EVERYTHING IS LOVE REVIEW: THE CARTERS DO JUST GREAT.NOTHING MORE

The album title is pretty much self-explanatory.On Lemonade,a dejected Beyoncé talked infidelity and on 4:44,Jay Z copped to it.Everything is Love is the current state of affairs.

Not like we didn't know though.Word had always been an On the run tour 2 and a joint album were on the books and both have turned out true.If anything,the Carters appear stronger than ever since the soul-baring on wax.

Lets check it out.

1. APESHIT FEAT MIGOS

Beyoncé nails this song bad.The very best of her in up tempo mode and she spices it up with some rap lines too.Jigga drops a really bomb verse but something is off and its the instrumental.The kick,okay but the ding ding on the bass was detrimental to effect.A good song with a potential for much much more.

2. SUMMER

The world is moving fast and it takes a whole lot more than a good voice to make a good slow song.It takes something extraordinary and Beyoncé on that instrumental would have been adjudged regular even when slow was much more fashionable.The Jay verse was decent but nothing could possibly pull it out of that realm.Summer is pale and unmoving.

3. BOSS

"Aint nothing to a...boss!!".Boss is sassy and cocky in a Bey tone.She does her thing really well on this track.Jigga drops an airtight verse with some more 'over here and over there' game-"Here we say you broke if the only one rich is you".Boss is basically music royalty showing off their feathers in superlative style.Great song.

4.NICE

Bey had everyone talking with the spotify lines and Jay stayed A-game up to this point but as a whole,Nice lacks that little extra element of life.You get too scared to let yourself enjoy this song because of a fear of just how hard you might come crashing down when Beyoncé does the 'i can do anything..hell nah' part.Its a sore.

5. 713

Beyoncé holds it down for her area code.Quite intriguing how she references the lyrics Jay Z wrote for the Dr. Dre classic,Still D.R.E.Bey really did make Hov work hard for it.He celebrates his queen in some style i must say.The chorus works.It really does.

6. FRIENDS 

This song is getting a lot of buzz 'cause of the lines many feel were directed at Ye in Jigga's verse but this right here will rank up there with the very best songs these two have made.Bey gets in vintage mode-the pleasantly abrupt switch in rhythm and effortless deployment of emotion.Whats more?.Hov gave perhaps a comprehensive list of his day 1s.Masterpiece.

7. HEARD ABOUT US

A solid mid-tempo song no doubt.Hows that post chorus for cutting edge?.Heard about us would have been huge a decade+ ago.It would have been timeless.But coming now,it has a clock on it.Tic toc ends some time soon.

8. BLACK EFFECT

This is a classic.The best black and proud anthem made in a long while.Jay really is the complete rap package-asides being arguably the best lyricist the game has seen,that voice sits well with every of his delivery styles.You get enthralled and held bondage from the moment he says "I'm good on any MLK boulevard" to the very end. Beyoncé doesn't just lay an outstanding verse, her background vocal game was nuts.Over the whole 9 song album,the Carters don't slay it as a team as good as they did on this one.Magic.

9. LOVEHAPPY

The couple pass across an obvious message; 'happy in love'.The rap & r&b medleys they engage in on two verses was quite interesting but the song really could do with some more pleasant feel.It gets too creepy for comfort at times largely due to the instrumental.

Did they deliver?.Yes.But thats just all they do and nothing more.

2018 DOPE ON A GOLDEN ERA TEMPLATE : A REVIEW OF THE NASIR ALBUM

Kanye West was the first to intimate us of a Nas release and that raised a few eyebrows.It didn't make sense that Nas would sign for Kanye and for further intrigue,Ye was producing all songs on the album.Quite extraordinary circumstances.

The Nasir album was being released during what has been widely dubbed a GOOD music season and that is a bit belittling of arguably a top 2 great still rapping.Thats saying it very frankly.Then also the propriety of Kanye producing the entire album.Not a few think, Escobar would have been better off working with a wider range of producers to get the best possible results.Well,lets take a look.

The songs.

1. NOT FOR RADIO FEAT PUFF DADDY

 He opens the album impressively with a moving socio-political take on the system.Nas has always had a reputation for knowledge and he conveys his strong message with in some really deft lines.Diddy re-enacts his 'talk' role on Hate Me Now and 070 Shake renders an incohesive chorus that doesn't quite blend with the song.

