Asake upkeeps tradition on Lungu Boy

16 Aug 2024 - 08:31

Published under the Creative Commons Licence

All albums are a gamble, but by the time an artist reaches his third, he is in a particularly delicate spot. We are familiar with his sound and message; we may even be growing accustomed to – or weary of – it. However, the real challenge lies in maintaining creative autonomy while avoiding monotony and risking alienating core fans. For Nigerian fuji-pop apostle Asake, the solution is in subtle reinvention.

Asake.

On his recently released Lungu Boy album (YBNL Nation/ EMPIRE), Asake demonstrates conviction that the point of becoming a global superstar is to gain the licence to take risks. After all, isn’t that what fans and critics alike have been asking for – a break from the melodic sameness that has plagued Afrobeats in recent years? Having entrenched himself in Afrobeats’ top tier, Asake can afford to experiment – though not as radically as ‘Calm Down’ star Rema with his sophomore LP HEIS, which blends frantic traditional music with dark ritualistic elements – but risks nonetheless.

Conceptually, Lungu Boy continues the stories Asake has been telling since his debut Mr Money With the Vibe: tales of hustle, love, and the pursuit of success. But here, they are delivered with a depth indicative of an artist who is growing not just in fame, but in an understanding of himself and what surrounds him.

The project shines on balance; expanding his spectrum while retaining the unmistakable sonic integrity that made him a pop staple. It draws directly from its author’s humble beginnings, its title rooted in local street slang for “ghetto.” This gritty, streetwise outlook has long fuelled big dreams.

Asake has never been confined by genre. His sound, defined by native pulses – specifically fuji music – has habitually been folded into Afropop and amapiano, Yoruba being his primary linguistic vehicle. Yet, Lungu Boy presents a more liberal approach. Fuji meets everything from hip hop to festival music of all varieties: samba, dancehall, electro…The project also features more guest appearances than its predecessors, which have never exceeded two. Lungu Boy boasts five, including fellow Nigerian popstar Wizkid (‘MMS’), British rappers Central Cee (‘Wave’) and Stormzy (‘Suru’), US act Travis Scott (‘Active’), and Brazilian singer Ludmila (‘Whine’).

Every superstar has a lungu story. ‘MMS’, which opens the project and provides its thematic backbone, entails a contemplative exchange between two of Nigeria’s biggest stars – one a veteran of more than 10 years and the other a fresh titan. Muted trumpets and delicate guitar picking underscore their musings on the importance of gratitude, and the need to take things slow. It’s a subdued start, but hardly surprising about an Asake album, whose draw depends first on raw emotion and relatable storytelling before much else. Among anthems that solidified Wizkid’s legitimacy is ‘Ojuelegba’, which honours Surulere, the Lagos district that witnessed his coming of age. Surulere surfaces on Lungu Boy in ‘Suru’, where Stormzy’s baritone anchors a blend of amapiano log drums and rap swagger.

‘Worldwide’ acknowledges his growing global impact, or bold steps toward achieving that, while ‘Wave’, fusing Afropop with grime, permits Central Cee’s gritty London flow alongside Asake’s folk-inspired harmonies. Meanwhile, ‘Active’ delves into, and then reinterprets boom-bap-influenced elements that dominate American hip hop, while ‘Whine’ oozes dancehall syncopation.

African pop is not a monolith, and Asake, a Grammy nominee who now commands tens of thousands at his shows worldwide, is keen on trumpeting that. He’s due to return to London’s O2 Arena – a venue he sold out in 2022 – in the coming weeks. There, Lungu Boy’s closing track ‘Fuji Vibe’, drum-heavy and boasting a call-and-response template that also demands dance, will feature heavily.

A notable prophetic reading about Asake when he first broke out in 2020 was that he was a disruptor and buoyant new force. These days, that initial frenzy attending the discovery of a fresh pop phenom has all but faded (a hype now enjoyed by a Gen Z brigade led by Shallipopi). Nonetheless, Lungu Boy remains true to Asake’s boundary-pushing spirit – only less conspicuously.