Raves and roses Album since its release has been met with differing opinions: those who believe the album could have been better but still bangs and those who believe it’s a complete miss for an artist with his trajectory
However Rema is no stranger to negativity, harsh opinions and scathing remarks about his art. “Indian sound” and a couple of near hilarious mockjabs have been used to throw slight on the artist’s discography, but the MAVIN signed artist seems not to care too much about it.
The album oozes a sense of similarities in approach timing as well as along the line of being Dancehall and other forms of Caribbean ish sounds. Indept conscious lyricism may not be Rema’s major paw However it’s no knock on the artist. Rema understands his voice and strengths and plays on them probably a little too much but he always puts his stronger foot forward. His tendency to absolutely murder the initial seconds of any track however seemingly fizzled out in between choruses stand out for me.
Perhaps some of the negativity the album has endured so far stems from the huge expectations a talented artist like Rema deserves. The pre and post album release promotions were intense. Calm down was literally everywhere, everywhere. Huge kudos to don Baba and the rest of rema’s management and fans.
Divine kicks off the album centralled on the usual Rema themes. However the song in itself bears meaning semblance to Daniel Benson on Sorry I’m late. The song details Rema so far, as well as his struggles on his journey. As the album goes throughout calm down and soundgarsm it begins to re-echo Rema’s playboy and lover boy character.
Are you there surprisingly pulls clear and addresses conscious issues. He answers critics who care for his super emphasis on his glorification of women , he calmly responds with the helplessness of the average Nigerian and suggests the sensual theme, party and clubbing as his coping techniques.
The one wey Buhari chop how many they cut for me
People dey die but people dey go club
He also references Astronomia and the undertaker’s trend as a metaphor for Nigeria and Nigerians; suffering and dancing.
The Album properly kicks in later for listeners as expectations cool off and hype slowly reduces
For Rema, what he does from here may define his music relevance, while a couple of people were slightly pleased with this work, much more felt deprived and expected a whole lot more. From a personal stand point, some songs posses potential of late bloomers. This however, depends on his team’s decision to either milk them or move them to the next stage.
The Debut album hurdle has been crossed and it’s for the artist to ascend or show a different level of dexterity in upcoming works.
WHITELION out!