2. COPS SHOT THE KID FEAT KANYE WEST

Both Nas and Ye drop some very good verses but the Slick Rick sample,a pacy 'Cops shot the kid' mantra at the background kills off effect.The Kanye West thought process could get really dark and twisted sometimes and this is where having him produce the entire album seems more than ever a bad idea.

3. WHITE LABEL

This has to be the best song off Nasir.Escobar struts majestically over a thumpy bass with that slow,mean delivery-"...Chin grabber,neck choker,in her mouth spitter,ass gripper,blouse ripper,that dig you out nigga.I ain't gon hold you,old head gave me old news.I don't owe you,should have heard when i told you.You're an extension of what i worked hard to build.You believe in your own lies,can't be real".We always said Nas was ahead of his time.Well,he's still here.White Label is the work of a terrific wordsmith.

4. BONJOUR FEAT THE WORLD FAMOUS TONY

A soothing ambience with a subtle feel good vibe.Just how they made them in the 90's.Nas is talking personal lifestyle and triumphs in so elaborate a way it rubs off on the listener.A testament to how fabulously made Bonjour is.Credit must go to Tony for not only the hook but also a great last verse and outro.

5. EVERYTHING FEAT THE DREAM AND KANYE WEST

A breath-taking 7 minute message of strength and rising above negativity.The pre and post chorus contributions of The Dream and Kanye West were fantastic.Ye's mild and brassy tone for the chorus was inch perfect and we get some of Nas' legendary story-telling in the 3rd verse.Birthing a great idea just as immaculately well as it was conceived is the stuff of greats.Nas is a legend.

6. ADAM AND EVE FEAT THE DREAM

Nas' response to hate is success.Esco can't go wrong with the lines even if he tries-"What come first,peace or the paper.Before i got a piece of paper,peace was in my favour.Before i sat to eat on the table it had leeches and traitors.Cut the fat from the meat.Extract the weak,bon appetit.No bacon,brothers is swine".Awesome song.

7. SIMPLE THINGS

Nas talks musical content,his calibre of women and the 'bottom-up' ascent.Its the only song on the album on which he jumps on the chorus.Particularly noteworthy is how he addresses the issue of content-"Want me to sound like every song on the top 40?.I'm not for you,you not for me.You bore me.I drop lines prestigous schools read to their students.Look at my album plaques,somebody agrees with the music".And thats after saying "Never sold a record for the beats,its my verses they purchase".True class is standing out without doing too much.He drops the curtains in style.

Nas may not have tapped into this era while staying true to his in the manner Dre and Jay Z have done but to make an album this dope on a golden age template in 2018 is genius.Only someone like Nas would pull that off.

A LOOK AT THE MAIN CONTENDERS FOR THIS YEAR'S WORLD CUP

One peculiar thing about the 2018 World Cup holding in Russia is the absence of a clear cut favourite.The Spaniards were tipped to win the 2010 edition right after their 2008 Euro Championship heroics and Brazil was hugely favoured to win at home in 2014.The small teams aren't quite small and the big teams don't act big.A cliche in football that has become much much harder to disprove over the last few years.Europe and South America are the 2 strongest continents in football and while Chile won a 2nd consecutive Copa America in 2016,Portugal edged out France at home to clinch the Euros same year.That is football's current state.

However,no team outside the favoured top 4 have won the tournament since 2002 and though we are all ready to bet on a big nation winning in Russia,it has never been harder to say which stands the best chance.

Below are the main contenders for this year's edition.

1. FRANCE

The french squad is without a doubt,the most stellar collection of today's football stars-Paul Pogba,Ngolo Kante,Kylian Mbappe and Antoinne Griezman to name just 4.Over the course of a possible 8 games,a team dripping with this much depth in top class quality would blow past anything before it if it gets its acts right.While the french boast of the best midfield on paper,goals win games and its attacking prowess isn't quite legendary.

They won a game more than their closest rivals; Sweden and Netherlands in the European qualification group A but while 3rd placed Netherlands scored only 3 goals more,Sweden in 2nd place scored 8 more goals than the French.A thorough look at the french's attacking line-up will reveal the lack of a top marksman.Mbappe and Griezmann play their best in a supporting role while Ousmane Dembele and Thomas Lemar are noted for their proficiency from the wings.Nabil Fakir will need time to fully adapt to the lights and Olivier Giroud isn't quite noted for his consistency.

