Issue 39 // February 2017 // Complimentary Issue
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Issue 39 // February 2017
NEXT AFROPOLITAN VIBEs SHOW WILL BE ON FRIDAY march 17TH, 2017 SEE YOU THEN! 1
Issue 39 // February 2017
Happy New Year Everyone! The greeting is late in coming because we took a well deserved break in January after the stresses and exhilaration of our first ever music festival. There is much work to be done in order to build the platform and make it THE annual live music event that will make us all proud and attract people to our dear city of Lagos. We are excited to make the next one bigger and even better. In addition to the annual festival , we have many plans in store for Afropolitan Vibes and we will expland onthat in due course. Until then - welcome to the very first magazine edition of 2017 and the 44th edition of Afropolitan Vibes. We hope you enjoy both!
We profile our three guest artists: Ice Prince, Jaywon and Lindsey Abudei.
edition We feature some of our favourite pictures from the first ever Afropolitan Vibes Music Festival which was held on the 16 &17th December 2016.
You can email us with your thoughts at info@afropolitanvibes@gmail.com We also read all comments and respond to questions on all of our social media platforms We have a limited number of back issues of Afropolitan Vibes magazine. If you would like a copy, please contact us via email or on+234-803-493-7094
Editor: Abby Ogunsanya
Cover Image: Dohdohndawa Photography
Guest artist profiles: Ettobe David Meres Wale Adeosun Lucia Edafioka
Guest artists' pictures: Courtesy of subjects
Graphic Design: Samad Smett Ade
Show pictures: Dohdohndawa Photography
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Contact and advertising enquiries: info@afropolitanvibes.com Tel: + 234-803-4937094
EVERYBODY LOVES
ICE PRINCE By Ettobe David Meres
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apper Ice Prince’s hit singles have a beat that makes it great for the dance floor, and a tenderness which makes it cool to listen to. For a rapper, this is rare. Few rappers can control both the flow of a beat and spitting of bars in such a way that while dancing to the song, you are forced to listen attentively as well. This is why the video of Oleku, one of his hit singles, has had over 3.9 million views on YouTube. Oleku exceeded eleven thousand downloads within hours of its release, and has since been downloaded over 5 million times. Little wonder Ice Prince has another hit single, suitably titled Superstar. The superstar now known as Ice Prince was born Panshak Zamani, to Mr. & Mrs. Nasara Zamani, on the 23rd of October 1986. Two years later the Zamanis moved from Minna where he was born to settle in Jos. Eleven years after their relocation, the patriarch of the Zamani family died.
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Issue 39 // February 2017
‘‘When my dad was alive, life was pretty much rosy but I lost my Dad in 1999 and it was my Mum that was taking care of me up until she died too’’, Ice Prince said in a Bella Naija interview. But this did not deter Ice Prince from pursuing his passion. In 2002, when he was still in Science Tutorial College Jos, he and a couple of friends formed a rap group called ECOMOG squad. When the group disbanded, Ice Prince joined the choir in his church and surprisingly, sang the tenor. All of this prepared him to seize the opportunity when it appeared in the form of a friendship with a returnee from the United States, MI Abaga. In 2009 despite competition from the likes of Bez, Mo Cheddah, Blaize and Jimmy Flames, Ice Prince won the Hennesy Artistry competition for urban and contemporary music. The win brought money and recognition, and led to a record deal with the Chocolate City Group. Ice Prince has two intimately titled albums: Everybody Loves Ice Prince (20102011), and Fire of Zamani (2012-2013). The first album got its title from the outpouring of love he received after his mother’s death. ‘‘What made me give my album that name was when I lost my Mum, really. There was so much love, so much care from all around the world. People really showedme love and it was after that incident that I came back to record my album and I thought what better name to call my album than Everybody Loves Ice Prince because I was shown love, said Ice Prince. Fans, fellow artistes, critics and corporate organisations love Ice Prince alike: Fans — his Twitter handle @Iceprincezamani has over 1 million followers, over 1.5 milli on likes on Facebook, and about 2 million followers on Instagram. Fellow artistes — he has collaborated with WizKid, M.I Abaga, Jesse Jagz, Brymo, Banky W, amongst others.
