Still a burgeoning sub-genre in Nigeria, drill is steadily becoming a go-to sound for young artists documenting survivalist themes through their music. We track the slow rise of the budding, hard-hitting rap sound in Nigeria. In 2012, Chicago rapper Chief Keef burst onto the hip hop scene and changed the game forever. His music style, known as drill, was different because while the mainstream rappers of his day were either pop-oriented or obsessed with wordplay and metaphors,

On the eve of his debut album, we caught up with the popstar to talk about his sonic experiences and journey to the project. In the last few years, we've seen the rise of Afrobeat superstars of a much younger generation rising to the forefront. Incredible stars like Rema, Santi, Fireboy, Odunsi, are taking the world by storm. There’s a crossover of African sounds as genres like Afropop are being reimagined by these new rising stars, and there’s so much they have to showcase t

In a year with a lot of uncertainty, singer, rapper and now reality TV star, Laycon takes us through his cinematic rise to the mainstream. When Laycon dropped his second, 8-track EP in the early hours of 2020, going on a reality TV show was the only option left on the table to promote the new body of work. The pandemic had just struck the world and the country had just resumed lockdown, so the plan to roll out physical promotions was invalid. "It got to a point where I felt l

Ahead of the release of his long-awaited debut album, Old Romance, we chronicle the highs and lows of Tekno's illustrious career, leading up to this highly-anticipated moment. On December 11th, 2017, Canadian superstar Drake posted a picture with Tekno on his Instagram page; fervidly captioning it ‘Tekkkkkkkkkkkk time.’ This post represented so much, not just for Tekno, but for the Nigerian music scene as a whole. It was a testament that our rich music was finally crossing fr

We highlight the significance of Burna Boy's back-to-back nominations for the Best Global Music Album Grammy, Everything about Burna Boy exudes confidence. From his assertive mannerisms to his music — oozing with self-assured notoriety — his confident approach to life is hard to miss, and this ultimately boils down to experience. On “Level up”, the intro to his newest album Twice as Tall, Burna expressed his disappointment about failing to win the Grammy for the Best World M

We spotlight some of the coolest It girls to follow on Instagram. For some of us, Instagram is that app we scroll through mindlessly; perhaps due to boredom, lack of anything better to do or just to escape the harsh realities of life. Sometimes when we go on our timeline, we’re looking for something fresh, relatable, colourful, creative, aesthetically pleasing, or possibly downright hilarious. The It Girls of the Gram will definitely give you the best of these. Here are five

With Lagos as their firing spirit, no wonder DRB Lasgidi has stayed this relevant in the game. On the 23rd of November, 2018, the avant-garde collective, DRB Lasgidi released a compilation album titled DRB 10 to commemorate ten years in the game.  While the album in itself might serve as a nostalgic listening trip, it also serves as a testament to their undeniable impact and effort since they stepped onto the scene. The album houses some of their timeless hits, unreleased son

The International superstar stepped into our #BLACKBOX with sensational host Ebuka, doing it for the culture. In the maiden edition of the Blackbox interview which guested one of the vanguards of the Afrobeats, Davido, Nigerians got to know the man behind the music. Of course, this wouldn’t be Davido’s first interview. But the numerous attempts to pull aside the celebrity curtain and probe into his life has been met numerously with vague well-rehearsed answers. And although w

We present a global icon from the city of Lagos. Ayo Balogun, the artist known as ‘Wizkid’ is arguably the biggest Nigerian artist of his generation, a generation his influence spans over from not just music, but into fashion, the dreams of an entire generation and more to come. From his appearance on the Nigerian music scene with his debut single ‘Holla at Your Boy’, Wizkid has continued to have a hold on the game for 10 years which only a few can attempt to claim. In ‘Holla