MOST ANTICIPATED ALBUMS OF 2013

Do you need a reason to be excited about Nigerian hiphop in 2013, here are 10 reasons to be. Counting down from 10 - 1, the most anticipated albums of 2013

10. DURELLA – BACK, BETTER AND BADDER

ALBUMS – KING OF THE ZANGA (2008), RECONFIGURATED (2010)

ALBUM TITLE – BACK, BETTER AND BADDER

ALBUM # - 3

LABEL – IKONIC MUSIC

After shrugging off early comparisons with D’banj, carving his own niche and putting out 2 successful albums, the king of the zanga is back on a new record label and will be hoping to achieve the mainstream success that has eluded him so far. Armed with the club banging hit single “club rock, the mash up with afrobeat king Femi Kuti “back to sender”, the Wizkid assisted “gaga” Durella has shown that he is clearly better, not to mention the leaked tracks off the album like “I see you”, “ozo” “ko jo rara”, “Malo moto”  & “inbox”. By the time his album finally drops, we will all know how bad the zangalist has become.

9. NAETO C – TBD

ALBUMS – YOU KNOW MY P (2008), SUPER C SEASON (2011)

ALBUM TITLE – TBD

ALBUM # - 3

LABEL – STORM RECORDS

If there is one thing Naeto C is good at, it is putting out hit records. Ever since his emergence on the Nigerian hip hop scene with “Kini big deal”, the self proclaimed only Nigerian MC with an MSc has continually pumped out hit after hit and 2012 was no different as the chest thumping “Tony Montana” and its remix which featured D’banj rocketed up the charts. The Hennessey artistry soundtrack “Bartender” featuring MI, the E.kelly produced “Can you do it” & “I gentle” kept his buzz strong while cameos with P Square, Davido, Ms jaie, Morachi & Yungsix did nothing to hurt his cause. With trusted Hitmaker TY Mix tagging along 2013 might yet be another super season for Naeto C.

8. YEMI ALADE - TBD

ALBUMS –

ALBUM TITLE – TBD

ALBUM # - 1

LABEL – EFFYZZIE ENTERTAINMENT

The first question that comes to mind when people listen to Yemi Alade is…. Where did she come from? What many fail to realize is that the talented singer won the first edition of Peak talent show and already had a debut single “fimisile” featuring Eldee which went under the radar.  In 2012 she scored her first major radio hit “ghen ghen love” produced by OJB jezreel and the follow up singles “uche face”, “bamboo” & “show me” quickly quieted down the naysayers and dispelled any lingering doubts of her exceptional talent. With an MI feature in the bag and OJB jezreel manning the boards, the stage is set for the budding songstress to reach for the sky.

7. WANDE COAL – BLACK DIAMOND

ALBUMS –MUSHIN 2 MOHITS (2009)

ALBUM TITLE – BLACK DIAMOND

ALBUM # - 2

LABEL – MAVIN RECORDS

Fresh from the success of his debut album, it wasn’t long before WC was faced with a stagnated career, a leaked nude picture, an imploding label, an uncertain future and the inevitable separation from a brother and friend. They say what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, Mohits forgotten man has become Mavins front man. WC has emerged from all the drama surrounding D’banj’s departure from Mohits fully focused to recapture his lost glory. With his amazing input on the Mavin compilation “Solar Plexus”, he managed to re establish his buzz a bit but it was his hit singles like “Private Trips”, “Go Low”, “Been Long You Saw Me” & “The kick” that finally repositioned his long awaited sophomore album as one to look forward to. We hope that by the time his album drops, WC would have been polished enough by Don Jazzy to enable him shine like the diamond that he truly is.

6. BANKY W – R&BW

ALBUMS – BACK IN THE BUILDING (2005), MR CAPABLE (2008), THE W EXPERIENCE (2010)

ALBUM TITLE – R&BW

ALBUM # - 4

LABEL – EMPIRE MATES ENTERTAINMENT

Rather than revel in the success of his protégé Wizkid, Banky W immediately started working on his own album but had to put it aside to build up his EME imprint and establish his acts which he effectively and successfully did with the release of the “empire mates state of mind“ album.  The album which spawned hits like “baddest boy”, “dance for me”, “get down tonight” & “my baby” kept Banky in the loop in 2012. While the album was still moving mad units and garnering airplay, Banky unleashed 2 new singles “yes/no” produced by Cobhams and “good good loving” produced by Spellz to compliment the Sarz produced “get low” and Masterkraft produced “setting p” which he had earlier released. With a release date of February 14^th, it is not so difficult to see what direction Mr. W is headed.

