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Nine months after the release of his debut album, Asake released his Sophomore album, ‘Work of Art,’ which referenced music classics and art inspired by American artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, who rose to prominence in the 1980s for his neo-expressionist style – raw, expressive brush strokes and a rejection of traditional composition.
In the 14-track album, Asake uses his strengths in fuji and Amapiano-influenced sound to create another good body of work with an occasional burst of new sounds that tell us he is capable of more. The project particularly stands out for its manipulation and use of language.
Here are our top five songs from the album.
Sunshine
There are very few songs from new age artistes that can be tagged the perfect ‘hustle’ songs. Sunshine has been added to that very succinct line as the song is the perfect morning song. It simply says if you want to make as much money as the richest man in Africa you have to fight.
A declaration that does not undermine hard work but tells listeners that although you can enjoy life, don’t be afraid to suffer to get to the point you want to get to as the ‘sun will shine on everything you do.’ The lyrics were the highlight of this track.
He sampled The Lighthouse Family’s ‘Ocean Drive’ for this track.
Basquiat
When the album art was released, one image that caught everyone’s attention was the painting of Basquiat by Ayanfe Olarinde in the background. Questions rose about what part of his art will influence his music, and soon after the release of the album he simply was comparing his art to Basquiat.
Basquiat had risen to prominence for his raw, expressive brush strokes and a rejection of traditional composition, not a far cry from how Asake approaches his art with his indigenous references and fuji-influenced sound.
He was basically hyping himself in this track, I am a work of art like Basquiat. And not one lie was told.
Remember
When you listen to ‘Remember,’ one element of the song that will immediately catapult the song to one of your favourite tracks of the album is the choral vocals – they almost sounded heavenly. With the vocals, the Amapiano blend, melody, flow, the trumpets in the background, the song is simply a hit track.
The track was written by Magicsticks and it was co-written by Olamide.
Lonely At The Top
Lonely At The Top is the best song off the album hands down, no song is allowed to compete on the same level as the song. On this track, we get a highlife-influenced Asake. The vocals, the lyrics, the melody, everything was just perfect.
It is a reminder of who Asake is outside of his usual Amapiano-influenced sound. Leaving any deep insight into the song, it’s a perfect example of an addictive sound. The song was produced by Blaisebeatz.
Great Guy
When Magicsticks was creating Great Guy, all he heard was beat that drum till it drops, and that’s exactly what he did, and it slapped. The flow on the track was immaculate, and we can’t help but mention the fact that Asake’s use of Yoruba will always be one of the best parts of his music.
The astonishing part of this track is the fact that the ending of this track has a preview of Yoga with an almost distuned reminder that you’re still listening to the track. The piano was the cause of the organised chaos, and it was lovely and one of the best transitions in a Nigerian album.
The post Work Of Art: Here Are Our Top Five Songs On Asake’s Sophomore Album appeared first on Nigerian Entertainment Today.
