Next Rated

Meet Aminat Yusuf, LASU’s Best Graduating Student with a Perfect 5.0 CGPA

Aminat Yusuf, an exceptional law student at Lagos State University (LASU), has etched her name in the annals of academic excellence. With an impressive 5.0 Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA), she has become the first undergraduate in LASU’s history to achieve such a remarkable feat. In this profile article, we delve into the inspiring journey... Read More

5.0 CGPA, Aminat Yusuf, best Graduating student, Lagos State University (LASU)

Next Rated

YNaija Next Rated: Discover Jahblend, SOLIS, Moshfire, and KØKØ

This month’s roundup of Next Rated interviews features a dancehall/reggae artiste, a promising Afrobeats act and two female indie pop singers. Here they are: Jahblend In today’s overcrowded music landscape where individuality is dwindling, Lagos-based dancehall/reggae artiste Jahblend is worth noticing. On SoundCloud, where he’s uploaded dancehall covers for Dave’s Burna Boy-featured Location and YCee’s Juice with Maleek Berry, was an... Read More

Jahblend, KØKØ, Moshfire, SOLIS, YNaija Next Rated

SOLIS

SOLIS is ruling her universe of bedroom pop

No one had introduced me to SOLIS. I learned – as I often always do – about her last year on Apple Music through random shuffling and heard her 2019 song Can’t Breathe. The track’s cover image had a close-up of her face inverted, lips ajar, in black-and-white and oozed a certain kind of mystique.... Read More

Angel, Can't Breathe, Fuck Boy Kiss Girls, Ruled by Venus Unfortunately, SOLIS, SOLIS Body Signal

Phaemous

Phaemous navigates attraction and desire in new single ‘Girl in Garden’

With his debut EP Phaeway Vol. 1 released earlier this year, emerging Abuja-based singer Phaemous showed an inclination towards blending genres. Coasting through with a digital warping of his voice, Phaemous disrupts the boundaries around sounds, resulting in a seamless experimental fusion. In his latest single, Girl in Garden, the singer combines minamalist RnB, a... Read More

Girl in Garden, Phaemous

Euphoria

PsychoYP feels on top of the world in blissful new single ‘Euphoria’

PsychoYP is arguably trap’s most visible correspondent in Nigeria, garnering goodwill across hip hop fandoms. In his latest single Euphoria – his first of the year – and produced by Ramoni, the rapper blends minimalist RnB, drill, hip hop, Afroswing into some kind of cathartic, narco-rap bop. The neon, sizzling opening aside, PsychoYP chronicles his... Read More

PsychoYP Euphoria

Jahblend

Jahblend is the fresh prince of Nigerian dancehall

In today’s overcrowded music landscape where individuality is dwindling, Lagos-based dancehall/reggae artiste Jahblend is worth noticing. On SoundCloud, where he’s uploaded dancehall covers for Dave’s Burna Boy-featured Location and YCee’s Juice with Maleek Berry, was an interesting exercise in artistry and showmanship. Although dancehall/reggae music has been around for some time, Jahblend is looking to... Read More

Black on Black, By Force, Compos Mentis EP, Embargo, Jahblend

Gyakie

Gyakie delivers summer vibes on visuals for ‘Whine’

Referred to as the Queen of the Gold Coast in her home country Ghana, where her debut EP Seed was met with critical acclaim, Gyakie was catapulted into the international arena when her song Forever stormed its way across the continent of Africa, and beyond, entering the US Billboard Triller chart at #4. A collaboration was... Read More

Gyakie Seed, Gyakie Whine, Seed EP

KØKØ is the new Afrobeats artiste you should know about

KØKØ’s debut EP Akira may have slipped through the cracks when it was released back in January, but it’s still an impressive project from the young, Lagos-based Afrobeat artiste. It’s also worth returning to, especially the replay worthiness of tracks like Monalisa with its majestic Yoruba interludes and sprightly, sublime production. Akira draws cohesion from... Read More

Ambush KØKØ, KØKØ, KØKØ Akira EP, KØKØ Monalisa

Ayra

Ayra Starr travels to the future in sultry visuals for ‘Sare’

It was back in January that Don Jazzy announced the signing of Ayra Starr to his Marvin empire, the 18-year-old talent who hijacked industry attention with her earnest, billowing vocals and star persona. It helps that Starr is in terminal teenagehood, able to harvest experiences around romantic relationships as candidly as writing them in a... Read More

Ayra Starr, Don Jazzy, Sare video

Moshfire

Moshfire on her debut EP ‘Pyrokinesis Vol. 1’ and being a pop outlier

Navigating the music industry as an emerging artiste can be difficult, more so when they are breaking away from popular sounds. For 21-year-old Moshfire whose debut EP Pyrokinesis Vol. 1 arrived this week, she’s up for the challenge. Pyrokinesis Vol. 1 is a lo-fi, slowcore project smouldering between dream pop and chillwave. Listeners are going... Read More

