Made In Lagos (This Is Not An Album Review)
The deconstruction of Wizkid's latest LP 'Made In Lagos' and why critics should understand the context of this album.
In 2019, two films from my favourite directors came out - ‘The Irishman’ (Martin Scorsese) and ‘Once Upon A Time In Hollywood’ (Quentin Tarantino).
Both movies are notable markers in the illustrious careers of Scorsese and Tarantino. Apart from sharing the same theme - “the waning of an alpha-male primacy”, both films are slow paced projects of passion. The Irishman is not the flashy ‘Casino’. ‘Once Upon A Time In Hollywood’ is no ‘Django Unchained’.
The two auteurs are at a point in their careers where they don’t have to show out. Their filmography speaks for them. They now have the creative license to do whatever they please.
This is where Nigerian pop sensation Wizkid is at right now.
His fourth solo album ‘Made In Lagos’, an ode to the sub-Saharan concrete jungle that is the birthplace of Afrobeats, possesses a glacial, stress-free vibe to it. The album does not reflect the ingenuity, hustle, heat, grind, grit and sultriness of Lagos (or as the kids call it these days of La [Lay], La [Lay]).
And this is not a bad thing especially if you belong to Machala’s cult fan base - Wizkid FC. For others who do not belong to that fan base, Made In Lagos might be a puzzling body of work, a project that detaches itself from the sonic trends from the Afrobeats HQ.
You have to listen to Made In Lagos with two contexts in mind; Wizkid is done with the contemporary Afrobeats sound and the rising influence of London in this genre of music.
After a decade of influence, impact, breaking records, smashing records, pushing the frontier, driving the Afrobeats culture, Wizkid has attained an elder statesman status in the game. And at this point, he has the creative license not to maintain the fast pace of the genre’s dance movement or the sultriness of the new gen.
Right now, Wizzy wants to light a blunt, open a bottle of wine and have dinner with the lady in his life. Made In Lagos is made up of slow grooves and melodies. There is no rush to it. There is no sense of urgency to deliver. Wizkid is content at doing things at his own pace and ignoring the trends in the process.
Wizkid’s elite status permeates the mood of MIL. This is an album you blast at 2 a.m while cruising on Bourdillon Road in an Aston Martin DB11 Convertible with a peng ting from East London by your side.
Contemporary Nigerian pop music has always been aspirational and excessively materialistic. ‘Maserati’ by Olakira is one of the hottest songs of 2020. Won’t it be odd if Wizkid is making this type of music at this stage in his career? If you want this type of Wizkid, go and stream his sophomore album ‘Ayo (Joy)’ [2014] where he was peak materialism.
On this album, Wizkid isn’t singing about luxury brands or cars. He is at that level where materialism is not an aspiration anymore. So what does he do? He releases an album where he soaks up his achievement now that he is in the 1% class of elite stars.
MIL is when a Lagos hustler has made it in life and is now enjoying the view of the sunset on the island of Mykonos. It’s not for everybody. It’s sort of like when JAY-Z started rapping about art on ‘Magna Carta Holy Grail’ and it flew over a lot of people’s heads. This is an acquired taste.
Secondly, while Lagos is in the title of this album, the city of inspiration is more London than Lago De Curamo.
In the explosion of Afrobeats of the world, London has been an amplifier in spreading the culture and sound. The Lagos-London musical highway has helped stretch the boundaries and influence of contemporary Nigerian pop music.
London, which boasts of a strong Nigerian community now has its own Afrobeats hybrid -Afroswing with many acts of Nigerian or West African heritage jumping on it.
Made In Lagos suits the grey skies of London more than the hot weather of Lagos. It’s a chilled offering to the place where Wizkid spends most of his time. For many artists, their surroundings reflect the type of music they make and MIL is more London than Lagos.
If you listen to the new-gen princes, Rema, JoeBoy, Omah Lay and Fire Boy or skim through the music of consistent hit makers like Mayorkun, Peruzzi, Kizz Daniel and others, nothing sounds like what you hear on Made In Lagos. And these guys are at the forefront of the music culture in Nigeria right now.
Wizkid has been the wave for a great part of the last decade. Now, with a new generation dominating and influencing the sound, his album signifies that he is ready to cash in on his O.G status and make music that soothes him more than pleasing the crowd. And there is nothing wrong in that.
Bonus
The Best 5 Tracks On Made In Lagos
‘Ginger’ featuring Burna Boy - Their bromance has produced another impressive collabo. Sidebar - ‘Jah Love Is True’ is their best collaboration till date.
‘Smile’ featuring H.E.R - Nothing beats the lead single of this album. The bassline is more wicked than Nollywood step-mothers.
‘True Love’ featuring Tay - OMG! Where has this Tay been all these years? In 2014, when the word alte hardly registered on our timelines, Tay dropped one of the four alte classic albums with ‘Passport’. While his subsequent albums have garnered critical acclaim they are yet to reach the cult status of Passport. Sidebar - the other alte classics are ‘Time of Our Lives’ (2016) by Odunsi, ‘Suzie’s Funeral’ (2016) by Santi and ‘Enjoy Your Life’ (2019) by Lady Donli.
‘Essence’ featuring Tems - Well...Tems is on it. What else?
‘Grace’ - The album closer. Wizkid is on the money with this..not many can run his race which has been a marathon.
My Exclusive Interview With Olamide Badoo
Nigerian rap legend Olamide recently dropped his latest body of work ‘Carpe Diem’. A couple of weeks ago I had the opportunity to interview the YBNL boss.
What struck me about Olamide during the interview is his hustler’s mentality. At this point he is not settling down. He wants to start all over again. Forget about his status. His legacy. His pop culture dominance. It’s a new beginning for Olamide.
He also spoke about working with new acts, what he looks for in artists before he signs them and the #EndSARS protest.
You can read the interview HERE
234 Essential Podcast
Also, listen to the latest episode of my podcast 234 Essential. On this episode, my co-host, Ugochi, and I speak on what next after the police brutality protests and violence.
Listen HERE
234 Essential Podcast is produced by Visual Audio Times. If you want your podcast to be professionally produced, promoted and distributed, reach out to Visual Audio Times.
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