In the very tight games where the midfielders have a lot extra to deal with and can't focus entirely on forward play,you need the one man you can count on to bury the one chance he gets.

What the french have to remedy that however is a midfield that will press hard enough to create a lot of chances.

2. BRAZIL

This is arguably Brazil's best squad since the winning class of 2002 and if there is one thing Brazil has going for it at the World cup,it is tenacity.It has gotten to the semi-finals of 4 of the last 6 editions.

The brazilians exhibit an uncanny understanding of the rudiments of the knock out phase which they are always guaranteed to reach and are never over-powered by a one-off good performance.It is usually by a truly superior team as they have always been beaten by eventual winners or finalists at the very least.These star-studded ensemble look very likely to win it.The successful brazilian teams have operated with a solid balance in midfield and in Casemiro,Fernandinho and Paulinho,they have players capable of replicating the unsung heroics of Kleberson and Gilberto Silva at the 2002 World Cup.Moreso in these times where counter-attacking play is big business.A highly attacking side needs not just a creative midfield but also one with enough physicality to match its flair.

The toughness and powerful busts of Paulinho,the tireless running of Casemiro backed by a firm Fernandinho at the base of midfield and the inputs of Douglas Costa whenever he comes on may very well be the lesser celebrated aspects if these team win.It also must be said that even without Dani Alves,the brazilians have the best collection of defenders in this year's tournament.Marcelo,Thiago Silva,Marquinhos,Miranda,Felipe Luiz and Danilo are a coaches' dream pool.

The Brazilian are even worse off than the French in the lack of a proven marksman with first choice Gabriel Jesus having his positional skills to thank for a large collection of tap-ins,headers and rebound goals but the brazilians have a well oiled attacking machinery that affords midfielders and wingers enough space to wreck havoc.In the end,other teams may have more exotic players on their lists but it takes a compact unit to last the whole hog and the Brazilians fit the bill. 

3. BELGIUM

As underrated as the belgians may be,they will not be going into this year's tournament as under-dogs.They have a solid team that has been together for quite a while now with a world class player in every position.This team can match any in world football if it lives up to its potentials.The belgians before Roberto Martinez,were a side to prove a hard nut to crack to anyone in world football without never really posing a threat themselves.Their attacking play is where the most impact has been made.

Though they won a relatively easy qualifying group with Greece and Bosnia as main rivals,the Belgians scored 43 goals in 10 games to set a Euro qualification goal record.

Even with some of the best defenders in the game right now,there have been concerns over Martinez's defensive play which i would attribute largely to a lack of a defensive midfielder on the same pedestal as the abundant attacking midfield talent,to mitigate exposure of the back 4.If they are to

clinch this year's world cup,then an extra defensive shift is required of their attacking players.

4. SPAIN

The spaniards sacked their coach,Julen Lopetegui less than 48 hours to the opening match of the 2018 World Cup but it still won't change the very obvious-it won't suprise anyone if they win for the second time in 3 editions.They have had problems stabilizing a team with an ageing crux and its best young players needing a little more experience.

Dani Carvajal,Isco,Marco Asensio,Ceasar Azpilicueta and Thiago Alcantara have blossomed into some of the finest legs in world football and now have what it takes to not just compete on the grand stage but to also go on and etch their names in gold.They have shed some of their patient possession play for a more direct and purposeful approach driven by speed and on their day,they are as lethal as anyone.The calciopoli scandal didn't demoralize the Italians at the 2010 World Cup,it motivated them into winning it.The spaniards could very well transform the sack of their coach into a tonic for global success.

Germany and Argentina have the best outside chance of winning but its hard to imagine the champions not coming from the above listed four.

KIDS SEE GHOSTS REVIEW: YE AND CUDI MADE A HALF DECENT ALBUM

Kids See Ghosts went from awaited to eagerly anticipated after the huge success of Kanye West's Ye album.With Pusha T's Daytona,a firm fans' favourite,this album was going to cap off a remarkable back to back rap album season for GOOD music.The controversy surrounding the release of multiple album tracklists appears more a promotional stunt than the reported 'technical error' and it really did help boost an already fever-pitch pre-album hype.

Lets see how they fared.

1. FEEL THE LOVE FEAT PUSHA T

Kid Cudi opens with the one line chorus,Push spits for about a minute then we get a yelling spree (part of it fanciful i admit) and finally the Kid Cudi hook comes on for the remaining 30+ secs.This at best sounds a product of an unfinished studio session.That 2 established acts; one a great in every sense of the word would deem this album quality is quite sad.