Body Heat, Oh Oh Desire, Osidele Mosopefoluwa Oluwagbeminiyi, Pyrokinesis Vol 1 EP

Next Rated

YNaija Next Rated: Discover Jason Nkanga, Naya Akanji, Straffitti, RnB Princess, and Droxx

YNaija’s Next Rated is still geared towards spotlighting undiscovered, under-the-radar artistes in Nigeria, regardless of music genres, or bring up acts who have been in the industry for a while and yet people don’t know. The vertical is also particular about documenting new female artistes and those from marginalised communities. This month of May saw... Read More

Droxx, Jason Nkanga, Naya Akanji, Next rated, RnB Princess, Straffitti

Droxx

Droxx is the drill rapper you should know about. But he’s also more

What is true about Nigeria’s drill rap scene is that it’s in its infancy. Likewise trap music which it evolved from, drill is bubbling with its own underground purveyors, a decidedly masculine culture that’s more than just the music but also has embraced drill as a lifestyle. Enter Droxx, whose latest EP Riot was out... Read More

234Drill, Droxx, Riot EP

Lazyzee Ella returns with sexy new single ‘Body on Me’

Although emerging rapper Lazyzee Ella has been cultivating a SoundCloud presence with songs like Cheating Ass and SoSoDef, it was the 2020 single Sober that caught the attention of industry insiders and the larger music landscape. Perhaps it’s the superior production compared to her previous singles, the shimmering synths heralding her message of romantic intent.... Read More

Body on me, Lazyzee Ella, sober

Naya Akanji

Get to know Naya Akanji, the pop/RnB singer with grand ambitions

While the music landscape is mushrooming with new and emerging artistes, not many have their sound so distinctly fine-tuned and infectious. Indie singer Naya Akanji is one to notice and acknowledge, self-assured in her lyrical delivery and individuality. That much is evident in her debut EP Vivid Emotions released last year, a joint project with... Read More

company, Lemar Abdul, Naya Akanji, No Words, Ojoro, Vivid Emotions EP

Gabzy

Gabzy delivers intoxicating new single ‘Pull Up’

Gabzy’s sonic identity has been his relaxed, casual vocals laid over precisely programmed beats. This was well-established on his sophomore EP Malone released last year, running through themes of love, attraction, vulnerability and desire. ”I feel like it’s just a reflection of me. I feel like I’m a vibe. I’m just chilled and laid back... Read More

Gabzy, Malone EP, pull up

RnB Princess

Discover the RnB world of RnB Princess

The RnB genre in Nigeria’s music scene may have lost its competitive edge, a feature that qualified the sound in the 2010’s with the female cadre of artistes like Tiwa Savage, Saeon, Ms Jaie, Waje, Omawumi and so on. And although it is re-emerging and colliding with hazy sounds of today, there are some acts... Read More

Fuga the Pirate, Love Memoires, Princess Onyinye Okoh, RnB Princess

Fave

Fave is lovestruck with new single ‘Beautifully’

With the release of her debut heartfelt RnB single M.OM.M.S in 2019, Fave showed promise that was quite impossible for her to be ignored. Building momentum as an emerging artiste in an overpopulated industry can be daunting. Born Godsfavour Chidozie, Fave is taking her time. Her subsequent singles N.B.U and DAL (Dead Ass Love), both... Read More

Beautifully Fave, DAL, Fave, MOMMS, NBU

Straffiti

Straffitti on being a rapper, exploring genres and pursuing other creative paths

Nigeria’s trap scene is bewitching enough to amass its own loyal fans, its muted glamour seen in the pockets of social media interactions, distressed, minimalist fashion and insular parties. When trap does explode into the mainstream and surely it will, 23-year-old Straffitti would be one of its correspondents, emerging not just to maintain the status... Read More

Endless EP, Molotov album, Olawale Olukolade, Straff from Nigeria EP, Straffitti, Thirsty Worldwide, Vanilla Sky EP

Keziah Mallam

Keziah Mallam delivers romantic intent on latest single ‘Over and Over’

”I sing, I write, I play a little guitar and keys and I kinda sorta produce,” reads the SoundCloud bio of UK-based Nigerian RnB singer Keziah Mallam. Keziah’s may have a paltry discography on the platform, but there’s already a promising depth and ability to express in herself without restraint. Songs like Lovedown Song, In... Read More

Keziah Mallam, Over and Over

RnB Princess

RnB Princess moves on from a dysfunctional relationship in new single ‘Be Gone’

