8 Tracks: Of Afrobeats With Chk Chk Chk
New York is as vibrant as ever. The sound of the night lives on and stalwarts remain consistent. !!! are now arguably one of the most influential bands within the city as they continue to surprise and delight with genre defying intrigue. This month marks the release of their new album which is titled "Shake The Shudder" on Warp Records. Never ones to commit to stereotypes they nominated to select eight tracks of afrobeats for us below. Nicolas had the following message…
"One of the things I find youtube most useful for is exploring the pop music of other countries. I'm a pop addict, but I like hearing it in forms I'm not so familiar with. It's natural strangeness, becomes more apparent. Sometimes I have to work harder at it like difficult music, but it's rewards are that sugar I fell in love with as a kid with my first radio. Often, unfamiliar styles of music can sound too similar to our ears. I tried to pick out some Afropop from Nigeria and Ghana that I think anyone can get into with just a listen or two."
Get the new album HERE.
The first night i heard this song, I listened to this song like 8 times in a row…. ok, that night was actually tonight. Certainly inspired by the Rihanna work videos, and the reverbs and empty space of Drake songs in much the same way recent hits from Toronto reflect back to Nigeria. Incessantly catchy as it is free and airy, this should be pop music everywhere. Make sure you catch the breakdown at the end too.
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Korede Bello - Do Like That ( Official Music Video )The first night i heard this song, I listened to this song like 8 times in a row…. ok, that night was actually tonight. Certainly inspired by the Rihanna work videos, and the reverbs and empty space of Drake songs in much the same way recent hits from Toronto reflect back to Nigeria. Incessantly catchy as it is free and airy, this should be pop music everywhere. Make sure you catch the breakdown at the end too.
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Iyanya Ft. Don Jazzy & Dr Sid - Up 2 Sumting ( Official Music Video )If i had to pick 2 people to listen based soley on name from this list, i would choose Don Jazzy and Dr. Sid. A classic 90’s type of mob hip hop video, it copies American hip hop videos to the point of having US dollars in the suitcase. I think jay-z could do well to use this instrumental on his next comeback record.
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Patoranking - My Woman, My Everything Ft. Wande CoalA snaky melody and buoyant beat always gets this one stuck in my head.
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Patoranking - Girlie 'O' Remix [Official Video] Ft. Tiwa SavageWith a sister Nancy like flow via auto tune heaven Tiwa trades verses with Patoranking with a chemistry rivalling foxy and jay back in the day.
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Mayorkun - Eleko (Official Music Video)This is bubblegum. Sometimes it’s harder to connect with U.S. bubblegum pop cuz it’s formulas are too apparent to us, but this music is as strange and wonderful to me as the pop I first heard as a kid.
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Ycee - Omo Alhaji (Official Video)I don’t know what it sounds like on your system, but those rim shots are jumping out of the speakers on my speakers. This track is fucking evil sounding. And he exits the video on a sky safe sex message.
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Maleek Berry - Kontrol (Official Video)This is one of those hooks that takes a special kinda genius to make. If you tried to sing it to your friend, they wouldn’t get it “yeah, so it goes like ‘kontrol, kontrol'” ohhhhhhk, but when u hear it in the song it’s absolutely infectious, and u can instantly sing along.
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P-Square - PersonallyI think it’s safe to say this is the biggest group in Nigeria. Funny that homages to MJ are still such fertile ground for great videos. Dancing in this is a distant link to fred astaire and I love how serious everything gets in the chorus when he says he’ll deal with it personally.
