Rolling Stone, America’s leading bi-weekly music magazine that focuses on pop culture, has bestowed the ultimate flattery this 2014 on Nigerian musician Ayodeji Ibrahim Balogun popularly known as Wizkid. The leading music industry publication lists Wizkid’s ‘Ayo’ album as one of fifteen great albums you did not hear in 2014. I guess that puts all the statements about Wizkid no longer making great music to rest.
‘Ayo’ is Wizkid’s sophomore (second studio) album which was released on September 17, 2014 under his Starboy Entertainment Record label and Banky W’s Empire Mates Entertainment. Wizkid released his freshman album in 2011 titled ‘Superstar.’
Great publicity and promotion for Wizkid and EME who both, needless to say, should benefit from album sales and accompanying royalties.
-Uduak
Excerpt:
“After releasing his breakthrough Superstar LP in 2011, Nigerian rapper Wizkid prepped its follow-up with three years of irresistible features and unstoppable club bangers. Arriving in September, Ayo placed the biggest of the latter alongside new tracks that grab slang from Jamaica and salute women with a “bum bum bigger than Bombay.” Throughout, the 24-year-old uses deft, nimble flows to glide over complex beats and he writes hooks that will keep you humming for weeks. As British-Ghanaian rapper Fuse ODG says in the title of his debut LP, another excellent 2014 release, T.I.N.A: This is new Africa.
Rolling Stone has the full story.
Music Videos Promoting ‘Ayo’ Album
Show You the Money – Almost 3million views (Released July 2014)
On Top of Your Matter – 1Million + Views (Released March 2014)
Jaiye Jaiye – Approaching 4Million Views (Released October 2013)
I'm not impressed. Typically what happens here in America, at this time of year, is that journalists turn into music snobs and try to stuff their "Best Of" lists with artists they think no one has heard of, in an attempt to appear "in the know". This is just like when Reminisce was featured on some Time magazine list.
The question we should be asking is "why didn't they review Wizkid's album when it came out?" If they were so fond of it, why didn't they help to promote it? Why didn't they review Fuse ODG's album? Why haven't they done a large scale feature on all the current strides in African music?
The answer is that they haven't been paying attention to Africa. They just did a few Google searches for their "best Of" list, and came up with Fuse and Wiz. Now they sound hip to all of their other music snob friends.
*:)*