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2024 has been an eventful year for Nigerian music with several artists releasing projects that enjoyed commercial success.
Both the superstars leading the global exportation of Nigerian pop music to the rising stars aiming to make a name for themselves released notable albums with local and international success.
From genre-fusing Afropop to vibrant Street music, and captivating alternative offerings, Nigerian artists crafted albums that showcased their talent and desire to maintain the global rise of Nigerian music.
To rank the top 10 albums of 2024, we have to sieve through a long list of fine releases to choose the best that stands out critically and commercially.
In ranking the top 10 albums, Pulse Music Desk follows these criteria (arranged in the order of importance):
- Critical acclaim (creative distinction across songwriting, production, and execution)
- Commercial acclaim and impact on the soundscape
- Year in review - December 1, 2023 - November 30, 2024
- Eligible projects - Long form albums (9 songs and above), secular albums by artists making mainstream music or other adjacent (non-indigenous) genres.
Top 10 Albums of 2024
10. The Chorus Leader - Timi Dakolo
On 'The Chorus Leader', Timi Dakolo assumes the position of the conductor of a fine orchestra as he crafts an album that flows smoothly and transitions beautifully across genres and themes while gripping listeners for 61 minutes as they make their way to a gratifying finish.
Timi Dakolo achieves a fine balance on 'TCL' as he makes music that at its core, appeals primarily to listeners whose sonic taste palettes are formed by the sonics that drive contemporary gospel music and a demographic who enjoys a modern take on Nigerian indigenous music.
His musical dexterity shines across the album as he delivers elevated genre-suitable writings as he combines English, Pidgin, and indigenous language to convey his takes on themes that matter to him.
9. Born In The Wild - Tems
While Tems' fast-growing fan base feverishly demanded that she tie an album to her monumental rise, the Grammy-winner elected to take her time to introspect and find her voice before charting a course for her continuous ascension.
It’s this sobriety of self-reflection, the desire to heal from past hurts and trauma, and an appreciation of the beauty amidst her surreal rise that shapes her debut album ‘Born In The Wild’.
With this album, Tems answers lingering questions about her artistry and positioning through music that carries her essence and connects with listeners whose love and patronage lifted her to superstar status.
At the album’s core is RnB music grounded in soulful melodies and heartfelt lyrics delivered through a familiar singing style that plays around with conventional melodic structures and forms. Tems also offered more than just the familiar as she explored Afrobeats, jazz, dancehall, and hip-hop to craft an album that conveys the multiple influences that shape her talent.
8. Morayo - Wizkid
‘Morayo’ takes listeners on a leisurely journey of the quintessential sound that has shaped Wizkid’s over a decade of dominance in Nigerian music.
Through an exploration of the lush R&B fusion that delivered his classic 2020 album ‘Made In Lagos’, Wikzid crafts serenading tunes and slow jamz. He leans into Afrobeats to give listeners party starters reminiscent of his grip on the dancefloor.
In an emphatic display of his superstar status, the album broke multiple streaming records with its first day and first-week haul which sets the project up for potential long-term success.
7. Lungu Boy - Asake
Asake's first two LPs pack the achieved fusion of Amapiano log drums, Fuji, and hip-hop influences excellently delivered through bustling energetic cadences that rocketed him to superstardom.
With his place at the upper echelon of Nigeria music firmly secured, He decided to offer something different on his third LP as he linked up with new collaborators and cut back on the familiar elements that define his music.
'Lungu Boy' is an expansion of Asake's artistry as he balances his hitmaking ability with daring fusions capable of widening his listener base.
6. adedamola - Fireboy
On his fourth self-titled body of work, Fireboy embarks on a journey of self-discovery, making music that holds his emotions and offers the familiarity that won him the love and admiration of listeners.
If 'LTG' was the documentation of the yearnings of a talented rookie, 'adedamola' is the work of a pop star skilled in the genre-bending Afropop demands while also showcasing his reach to call on legends and global stars to make an album befitting of his superstar status.
Over 14 tracks, the 28-year-old crafts singles that capture his yearning for romantic love and his struggles with the same. He shares the interminable challenges fame brings while making party-starting cuts to propel his commercial push.
5. Jiggy Forever - Young Jonn
Young Jonn spent the better part of a decade crafting era-defining hits for Nigerian music stars hence he knows when he has a hit song on his hands like his chart-topper 'Dada' which he recruited megastar Davido for the remix.
It’s this desire to announce himself as a force to be reckoned with in Nigerian pop music that informs his debut album ‘Jiggy Forever’ where he deploys familiar Amapiano fusion to deliver a hit-filled album that has enjoyed a lengthy shelf life.
4. Homeless - Llona
‘Homeless’ is Llona’s documentation of a life filled with strife and sorrow yet one that he keeps forging ahead in the hope of a better tomorrow.
On his debut album, the minted star paints vivid images that bring listeners into his world and offer them a picturesque experience of a tumultuous journey to freedom soundtracked by captivated and relatable records.
‘Homeless’ is for the ones who hurt and the ones who know pain. It is for folks who have known sadness yet yearn for joy and beauty amidst the bleak mid-winter.
3. HEIS - Rema
Rema’s sophomore album ‘HEIS’ is one of the most talked about Nigerian albums of 2024. Its uptempo production, pulsating baselines, and breathlessly aggressive chest-thumping delivery echo Rema’s desire to make an album that’s decidedly different from the dominant Afropop framework his contemporaries have deployed for the past couple of years.
With viral hits like ‘Hehehe’ and party starters like ‘Ozeba’ and ‘Azaman’, Rema’s ‘HEIS’ was a bold attempt to seize back the Afrobeats dancefloor from the choking grip of Amapiano.
While its bold and breathless execution may have divided opinion, its commercial success and critical acclaim have made it one of the most impactful Nigerian albums of 2024.
2. The Year I Turned 21 - Ayra Starr
A popstar whose sensibilities are forged by Nigerian and international influences, Ayra Starr's 'The Year I Turned 21' offers brilliantly curated music that brings together Nigerian and global audiences under the "Sabi girl" umbrella.
Assured in her abilities, Ayra Starr delivers an album that brilliantly explores Afrobeats, Highlife, and a blend of RnB and UK-leaning genres to convey the multiplicity of influences that shape her talent while also showcasing the confidence of a superstar who's fully aware of her place in the scheme of things.
1. Stubborn - Victony
More than any other artist in Nigeria this year, Victony pushed the boundaries of his artistry with his debut album 'Stubborn'.
An artist who has endured different challenges on his journey to stardom, it's the sheer will to keep forging ahead in the face of life's curveballs and constantly pushing the boundaries of his creativity that shape Victony's debut album 'Stubborn'.
Victony found success doing what he loves, how he wants to, and he flaunts this in an album that offers quintessential versions of his daring creativity.
All through the 14 tracks, Victony is himself. Listeners find large pieces of his artistry in every track whether through his fanciful use of English, pidgin, deploying lamba (Nigerian style of talking used for bragging, flattering, and painting an exaggerated narrative) for Afrobeats relatability, his lush mid-tempo melodies, and his genre-fusing experimentations.
'Stubborn' is an elevated conceptual Afropop album that offers the best of an artist focused on making a project that will endure beyond the ability to offer momentary delight.
Honourary Mentions
Madam Dearest - Dotti The Deity
Sideh Kai - Illbliss
Full-Time Job - Phyno
12 Summers - Boj
Heavie Yet (Lays the Crownless Head) - Seun Kuti & Egypt 80
Candor - Monaky Resilience - Otega