STEEL AND COPPER EP REVIEW: BURNA BOY WON'T CRACK THE INTERNATIONAL MARKET WITH THIS QUALITY

There are 2 different perspectives to Burna boy's joint EP with american production duo,DJDS.First is from the angle that this is a nigerian artiste whose international record label acknowledges his potential enough to hand him a clean shot at the global market.The second perspective is from the view point that african artistes have over time come to be respected by the international music community.As a matter of fact,so much so that no one would get any marks for trying.They either kill it outright or they don't.

Burna boy has done well especially over the last 2 years to earn whatever is coming his way.With a Coachella appearance scheduled for April and the recent buzz he is getting off dating super star singer/rapper,Steflon Don bound to have a lot more people interested in him,Atlantic records moved swiftly and smartly too by having him release a suprise EP with Los Angeles based DJ and production duo and labelmates,DJDS.

Weighing the Steel and Copper EP from the perspective of an african artiste being trusted enough to be given an opportunity to record an entire body of work for the international market,Burna boy deserves a lot of credit.He adjusts finely to suit Atlantic's artistic expectations by stretching his versatility past ragga to mumble rap.

Not that Burna boy was the first to do it,Wizkid's Sounds From The Other Side on Sony/RCA was Nigeria's first true international album but when we say 'the time is now',a project with no african touch in even the minutest form best befits that phrase.

From the perspective of our music having come of age and having an industry where the accomplishments of our artistes over the last few years have broadened the parameters for musical excellence to phenomenal proportions,the Steel and Copper EP is nothing past the ordinary.

Four good songs but not good enough to leave a serious dent on the pysche of the average listener elsewhere.

It cannot be over-emphasized that this project was not made only for Africa,it was meant to appeal to the global audience.

Separating the man,our love for him and his accomplishments from the music on display,only Thuggin would get a couple more plays after a first listen.We would cheer all day and laud the range of his versatility like no tomorrow if Burna boy pops up rapping but he doesn't enjoy that luxury on a stage where his impression is at make or mar levels.You get to hear him enthrall you with the 'Get the Memo' chorus on 34 but only if you are patient enough to stick through some chucklesome mumble rap verses.The world is what he is playing for mind you.The delivery on Innocent Man is decent but then the effort he is putting into it is very glaring.Its too obvious rap isn't a comfort zone.

Darko all but sums off the fact that Burna wasn't at his creative best.Ragga is one of the several elements to his afro-fusion sound and on what was supposed to be home turf and considering what was at stake,he doesn't go for the spectacular.

In Heaven's Gate and the lesser noted Streets Of Africa from his classic Outside album,he made songs of very appreciable international quality.His ability to conquer the world was not in doubt.

Perhaps due to an impromptu arrangement by Atlantic to help boost his stock or maybe due to a distraction in the form of Steflon Don,Burna boy doesn't quite meet his set standards on Steel and Copper.

HOW THE SHAKU SHAKU 3 HAVE FARED AFTER ONE YEAR

No one can say where exactly on Lagos Mainland is the home of Shaku Shaku but what we do know is that it has evolved over time to world wide acclaim and that is thanks to 3 men who are credited as its pioneers in the Nigerian music industry.Those 3 men are-Slimcase,Idowest and Mr Real.

By the time DJ Sidez's Oshozondi with Slimcase got popping in the later stages of 2017 and Idowest and Mr Real followed suit with Omo Shepeteri and Legbegbe respectively,Shaku Shaku had gone beyond a dance to a distinguishable sound.Those really were curious times.Like most dances,the Shaku Shaku was bound to fade away after a while but as a genre fashioned out after just 3 songs and one just about everyone from Wizkid to D'banj wanted in on,no one could say with certainty what time frame we were looking at.The creativity of our artistes could ensure the Shaku Shaku sound is spawn into various styles, consequently becoming a permanent fixture in our music or it could get so over-flogged in the usual Nigerian bandwagon manner,we would get tired of it in months.

So far the Shaku Shaku as a sound has not grown rapidly but it also hasn't been phased out over a year and a half since it was introduced to us.

Lets see how its 3 initiators have fared.

SLIMCASE

Its ironic how the biggest of the Shaku Shaku 3 is the only one with no hit song to his name.He understood on time just how much the fans loved his signature slurred speech and proceeded quite shrewdly,to make it the mainstay of the Slimcase brand.He works really hard to fuse a little new element or two every now and then to keep it fresh-skits,incantations and slangs.