Critical acclaim — Winner BET Award 2013 International Act Africa; BET Award 2013 Best Hip-Hop Artist of the Year; 2013 Channel O Music Video Awards Most Gifted Hip-Hop Video of the Year; The Headies Best Rap Single 2011; The Headies Best Rap Album 2012; and many more. Corporate endorsement — Ice Prince is a brand ambassador to one of the biggest telecommunication firms in Nigeria. In 2015 this superstar turned boardroom boss when he was appointed Vice President of Chocolate City Music. And last year he floated his own label, Super Cool Cats, which is a subdivision of Chocolate City Music. Now, almost seven years since Oleku was released, the suggestive refrain ‘Feeling the boy eh. She feeling the boy yeah, yeah’, hints more at the longevity of our love for Ice Prince than anything else. We felt him then. We still feel him now.
Twitter & Instagram: @Iceprincezamani
Ettobe David Meres lives in Abuja, but keeps moving back to Lagos every year. Twitter: @Ettobe
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Issue 37 // November 2016 Issue 39 // February 2017
Ja w n By Lucia Edafioka
In 2012, Iledare Olajuwonlo’s song titled ‘ Odun Yi’ (This Year) became adopted as a national prayer by Nigerians. This, in turn, made the self-acclaimed prince of hip-hop, who sang with the stage name Jaywon, an instantly recognizable name in all corners of the country.
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Issue 39 // February 2017
B
orn on June 6, 1986, Jaywon grew up in the Yoruba parts of Kogi state. He attended ECWA Primary School, Government Secondary School in Kogi State, before moving to Niger State Polytechnic, Bida for his tertiary education where he bagged a National Diploma in Accounts. Jaywon started recording music in 2004 during his Industrial Training in Abuja, but according tohim in an interview, Abuja became too dull forhim and he moved to Lagos to hustle and bustle. In Lagos, Jaywon did odd jobs to survive while he waited for his big break. He worked as a bar man, a motor boy in a pure water company, a house cleaner, a bus conductor, and then later inan events company where he was in charge of setting upchairs and canopies. While working, he continued to record and perform in small shows in and around Festac. He soon became quite popular in Festac and everyone knew he was an upcoming artist, finding collaborations with Ray G, Sound Sultan, W4, Slizzy E and 2face.
Jaywon took a bow out of Kennis Music after recording two albums— Meet with Jaywon and Odun Yi — in 2013 upon the expiration of his contract. Following in the footsteps of his predecessors who also left Kennis Music, Jaywon launched his own label, Next World Music. Under Next world Music, Jaywon released four singles; ‘ Madantin’ in 2014 featuring Phyno, Olamide and May D, ‘Back to Sender’ featuring rapper Vector tha Viper, 'Tanawole' with Reminisce and with Reekado Banks “ Gbadun” all in anticipation for his third studio album, Oba Orin which translates to'King of Songs' Oba Orin, a 21 track album was officially released in April 2016 featuring Oritse Femi, Reekado Banks, 9ice, Tiwa Savage, Reminisce, Small Doctor, Sojay, Obesere and Mode 9. The singer, song writer, performer and philanthropist, gave the return of the first two weeks sale of the album toan Orphanage. He attended the 2016 ACIA Awards in Atlanta, United States and was awarded the “ Best IndigenousAct” award. “ By the end of the album, you get a feeling that Jaywon has poured out his soul, connecting his influences and having his very creative essence flowing through you. It’s like Jaywon performed personally for you, in a crowded local venue,” said Abiola Solanke of Pulse.ng in his review of the album. Andin the years following the incredible success of ‘ This Year’it seems Jaywon has chosen this path to staying in relevance: understanding the music scene and striving to produce just the kind of sounds where his fans will find his soul and hopefully discover a prayer, nourishment, and entertainment for theirs.
