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Aramide packs up all of her brilliance in her "Suitcase" album

“Suitcase” is more proof, if it were needed, that Aramide – and her creamy but addictive vocal – belongs up front.

 

Album: SuitcaseArtiste: AramideGuests: Adekunle Gold, Koker, Sound Sultan, Sir Dauda, Ice PrinceProducers: SizzlePro, Tintin (Focus Ramon), Laitan Dada and CobhamsDuration: 54 MinutesRecord Label: Baseline Music (2016)

There has been no all-inclusive documentary on the difficulties of achieving genuine progress in the Nigerian music industry. But if that documentary was shot, then the folks at alternative music will be vindicated because their job is the hardest of the lot.

They might have vocals so bloody strong they could drag a 10-tonne truck, but mostly they end up stuck as footnotes in magazines and exist in the shadows of their pop counterparts, and most of the credit they get does not involve the generation of financial value.  Simply put, if the music industry was hell, then alternative music is where the fire is generated.

Aramide could have easily slipped into that camp of hate and struggle. A former contestant of the Star Quest talent hunt show, making her part of a band that finished Third Runners up. Her ever growing solo career took off shortly after graduation. After secondary school, she learnt to play the saxophone and guitar, two instruments she is quite passionate about. Her ever growing solo career took off shortly after graduation.

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At an impressively thorough 14 tracks long – including a couple of collaborations with some really talented artistes – Aramide’s debut album certainly isn’t shy about setting her out as one of the Nigeria’s brightest alternative talents. The first thing you notice is her voice, a soothing but enthralling thing with a compulsive kind of power. Oozing out in-between the plucky strings that kick-start ‘Eledumare, it’s a magical, melody-enhanced blending of some of the world’s finest: Nneka, Sade and, um, the ethereal Asa.

Aramide’s style has been dubbed ‘Afro-Soul’, but her music is far more mainstream than that would suggest. It exists in a modern musical landscape that’s had its foundations laid down by Nigeria’s vocal maestro Waje, sometimes, the pop queen Tiwa Savage, whose pop tunes template is now the rule rather than the exception. ‘Tell me’ rolls together bouncy dancehall sounds with defined guitar-led creations, while ‘Yemi My Lover’ and ‘Love me’ boasts a Fuji  party infusion that belies its somewhat romantic lyricism.

Aramide’s real flair, though, lies in embracing the deep themes and messages and making it seem light, fresh and accessible on a basic level. ‘Funmi Lowo’ and ‘Bose’ both build on the real-life issues, and push it firmly into our playlists with glitzy storytelling, comic happiness, and an effortless dancefloor feeling.

Rating – 3.5

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1-Dull2-Boring2.5-Average3-Worth Checking Out3.5-Hot4-Smoking Hot4.5-Amazing5-Perfection

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