Otunba Lamba is featured by the very big artistes because he has a very distinctive style that is quite appealing.That above every other thing,guarantees him more staying power than his other 2 comrades and also buys him ample time to make a bonafide hit of his own.From DJ Sidez's Oshozondi till this very moment,every song Slimcase is noted for is owned by another artiste-DJ Enimoney's Diet with Tiwa Savage and Reminisce and Wizkid's Gucci Snake.

He released Bend Down when he had us all looking forward to Otunba Lamba and the very little attention it got helped him avoid questions on who really was on that song because it sounded nothing like Slimcase.Otunba Lamba finally came and it fell below the expectations set for it.The phrase is still noted more for its use in his real life ad-libs than for being a song.

Another edge Slimcase has had over Mr Real and Idowest is a superior understanding of the biz in showbiz.The dismal performance of Otunba Lamba meant a little something extra needed to be done and he got an all star cast for his latest single which tries to push forth a new slang-Azaman.

Also,a look at his Instagram page will have you thinking you were the only one who didn't know every song he was promoting at any point in time was a massive hit.He reposts tonnes of dance videos and gets celebrities to jump on the vibe.

Slimcase is not only the biggest of the Shaku Shaku 3,he has the brightest prospects.

IDOWEST

At some point it seemed Idowest Awan Mafia was the only one of the 3 pioneers going to be left behind.Slimcase had become the official rave of the moment after DJ Enimoney's Diet and Mr Real had signed a Sony deal.Both were by far more active in the spotlight-granting interviews and doing more collaborations.

But then some time in May last year,Davido signed Idowest to DMW.OBO spoils his artistes silly no doubt but what it predominantly entailed was that a reclusive artiste not too keen on publicity was guaranteed a platform to showcase his talent in the mainstream rather than getting shoved aside after an average song or two and struggling to reintroduce himself afterwards.

But there were some fears that have proven justified.DMW had 4 big names including Davido himself and it was doubtful Idowest would get the same time and resources to help advance his career.So far,he appears to be in the shadows of OBO,Mayourkun,Peruzzi and even Dremo.He is still yet to feature on any DMW single and his first single,Ji Masun featuring Davido was largely under-whelming.

He tries to replicate his Shaku Shaku heroics on Who but it hasn't turned out too good.By and large,Idowest has been not only the least active of the Shaku Shaku 3 but also the least impressive.

MR REAL

Mr Real may not have the distinctive quality of Slimcase or the love and attention he commands but he has made the best songs so far.You would want to tag him the most talented of the trio if you remember his Legbegbe is widely adjudged the best ever Shaku Shaku song.

Late last year,the Sony music act after quite a wait,dropped the Shaku Shaku inspired Zzz featuring Falz,a catchy tune currently enjoying an above decent radio play.Its release went largely unnoticed and the little buzz it has generated is a pointer to the fact that Mr Real could do with better promotion.

His Valentine release, Antidote speaks to versatility; an edge he has over Slimcase and Idowest.Mr Real goes full blown pop on the groovy love jam and he does so fabulously well.

He has had the best songs but what he really needs to do is to find a way of drawing attention to them and ultimately,himself.He has done more features than any of the other two but he badly needs to get on some high profile ones.

Throwing a birthday party that also served as the official premiere of the Legbegbe remix with Niniola and South African producers DJ Maphorisa and DJ Catzico was a nice touch and it would help to forge in that direction.

The most disappointing of the 3 is better strategically placed to conquer the Nigerian market while the biggest is noted for everything other than the quality of his songs.The best needs to find a way to make us notice him.Some set of fortunes for the Shaku Shaku 3.

OLAMIDE'S IMAGINARY DAVIDO DISS ON BUGA SMALL SMALL: EXPLOITING OUR LOVE FOR CONTROVERSY

If you notice carefully,virtually every article reporting Olamide's supposed Davido diss on Buga Small Small starts with how Baddo tweeted cryptically about WO having legit million views he doesn't make noise over unlike 'some people' who buy their million views shortly after Davido talked about Fall hitting 100 million Youtube views.Then it moves on to how Olamide didn't congratulate Davido after he sold out the 02 arena in London.

After that,it settles down to business by interpreting the Buga Small Small chorus- "Remember before you start to dey get paper, before you start to dey smoke poli, before you see show for December, (December oo) Remember some people don dey get paper, some people don dey smoke poli, dey don dey scatter December" to mean subliminal shots at Davido.Lastly,it ends with 'other' lyrics in the song suggesting OBO as target.

There may be slight variations depending on who you are reading from but basically,its the same format with none going ahead to talk about the 'other' lyrics besides the chorus.What this indicates above anything else is that the gist was planted.The least likely possibility is that someone tried to pull us out of boredom considering the last thing close to a major talking point the industry had in a while lasted just 2 days-Tubaba apologizing to Annie for being a bad husband and the most likely possibility is that this is a publicity stunt by Baddo's camp to help push the song.