That big break finally came in form of the star-studded Kennis Music Easter Fiesta in 2009, where he was listed among the artists to perform. Jaywon made such a huge impression on the organisers that Keke Ogungbe of Kennis Music, described him as“ one of the most recognisable voices in the industry,” well before this became a face. He was subsequently signed to Kennis Music Record Label that same year. Jaywon went on to clinch the Best New Artist award at the Nigerian Music Video Awards in the same 2009 for his breakout song, Filebe. He released 'Odun Yi (This Year)' in December 2012, and it remains his biggest hit till date. With “Odun Yi”,he received the Best Recording award at the Headies Awards 2013 and the Tush Awards. “ Odun Yi” also bagged Jaywon his first endorsement deal with baby products company, PZ Cusson to enable the company use ‘ Odun Yi’ for promotional purposes.
Twitter & Instagram: @jaywonjuwonlo
Lucia Edafioka is a writer, music junkie and historian.
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Issue 39 // February 2017
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Issue 39 // February 2017
MEET THE
HEIRESS OF SOUL By Kola Tubosun
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igerian-born Lindsey Abudei is a Neo Soul singer/songwriter, performing and recording artist, born and raised in Jos, Nigeria. But to know her sound is to encounter something dierent, something fresh, and something - in her words not meant only for the Nigerian ear.
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Issue 39 // February 2017
In July 2016, her new album, And The Bass Is Queen, was released on major digital stores, garnering positive reviews from listeners in Nigeria and abroad. The album has been called “an act of courage”, something that is “both original and pleasurable. It is one of the best albums released by a Nigerian in a decade.” Since itsrelease, Lindsey has toured in Lagos and Abuja.
“When I was growing up,” she said in a recent talk, “the way I saw things were different. The sounds I used to hear in my head was different from what... most people I knew were used to.”This her exposure to music from both withinand out of Nigeria gave her the freedom to experiment when the time came to forge her own musical identity. Her first single Drift Away was released in 2011 to good reviews. A year after that, she released The 90s Song and a cover of Asa's Jailer.The influence of a singer like Asa on Lindsey’s work is evident in some of her notable work. The quirky video of her single Out the Magazine, shot by Kemi Adetiba, reminds one of some of Asa ’s earlier videos, but with enough creativity and distinction to mark this attempt as an inventive (rather than imitative) addition to the genre, and capable of standing on its own merit. In 2013, Brown: The EP, Lindsey’s first independent and solo work was released. At first she wasn’t sure of how it would be received, but later that year, when she was awardedthird place in the Radio France Internationale's (RFI) Prix Decouvertes, it gave her “a pat on the back”, and the confidence to begin to see herself as an artist with global appeal. That year, she also opened for the French Nicolas Folmer Quartet during their Nigerian tour.
For a career that started through a slow path through a Law degree, this is an artist that has come into her own. She has shared a stage with acts like Darey and Praiz, backed up up for South African singer Sonti Mndebele, and performed with The Jazzcats, an Abujabased Jazz band. She has also been featured on albums by Nigerian hip hop artist, MI Abaga's and Jesse Jagz, and she counts, as part of her notable influences, Jay-Z, Fela Kuti, Asa, TY Bello, and the now defunct group Kush. “I don’t think there’s a genre that appeals to everyone”, she says in a recent interview. But being able to find one’s audience and working hard, over time, to sustain their loyalty, interest and dedication is a worthwhile endeavour. It’s also a high bar, andLindsey seems wholly up to thetask.
Twitter:@MissLind_Sea Instagram: @Misslind_Sea
In 2015, Lindsey Abudei was named Breluv Music's Independent Artist of the Month for May. She also had her first roleas lead in a musical, Stuck On You. In May 2016, she was invited to sit as a judge for MTN Project Fame West Africa auditions, the same one she had been a contestanfor in 2011. She was also invited to speak at TEDx PortHarcourt where she told her life story to an attentive audience. Her cover of Fela Kuti’s TroubleSleep was used on an episode of Gidi Up in 2015, combining the brilliance of the original track with the dynamism of a new style brought to life with a soulful vocal cover.
Kola Tubosun lives in Lagos and tweets @kolatubosun.
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PHOTO BY ABIOLA WARDROBE DESIGN: CHIP ODINA PHOTO ART DIRECTOR: NABILA LESTER