5. BURNA BOY – L.I.F.E (LEAVING AN IMPACT FOR ETERNITY)

ALBUMS –

ALBUM TITLE – L.I.F.E (LEAVING AN IMPACT FOR ETERNITY)

ALBUM # - 1

LABEL – ARISTOKRAT RECORDS

It’s almost a tradition nowadays to see a debutant blow up yearly. Last year was Davido’s, the year before that was Wizkid’s. Burna boy looks like the sure bet for this year already. The genre bending artiste who rose from obscurity with the release of his successful mixtapes “burn notice” and “burn identity” already has his smash single “Like to party” garnering massive airplay nationwide and has followed that up with the equally successful “tonight”, the Davido assisted “trumpet”, the Leriq produced “abeg abeg abeg” and “touch your toes”. The stage is now set for the headies award “rookie of the year” to introduce us to his unique blend of afrobeats, reggae, R&B, Dancehall and hip hop which he calls Afrofusion. Time will tell how much of an impact Burna boy eventually leaves.

4. WIZKID – TBD

ALBUMS –

ALBUM TITLE – TBD

ALBUM # - 2

LABEL – EMPIRE MATES ENTERTAINMENT

Ever since the release of his highly successful debut album “Superstar”, Wizzy has not let go of his hold on the Nigerian music industry. With numerous guest appearances blanketing the airwaves like Lynxxx’s “fine fine lady”, Bigiano’s “chilling”, Durella’s “gaga” just  to name a few, and his contribution to the outstanding success of the EME compilation album “empire mates state of mind” in the form of tracks like “baddest boy”, “London girl” & “dance for me”. Within the space of 2 years, Wizkid has evolved and become a well rounded artist as can be seen on tracks like “sisi nene”, “azonto (freestyle)” & the club banging, Sarz produced “Samba (beat of life)”. An international deal with Akon’s konvict music and a management deal with Tinie tempah’s disturbing London outfit show that wizzy’s hard work has not been in vain. Rumors of collaborations with international artists like Chris brown, the game, Akon & Young jeezy persist and if said rumors eventually become a reality, it is safe to say that starboy’s brand would go global.

3. IYANYA – IYANYA VS DESIRE

ALBUMS – MY STORY (2010)

ALBUM TITLE – IYANYA VS DESIRE

ALBUM # - 2

LABEL – MADE MEN MUSIC GROUP

Despite winning the maiden edition of MTN project fame in 2008, Iyanya’s debut album “My Story” failed to catapult him to superstardom. Fast forward to 2012 and Iyanya re emerged with the scorching hit single “Kukere” accompanied with the etighi dance style that spread like wild fire across Africa. Months later it went on to become the most downloaded caller tune in Africa with 3 million downloads. The highly infectious “Ur Waist” upped the ante and was quickly followed by “Flavour” & “Kukere (remix)” featuring D’banj. Iyanya’s time has finally arrived and if his album is anywhere nearly as entertaining as the scintillating etighi dance he popularized then we will be satisfied.

2. TIWA SAVAGE – TIWA O NI BAJE

ALBUMS –

ALBUM TITLE – TIWA O NI BAJE

ALBUM # - 1

LABEL – 323 ENTERTAINMENT/MAVIN RECORDS

Never in the history of Nigerian hip hop has a debut album from a female artiste been this highly anticipated. The truth is Tiwa is not your average female artiste; she is a super talented singer and an established song writer. Within the short time she burst onto the scene with “kele kele love”, she already has a slew of hit singles to her credit which includes the Don Jazzy produced “without my heart”, the irresistible “love me, love me, love me”, the love ballad “ife wa gbona” featuring Leo Wonder, “folarin” & “drummer boy”. The hard working artiste was also featured on Flavour’s “oyi (remix)”, Olamide’s “international local”, Tosin Martin’s “champion love”, Ovation red carol theme song “higher”,  Hennessey artistry’s “toast to the good life” and  Mavin records compilation “Solar Plexus”. In a climate unfavorable to female artistes, the first lady of Mavin records remains a beacon of hope.

1. D’BANJ – MR ENDOWED

ALBUMS – NO LONG THING (2005), RUNDOWN (2006), ENTERTAINER (2008)

ALBUM TITLE – MR ENDOWED

ALBUM # - 4

LABEL – DB RECORDS/G.O.O.D MUSIC/MERCURY RECORDS

After penning a record deal with Kanye West’s G.O.O.D music in 2011, D,banj went on to have a dramatic 2012 splitting up with long time partner & producer Don Jazzy, setting up his own record label DB records, featuring on Kanye West’s G.O.O.D music compilation “Cruel Summer”, winning the MOBO 2012 best African act, getting 4 world music awards nomination, successfully staging koko concert and partnering with Sony Music Africa. Just as the runaway hit “Mr. endowed” & its remix which featured Snoop dogg were setting the tone for his album, Ejanla as he refers to himself these days released the club favorite “Oliver twist“, signed super producer Jay Sleek to his DB records imprint and dropped “Oyato”. “Bachelor” & “Cash flow” quickly followed to widespread critical acclaim. As if that was not enough, he still found time out of his busy schedule to lace Iyanya’s “kukere (remix)”, Naeto C’s “tony Montana (remix)” and his sibling K Switch’s “sister caro”. The icing on the cake arrived in the shape of “top of the world” which became the official supersport anthem for AFCON 2013. Love him or hate him, D’banj has become the face of African music globally.