Science Student got huge off the attention criticisms of Olamide encouraging drug abuse brought it and his previous single Woske was a very good song bound to grow on listeners over time.It needed a little more promotional drive or at the risk of sounding immodest, some controversy.

They were leaving nothing to chance with Buga Small Small which on the face of it, isn't disrespectful to Davido in any way.

Olamide's debut single was Eni Duro which dropped in 2010.Davido had Back When with Naeto C before it and even scored the first major hit of the 2 artistes with Dami Duro in 2011.A whole year before Olamide's First of All so there is no way in the world Baddo would be referring to Davido if he said 'Remember say some people don dey get paper before you get paper'.I also need not remind anyone that Davido is the son of a multi-billionaire; an Omo Baba Olowo.

Davido hit the zenith of Nigerian music with Dami Duro; which is on a lot of all-time lists.He got an MTN endorsement right after and rocked every stage there was to rock in 'December' and other times of the year.A whole year before Baddo Sneh struck gold with First Of All which if we remember well, only laid him a foot path to A-list status.

OBO Live In Concert held in November so Baddo couldn't possibly be referring to him with the 'Scatter December' line.It would be ludicrous for an artiste yet to perform at the 02 to take shots at one who has sold out the venue.There is no way in the world Olamide was talking about Davido on Buga Small Small.

Everyone loves controversy because it is the most efficient marketing tool in entertainment.I barely have 600 followers on twitter,most of them soft users like myself and my most active moment on the app till date was the day i tweeted about Zlatan probably paying to be featured by Burna Boy and Davido back to back which led to a little exchange with the rapper.People want something to talk about always and if you give it to them,you get all the attention you need.

Olamide may no longer be good friends with Davido and he may not hesitate to highlight that to his benefit but from what we can all see,hear and understand,no shots were taken on Buga Small Small.

REVIEW: BURNA BOY'S 'DANGOTE' LACKS LIFE

To the people that think that much of him,Burna boy is Nigeria's most talented musician because of his robust artistry.The little details he pays attention to like the background vocals of the lady on Ye and the 'aah aah aah' trumpet chants on Deja Vú combine with an excellent vocal prowess backed by an effortless ability to create the right rhythm on the right instrumental to make him perhaps not the most celebrated, but the most stand-out act among his peers.

Sadly,we don't see that Burna on Dangote.The artiste appeared to have struck quite a chemistry with Kel P over the last few songs and asides lacking those 'little' extra details to Burna boy's sound,Dangote is fashioned on a Kel P beat he just can't win on.But that is just part of the problem.While there is some element of dexterity to his rhythm over 4 minutes,the artiste appears too conscious of the tempo and without that little extra vocal spark to salvage it, Dangote is barely average.

OluwaBurna has set quite a high standard for himself.So high anyone would be forgiven if they thought he couldn't do more but the original Don Gorgon on Dangote isn't an artiste pardonably not at his best,it is an artiste we wouldn't have given as much as a second glance if he had been recording that way all along.

An instrumental perhaps suitable for more sonorous singing and too sober for Burna's regular style coupled with an artiste himself not too keen on trying anything out of the ordinary with his vocals makes Dangote a pretty much plain,pale and non-intriguing listen.It lacks life.

WILL SMITH STARTS OWN FACEBOOK SHOW

Will Smith is launching his own Facebook Watch show called Will Smith’s Bucket List which shows the actor embarking on different journeys to face his fears.

Wednesday Smith shared the trailer for his show via Instagram, with the caption “Okay for the last few months, I’ve been shootin a show called @WillSmithBucketList. I turned 50 and I decided I was gonna do EVERYTHING I’ve ever wanted to do- swim with sharks, do stand up, and make @JadapinkettSmith jump out of an airplane(which is what happens in the first episode.) Which is STREAMING NOW on @FacebookWatch. Link in my bio check it out.”

The first episode in which the Smith Family took on Dubai opens with Will saying “my wife made the mistake of telling me she would do whatever I wanted for my birthday and then I told her what I wanted was for her to skydive with me.” Jada is heard regretfully saying, “this is a horrible plan just know that.”
The cameras follow them around as they gear up for the ultimate sky diving experience. On the actual day of the sky diving takes place, Jada admits, “I was pretty much zen the whole time. I just had a moment right at the door before I was about to jump and a moment that I was free falling that I could have gone into a panic but I do. So, I’ve got to realize how much my work is helping me master my mind.”
You can catch new episodes of Will Smith’s Bucket Listing every Wednesday on Facebook Watch.

