. Olamide takes a more background role with his soft vocals singing the hook. Reminisce also goes on to point out how unsafe life is in the now and how no time is the right time. Listen to this track here.
Don’t hype me – Asake
The beginning of this afrobeats dance jam starts off with many different interludes so much so that when the song finally goes in the afrobeats direction, the listener is left a little surprised. But it’s a nice surprise, the energetic hook and its segway into the ecstatic drums makes for an immersive experience.
Confident – Savage ft Buju
The incredible songwriting skill of Buju is evident on this collab with Savage. The artiste sing about showing off their confidence to their love interests in they are just given a chance to.
I Got It – Princess Mami ft Psycho yp
This artiste is surely carbing her name on the hearts of Nigerian fans. Princess Mami drops the catchiest bars on her verse andis a perfect fit for Psycho YP’s versatile sound. The song comes with a catchy hook and great beats.
Soundgasm – Rema
The young superstar Rema, lands another banger on the airwaves with his new risque song, Soundgasm. Rema is very firmly shaking off the child star image that he possessed and is telling the world he’s grown. Rema delivers well-written verses and vocal harmonies that are sure to please listeners.
Champagne- Ashidapo
This is a feel-good track about spending money and having the time of your life with your chosen people. Ashidapo encourages the people around him to enjoy their lives as he has the money to spend on drinks to celebrate.
LV N ATTN
This trio of talent is almost too much for one song to handle. With Sarz on the beat and Wizzy and Lojay on the mic, listeners are introduced to a soft reggae-influenced vibe. The smooth vocals, gentle beat, and relatable lyrics make this song an easy one to love.
Ayewada – Barry Jhay
Barry Jhay belts out his mind with his lyrics on this street music influenced high energy song. He makes use of pauses and fast lyrics to maintain the energy of the song and even if a listener does not understand the lyrics verbatim, they can’t miss the effortless energy Barry injects into the track.
Kizo- TMP ft Bella Shmurda
This fast paced track starts off with an intense riff by a saxophone which sets the tone for the rest of the song. On this track, the artistes sing about not begging for love and to go where the enjoyment is.
Beautifully – Fave
Fave immediately holds down listeners with her full, round vocals. The song moves at a steady, sedate pace, allowing listeners to marinate fully in the lyrics and tune of the track. Fave is evolving her sound and it looks like she has even more in store for her fans
Feeling – Ladipoe ft Buju
The duo on this track switch effortlessly between the hook and their verses. LADIPOE’s smooth intricate metaphors will excite listeners while Buju brings the heat with amazing vocals.
Closer – DITEH
The first thing that leaps out at a listener on this track is the amazing vocals. DITEH combines the power of his voice with a catchy, beautiful melody to capture the heart of listeners.
Kilometer – Burna Boy
The Grammy award-winning African Giant hops back on the scene in may to remind everyone he is a master at creating catchy, interesting, and enjoyable songs. The fast paced beat and enthralling vocals will have listeners willing to dance for many kilometers with Burna Boy. The record is an enjoyable jam through and through. Burna Boy is not afraid to mix his afrobeats and reggaeton influences in the playful lyrics of the song.
Kiloshefe – Zinoleesky
This track shot artiste, Zinoleesky to the limelight of the Nigerian music game. Not only does the songs pacing some as a surprise his seamless use of indegenous street music and his own personal sound makes this track a love at first listen.
Bling – Blaqbones ft Buju and Amaarae
Everybody brought their A-game to this track. Every verse was a delight to listen to. The track has a relaxed pace with interesting beats and immersive lyrics.
Amaarae and Buju bring their energy and amazing vocals, harmonizing in the second half of the song. Blaqbonez deserves props for his growth as an artiste especially on his new project Sex>Love.
God save the Queen – Olu
If you love somber ambient tunes, Olú is the artiste for you. on this beautiful track, she sings of pain and healing. The lyrics focus on how long it took her to get to the point where she could speak freely about her painful experience.
Tumble – Yinoluu & Riverays
Yinoluu and Riverays are a dynamic duo on this soft, ambient track. On this track, the artistes sing for their love interests to tumble down the road of intense emotions with them. With their echoing voices, listeners are led down an enjoyable listen to a great song.
From Time- ElDray ft MosstheFireman & Blessed the Minstrel
This song embodies the sentiments of this season of love and couldn’t have dropped at a better time. The constant shifting within the song from slow to fast paced rap is unexpected and enjoyable. Moss, Blessed and ElDray effortlessly merge their individual sounds into this smoothie of love for all listeners to enjoy.
Kritikal – Kobi Jonz
Kobi Jonz paints a disappointing yet crystal clear image of the current political climate across the diaspora and local scenes. The track opens with a passionate speech berating the government for their lack of decisive policies and provision for youth. Kobi Jonz along with a bold saxophone accompaniment encourages listeners to put their heads down and seize their future with their own hands.
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