2. CUDI MONTAGE

I had fears this album was going to be too scientific to enjoy; over-experimentations with sounds outside their comfort zone and the dudes lived up to that on this song.It was going to take a miracle of immense proportions to make something decent of the sullen instrumental.This pretty much sounds like a Kid Cudi concept and if dark and gloomy worked,we all wouldn't be asking what his claim to fame was.Other than having worked with Kanye West that is.

3. 4TH DIMENSION

The Louis Prima 'What Will Santa Claus Say' sample was a sublime touch.We get treated to an exquisite rap cuisine with both artistes dropping 2 great verses.Ye opens the first with these bars-"It feel so good it should cost/Bought a alligator/I ain't talking Lacoste/Make me say oouh,hunh/Like i'm mixing Master P and Rick Ross".I would reference Cudi for an apt illustration of the realm it puts you in-"Kids see ghosts off the ropes/Ric Flair on your b**/Now this the theme song/This the theme song/The put your beams on/Get your get your dreams on".Magical stuff.

4. FREEE (GHOST TOWN 2) FEAT TY DOLLA $

Pale and tasteless.Ghost town was the least good song off the Ye album and the sequel was worse.

5. REBORN

The joint best song of this album along with 4th dimension.The effect when Cudi steps in with the wails on those playing keys is awesome.He absorbs you further with the mesmerizing hook and goes on to render a singing verse after Yeezy's in what is without a doubt his most stand-out input on the album.Its a tale of overcoming personal issues and no better set of persons to tell the story than 2 people who seemed to have lost it all at various times in their life.Its the perfect set-up for a soul-baring Kanye and he does so quite well on his verse.Great song.

6. KIDS SEE GHOST FEAT MOS DEF

This song was in need of a switch up at some point before Kanye West jumps on at almost the 2 minute mark.It badly needed a breath of extra life and it was too late to take it out of the ordinary when he eventually did.The lack of life robs the album title song of some lustre.I'll rate this average at best.

7. FIRE

A sober yet impactful track albeit a very glaring lack of synergy between Cudi's first verse and the brilliantly rendered chorus.On this occassion,Mr West saves it at the right time.A quite decent offering.

Two superb songs,a decent one and an average song.I wouldn't call this a great album.

JUDGES' MISCONDUCT:YOU AND THAT MAN SEATED IN COURT...

Whenever we sit to discuss wholesale changes to the practice of law in Nigeria,it is important we discuss the issue of psychiatric evaluation of judges before they are recommended.The attitude of some of our judges is simply unacceptable.'Corrupt judges' is the mantra when problems bedeviling dispensation of justice are raised but there are other problems we must pay attention to.Problems like the conduct of judges in the court room.

A lawyer gets into a back and forth with a judge and the poor litigant is made to suffer with rulings made out of a desire to hurt the lawyer.We have seen a lot of judges replace the popular cautionary question of 'how old are you at the bar' with derogatory remarks like 'you must be very stupid'.Some of the custodians of our temples of justice violate its sanctity more than anyone ever would.

A lot of us have come to accept the status quo where judges refuse to record a lawyer they feel is on the wrong path but i cannot understand a judge refusing to record an objection for the sole reason that they had already made up their mind to grant an application.What if i choose to appeal?.It happened to me recently and as such,i feel the need to call on my colleagues to rise up,for we as individuals,have a role to play in sanitizing the system.

The judge's record plays a fundamental role in appeals and some have mastered the art of leaving out certain crucial elements especially oral testimonies beneficial to cases they have an 'interest' in.The position of the law is that affidavit evidence is filed with the registrar of the court or the trial judge challenging the contents of the court's record as such cannot be done on appeal.It is most desirable that such an affidavit be of any other person in the court room other than the litigant's lawyer and that the affidavits filed be up to two at the very least.Lawyers must adopt the habit of doing a visual sweep of court rooms they appear in to check for colleagues they know or can trace as their cases are being called and also write their names on their diaries or jotting sheets.It could come in handy when a lawyer decides to contest the contents of the court's record before transmission for appeal.The court room sweep must not only be visual but mental as well.Only a bold colleague of integrity would pitch his tent with the side of truth irrespective of the possible negative consequences.