MOVIE NEWS

The least known of the three co-founders of Roc-A-Fella records, Kareem 'Biggs' Burke is currently working on a biopic that'll shed light on the journey to becoming one of hip hop's most influential label. "Yeah, I’m working on it now," Biggs said. "It’ll probably be separate stories of Jay, Damon [Dash] and myself. Showing us as kids to understand what we’ve went through — the pain and hardships.”

A second instalment of 'Suicide Squad' is slated for an August 6 2021 release.Production is expected to commence September this year but quite sadly,Will Smith has backed out citing a tight schedule and as such,will not be available to play the role of 'Deadshot' like he did in the first instalment which raked in $748.6 million in the global box office with 44% of that coming from the US and Canada alone.

Idris Elba's 'Yardie' has received a US release date but the major news this week on the british actor was his role in an upcoming comedy, 'Turn Up DJ Charlie'.Elba who plays Charlie,runs into an old friend who is married to a world famous DJ while he himself was DJing at a Nigerian wedding.He gets a call from her afterwards not to meet her husband but to be a nanny to their 1 year old baby.'Turn Up DJ Charlie' is due to air on Netflix on March 15.Watch trailer

Lupita Nyongo is starring in Jordan Peele's thriller titled 'Us' scheduled to be released on March 22.The movie is about a family vacation gone wrong as they get terrorized by a group of doppelgangers.The movie is expected to rake in $35-$40 million in its opening.Watch trailer

'New York Undercover' was the first tv cop drama starring 2 coloured actors and a reboot is coming 20 years later with star actress Lauren Veléz due to continue her role as Nina Moreno.Filming will start on March 29 and it is scheduled to premiere on ABC.

Tyrese has been hired to play Teddy Pendergrass in an upcoming Warner Bros biopic on the late legendary R&B singer.Tyrese has been reported as saying "I am honored to take this journey… this is the role that I feel I was born to play,".The movie will be produced by Tyrese and Lee Daniels while Pendergrass' widow will serve as executive producer.

The trailer for a new drama called 'OG' executive-produced by Kareem 'Biggs' Burke has been released. 'OG' stars Tony and Emmy award winning Jeffrey Wright who is serving out the final 24 weeks of his sentence at a maximum security prison and takes a new arrival played by Theotus Carter under his wing.The movie was shot over 5 weeks at Indiana's Pendelton Correctional facility.Watch trailer

NEW MUSIC ALERT

'Middle Child' is J.Cole's highest ever charting billboard single, peaking at no.4 on the billboard 200 shortly after release and the visuals for the song have finally been released.Watch

Offset and Gucci Mane portray themselves as 1920 gangsters who pull off a bank heist alongside 2 other members of their 'bando brothers gang-Metro Boomin and Southside in the video for 'Quarter Milli', a collaboration off 'Father of 4',Offset's recently released solo debut album.Watch

Tyga visited Power 106's L.A Leakers before the Mayweather party and he freestyled to Blueface's 'Thotiana' and Yes,he did take a couple of shots at Soulja boy.
“Ni**a call me a goat, don’t call it a comeback..Seven million records, nine months, where Soulja at? / I can make the same song / Bitches still play that / Running around saying that you made me, why you say that?”.Watch

Soulja boy replied with a 'Thotiana' freestyle of his own dissing Tyga and you guessed right,he used Blac Chyna against him-"Word around town/i f**ked your baby mama/With your son in the other room".Mean...Listen

Ludacris told fans last november to expect some new music and while he still hasn't let anything off,he was featured in the remix to Lil Donald's #SayItTwice.Listen

Drake was on the remix to Summer Walker's gold-certified hit, 'Girls need love' as well and he played a singing bad boy.Listen

In his first release since since no.1 sophomore album, 'Dying to live',Kodak black has a new song out with an accompanying video titled 'Pimpin Ain't Eazy'.The rapper who is due to face trial in April for first degree criminal sexual conduct, recently announced the dates for his 'Dying to live' tour.Listen

Gunna has released the video for 'Big Shot',a song off his 'Drip or Drown 2' album.Listen

Wyclef Jean's 'Wyclef Goes Back To School' album is due for a March 15 release date and he has dropped a socio-conscious single off it titled 'Baba' featuring Koffi Black is seen hanging on a tree in the video in a throw back to the horrific days of lynching in the US.Listen

Grammy-nominated Anderson .Paak will release an album titled 'Ventura' on April 12.Paak has come a long way since making a name off Dr Dre's 2014 'Compton' album.