New acts getting a foot into the music scene is always interesting to watch, but it induces a good feeling when these acts are women. Introducing indie artiste RnB Princess has been doing music for some time now, with her debut EP Love Memoires released last year. Also, adventurously, doing a cover of Sade Ade’s... Read More

Be Gone, Fuga the Pirate, Noiz producer, RnB Princess

Jason Nkanga

Get to know Jason Nkanga who is living his dreams through rap

Nigeria’s rap scene is currently a wellspring of emerging acts. Even without the backing of record labels, social media and streaming platforms are intersecting to give them a lick of visibility. 22-year-old Jason Nkanga, based in Brighton, England, is one of such discoveries. His debut project Beyond My Imagination released in 2016 is curiously textured... Read More

Beyond My Imagination, Jason Nkanga, Jason Nkanga Brighton, Redemption EP, The Art of Rap

YNaija Next Rated: Discover Dara Blaxx, Tochi Bedford, Jess ETA, and Remi Baggins

YNaija’s Next Rated is always looking for new and under-the radar music talents. And coming off from last month’s roundup wherein we interviewed emerging artistes like Merry-Lynn, Brum3h, Jarell Ebuka and Phaemous, we are rounding up on the artiste interviews we had in April. Dara Blaxx Born in Lagos, soul/RnB singer Dara Blaxx moved to... Read More

Arrhythmia EP, Balanace EP, Dara Blaxx, Eternal Mob, Jess ETA, Remi Baggins, Tochi Bedford

Tochi BedFord

Discover Tochi Bedford, the rapper-producer leading a producer collective

Opening Tochi Bedford’s debut project Eternal Mob is Bros, a whispery, trippy rap song that somehow blends the fragile sensibilities of emo and the cutthroat awareness of traditional hip hop. Out of the eight tracks on Eternal Mob which features a handful of emerging rappers like $B, Dndsection and KD, no other song sounds like... Read More

44db collective, After Eternity, Eternal Mob Tochi, Tochi Bedford

Cheque History

Superboy Cheque and Fireboy DML are unstoppable in the video for ‘History’

About two weeks ago, fast-rising singer-rapper Superboy Cheque featured Fireboy DML on History, his first song of the year and produced by talented beatmaker Andyr. History finds a way of accomodating the sonic styles of both artistes without being overstuffed. Now, Cheque has released the video which plays into the theme of gang rivalry. Narratively,... Read More

Fireboy DML, History video, Superboy Cheque

Ogranya Rendevouz

Ogranya makes observations on the hook up scene with new single ‘Rendezvous’

Fresh off from releasing his bouncy, club-inspired EP Treasure, Ogranya’s latest single Rendezvous is still as sonically uncompromising as one would expect from the eclectic singer-songwriter. Warm and ambient, with his intimate breathy vocals, Ogranya makes astute observations on sexual encounters. “On a scale from one to ten, we’ve moved through different levels,” he sings... Read More

Ogranya, Rendevouz

Jess ETA

Discover the sonic world of singer-producer Jess ETA

”Abuja is budding with talents of different forms. The music scene has alot of potential to produce tons of top names on the Nigerian stage andeven worldwide eventually,” says 22-year-old Jess ETA who is based in Abuja, an indie singer-songwriter and producer whose music is characterised by warm, squishy synthesizers, inhabiting the sonic tics and... Read More

Aphrodite EP, Balance EP, Jess ETA, Pull Me Close

Merry-Lynn

Merry-Lynn returns with personal clarity on new single ‘Runaway’

Off her sophomore EP Runaway forthcoming this year, emerging soul singer-songwriter Merry-Lynn has released the lead single of the same name. It is her first single of the year since releasing her debut project Petrichor in 2019. What is sweetly omnipresent on Runaway is the electric guitar, an abiding presence that has shaped Merry-Lynn’s sonic... Read More

Merry-Lynn, Runaway EP

Dara Blaxx

Dara Blaxx on her debut EP ‘Arrhythmia’ and making music at her own pace

Last month saw emerging RnB and soul singer, Dara Blaxx, release her debut EP Arrhythmia, which spins tales of vulnerability, heartbreak and intimacy. She takes the title directly from the medical term that defines irregular heartbeat, placing it as a parallel for the relatable themes she embraces in the project. The result is confident, enchanting... Read More

Arrhythmia, Arrhythmia EP, Dara Blaxx, Dara Blaxx Southampton

Remy Baggins

Remy Baggins on making music and getting inspiration from anime

Arriving the music scene with his debut mixtape VIV in 2016, Remy Baggins has always expressed a duality in singing and rapping. Perhaps that explains the effervescence that runs through the project, full of playful charm and cohesive themes about love and relationships. Also, VIV was an introduction to how Remy could hermetically contain ideas... Read More

Amaterasu, Eigengrau, Hentai, Remy Baggins, Sakura, Urenmisan Solo-Edema, VIV

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