Why Asake is Special – ‘Mr. Money With The Vibe’ Album Review

On Thursday, 8th of September 2022 Asake dropped his debut album – Mr. Money With The Vibe, cementing his place as an artist who has studied every aspect of Nigerian music and pop culture, solidifying my opinion of him as the most exciting artist I have had the pleasure of listening to this year.

Asake is unafraid to blend different sounds, genres and influences in a way that feels forward thinking, organic and relatable. Many people may think he predominantly takes inspiration from Amapiano as heard on his hits – ‘Peace Be unto You (PBUY),’ ‘Sungba,’ and more recently ‘Sunmomi’ which reminds me very heavily of ‘Tanzania’ by Uncle Waffles. I’ve had conversations regarding the fact that (although Asake makes great music), most of it sounds very similar – an opinion I don’t agree with.

Although the infusion of Amapiano is undeniably integral to his sound, Asake is equally inspired by Fuji – his cadence, melodies and inflections are adopted from fuji legends such as Waisu Alabi Pasuma, Waisu Ayinde (also known as K1 De Ultimate) and Obesere. He is inspired by highlife, as heard on ‘Organise,’ and was Yoruba to the core on ‘Reason,’ yet the Russ feature did not feel or sound out of place in any way. Asake is inspired by God and gospel, as felt on ‘Dupe’ and ‘Nzaza.’ There is spirit, emotion and dedication to his craft and grind which cannot be faked, which comes across as sincere and moving. I feel his struggle, his motivation and determination to succeed when he opens up his album with ‘Dull,’ urging the listener to hear his affirmations that he will not Dull because ‘wetin mama go chop’ if he does?

Although Mr. Money With The Vibe is a debut album, it is not an introduction. The introduction was in January, earlier this year on his ep titled Ololade Asake. Mr. Money With The Vibe is purely an extension of everything Asake shared on his initiation into mainstream Nigerian pop culture and music. The Yoruba gospel reflected through ‘Trabaye,’ and ‘Baba God,’ the merge and blend of different genres such as fuji, afrobeats and afropop to create something so sonically different yet relatable and fun on ‘Omo Ope,’ – served as clear indications of Asake’s massive potential as an artist. These were songs I never knew I needed until I heard them and connected with everything Asake had to offer. It was very clear to me that he was destined for greatness, not solely due to his talent but because he believes in himself so much, proclaiming himself as ‘Ome Ope’ from day one; not holding back on these positive affirmations on Mr. Money With The Vibe. The repetition of ‘Omo Ologo,’ on ‘Ototo’ is a clear indication of Asake’s continuous and infectious self-affirmation through his music.

The same way Beyonce’s RENAISSANCE album affirmed me, made me feel confident and assured me anything should be (and can be possible) if you take risks with your art and creativity, is similar to how Mr. Money With The Vibe made me feel on first listen. I connected so deeply with the eighth song on the album titled ‘Nzaza.’ Not because I share any of Asake’s experiences directly, but because the soul and softness of that song is something I needed to feel at the exact moment I heard it, while I was in an emotionally vulnerable place. It uplifted me and momentarily made me feel healing and peace, especially through Asake’s words as he sings: ‘…Say wetin go be go be, dem no fit hold me on G.’

There is something really beautiful about the repetition and remainder throughout the song that he is sharing a ‘heavenly sound from the street.’ The streets are often associated with ruggedness, a place to run away from. Even in casual conversations about dating struggles, we often refer to ‘the streets’ as a lawless place, where anything goes and anyone can take what they want – it doesn’t matter what you had to do, who you had to become and what you had to sacrifice to get it. We hardly ever hear ‘the streets’ or anything associated with it being described as ‘heavenly.’ We rarely associate men who grew up on the streets with softness, but there is a vulnerability that feels true, real and precious on ‘Nzaza,’ which reminds us that the streets might be rugged and scary but the people that come from it or are trying to escape it are not. The streets are the backbone of Nigerian pop music and culture; so many of my favourite Nigerian artists from Olamide, 9ice, Qdot, Wizkid, Bella Shmurda, Zinoleesky and the list goes on are from the streets. They take inspiration from it and as Asake reminds us, we are all jamming to and obsessed with ‘heavenly sound[s] from the street.’

Mr. Money With The Vibe is a celebration of authenticity, Nigerian street culture and music. Only time will reveal and confirm its impact, but I firmly believe Asake’s first album has the potential to be recognised as a classic debut. With time, Mr. Money With The Vibe could grow into a reference point and source of inspiration similarly to Wizkid’s Superstar album (June 12, 2011) and Asa’s self-titled album (1 January, 2007) – projects that can never be replicated or forgotten in my heart and in the hearts of many others who love and appreciate Nigerian music.

 

written by zbk