DJ KHALED TO HOST THE 2019 NICKELODEON AWARDS...DAVIDO AND ADESUA WELLINGTON NOMINATED

The 2019 Nickelodeon Awards is scheduled to hold on March 23 and DJ Khaled will be hosting.Khaled cites his 2 year old son Asahd as the reason for accepting the honour.

"The reason why I wanted to be the host of the Kids' Choice Awards is because I'm a father,” he told Entertainment Tonight. “Now, I'm going to be able to host and my son can see me host and be like, 'My daddy's hosting [the] Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards.' And not just that, I'm about the young world, the future, the kids. Anything that makes the kids happy, that's what what i'm about".

Khaled has previously been nominated for 'I'm the one',his song featuring Quavo,Lil Wayne and Justin Bieber.Among the notable nominations this year are Cardi B and Black Panther which has five nominations.
Nigerian celebrities Davido,Adesua Etomi-Wellington and IK Osakioduwa are also nominated this year.While Davido is nominated alongside prominent names like David Guetta and Taylor Swift for best global music star,IK and Adesua are listed in the favourite african star category.

FEB.24 IS MEEK MILL DAY IN HOUSTON

The city of Houston has declared February 24th Meek Mill day.This much the Philly MC confirmed via an instagram post this weekend, sharing photos of the proclamation as well as his Saturday night performance at Houston's Revention Music Center. "Life is a rollercoaster," read the caption.
TMZ reports that the decision is motivated largely by the advocacy work Meek Mill has embarked on lately.
The 'Going bad' rapper was handed a 2-4 year sentence for parole violation on a conviction as far back as 10 years ago.The sentence was deemed unjust and sparked a wide-spread criticism of the american justice system that led to a nationwide protest.After his release in April last year, Meek has used his platform to pursue criminal justice reform.
During his stop at Houston where he was honoured, Meek talked to a group of boys in the Harris County Juvenile Probation Department. He spoke about his life struggles and encouraged the group to make the right choices.

"I wanted to be the smart kid who makes all the right decisions," Meek said. "If you want to go to the penitentiary and live that life, do that. But if you want to be somebody and you don’t want to fall victim to that,because we’ve got millions of people who look like us that have done that already,then listen to the voice and make the right choices at the right time."

The rapper is currently on his Motivation tour.

WATCH CDQ FREESTYLE ON TIM WESTWOOD

CDQyehyeh was the first indigenous rapper to appear on Tim Westwood tv and he recently shared a throw back video of his freestyle.Watch

OFFSET TALKS ABOUT WINNING BACK CARDI B

Offset was on the break fast club recently promoting his week old debut album, 'Father of 4' and he talked about breaking and making up with Cardi b.

"“I don’t ever want to lose that feeling,” he said. “Love is a beautiful thing. Ni**as try to be cool and act like, ‘Bro.’ But bruh, we get hurt too, bro. And we can say it.”

Some songs on Cardi b's 'Invasion of Privacy' album had indicated the rapper was having a torrid love life and it didn't take too long for her to part ways with Offset amidst strong cheating rumours.The couple made up recently with Offset revealing on a number of occasions how much effort he put into winning her back including a stage-crash at one of her shows.

“I’d jump out the window trying to get her back, with a parachute on my back,” said Offset. “You gotta fight for what you believe in and what you love. It ain’t no joke and it ain’t social media fun. You might have looked at me as being selfish on stage, but I’m just trying to get what’s mine. I’m ready to look stupid.I'm ready to take a shot in the back.”

Watch Full Interview

COUPLE ALERT: BIG SEAN HOOKS UP WITH EX, ARIANA GRANDÉ

Big Sean and Ariana Grande were second only to Jay-Z and Beyoncé on hip hop's most loved couple list before Ariana broke up with Sean in April 2015 after he referred to her in one of his songs as-"a billion dollar p***y".Big Sean moved on to another singer,Jhené Aiko while Ariana went on to date late grammy-nominated rapper,Mac Miller with a lot of people blaming her for his drug overdose and even got engaged to actor/comedian Pete Davidson.
A shocking TMZ report surfaced this Wednesday of Sean going to check on Ariana Grande at a recording studio in Los Angeles with the '7 Rings' singer joining Sean in his car and showing him her dog.
There have been slight rumours of Sean breaking up with Jhené Aiko even prior to the recent sighting but nothing was official and Ariana has suggested on a number of occasions she still likes the G.O.O.D music rapper.
Last December, she dropped her 'Thank U, Next' single, which included the line, 'Thought I’d end up with Sean/But he wasn’t a match'. In the subsequent video, Grande opens a “Burn Book" of all her exes and describes Sean as “so cute, so sweet and (could still get it).”
Maybe Sean did 'get it' Wednesday night and maybe these two could be reuniting soon.