One of the reasons i chose to back Prof.Ernest Ojukwu SAN in his bid to become NBA President is that he intends to fight judicial excesses on so massive a scale,some of the units to be set up will accomodate unemployed young lawyers.This much i learnt when i asked for his antidote to the wave of the hand attitude regarding petitions against judges especially at the state level.

And as far as petitions against judges go,we need a new way of doing old things.It would help if petitions against judges are not only copied to as many people as possible-the NJC in addition to state councils,the Attorney General of the Federation in addition to those of the states and the national arm of the NBA but also if they are supported by affidavits of people in the know of such conduct.To elucidate further,a dubious court record is also a misconduct.

Magaret Mead said-"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful,committed citizens can change the world.Indeed its the only thing that ever has".

You and that man seated in court weild an enormous power in the pursuit of truth and justice.

THE YE ALBUM REVIEW: THE FIRST STEP TO REDEMPTION IS GOOD MUSIC.KANYE GETS IT RIGHT

The Ye album means a whole lot to Kanye West.He lost 7 million followers in a matter of hours when he took his Donald Trump love story to twitter and got the most bashing for a celebrity in recent times when he said 'slavery was an option'.A couple more erratic tweets on his 'grand' return to twitter had everyone fearing the worst-Ye had gone nuts and needed to be institutionalized again.

Kanye wasn't trying to fight the world,he so passionately was trying to sell a message he himself could barely make any sense of and that ended up making him the most hated man in hip hop.

He let us in on dates for this album,the collaboration album with Kid Cudi and Nas's which he produced.Only positive take away from what seemed a semi-meltdown.People bought Kanye West when they bought the Life Of Pablo LP and on Ye,he needed to step things up a notch and take everyone back to the very first day; the day they fell in love with the musical icon called Kanye West.

A walk through.

1.I THOUGHT ABOUT KILLING YOU

Ye goes on an elaborate spoken word exhibition that gives a peek into a gloomy mind frame then he gets on the verses in that famed delivery to depict a man too strong to be broken.The geniuses don't struggle with cutting edge,Kanye proved that here.The narration of his evil thoughts take more than 2 mins and it wouldn't have hurt much to have that as a skit before the song.

2.YIKES

If this is what bipolar sounds like then Yezzy is right to call it a super power.In one fell swoop,he talks mental health and addresses vulnerability as he beasts through.Emphasis on 'beasts' and he does so in some quite intriguing lines.A really great song.

3.ALL MINE

Valee has been with GOOD music for a while now and Ye couldn't have thrust him into the spotlight in a better way.His whole input-the hook and the Ty dolla$ verse was sublime.All Mine is a huge testament to the exceptional production skills of Kanye West,everything works fabulously-the instrumental,the short Ty dolla verse and Ye's stop-start 3rd verse delivery.Listen to him take off in the 2nd-"If i pull up with Keri Washington/Thats gon be an enormous scandal/I could have Naomi Campbell and still might want me a Stormy Daniels/Sometimes you gotta bag the boss up/I call that taking a Corey Gambles".All Mine illustrates just how comfortable Ye still is in his comfort zone-thumping on just the right dose of slow.

4.WOULDN'T LEAVE

Ye talks the fall out of the slavery comment and Kim's concern and loyalty through it all.He recruits Jeremih and PartyNextDoor to set up the perfect scenery for an emotional voyage through his misunderstood intentions.This song is so good,not a single soul has come at Ye afterwards for trying to spin the situation.Thats what Kanye needed to do with this album,have us all shedding the hate by loving the music again.."They say 'build your own'/I said-'how Sway'?/I said 'slavery is a choice'/They said 'how Ye'?".Switching contexts if you ask me but i don't want to be the one to care first.Lol.

5.NO MISTAKES

If you are one of those not looking forward to the Yeezy-Kid Cudi joint album because of a fear of it being too 'scientific',best have a rethink.Cudi combines here with Charlie Wilson to deliver a most infectious chorus.Kanye could talk forever about overcoming problems and still not bore you.This was doing it fabulously with a bright side vibe.

6.GHOST TOWN

Kanye's slow songs could sound really really pale when they miss the mark and this is one of those times.The Cudi-Ye 'scientific' theory fear is justified here.Very disappointing.

7.VIOLENT CRIMES

He grips you from the very first line and walks you fluidly through his emotions.Ye talks about how having a daughter changed his perception of women and also worries about what the world may hold for his little girl.

Dej loaf complements him with a very sublime hook.Breath-takingly deep.