Patoranking has held a conference to discuss about his new album “God Over Everything”.
In the press parley conducted by his PR team, Patoranking spoke about the new album, the circumstances surrounding the release of the project, and the various backstories which led to the creation of the album.
The singer had on August 1, 2016, dropped his debut album, two years after he broke through with his single ‘Alubarika’. He talked of the concept guiding the album creation, tying it into his origin and more.
Pulse Music has released a transcript of the entire press conference and you can read it below:
On The Concept Of The Album
“I’m somebody that my music depicts my lifestyle, everything that has to be about my upbringing and how I rose to fame. Patoranking generally, the life and times of Patoranking. I got to figure out that a lot of people want to be famous, a lot of people of people want to to be known for different things, for wearing the best designers. Others for having a lot of properties. But you know not everybody knows that despite everything you have, it’s still vanity, it’s still God over everything.
“The album is about love, about God, and it’s about where I come from, and where I’m headed to. Inasmuch as you are trying to dance, just always remember that it is still God over everything. No matter what you possess, no matter what you do in life, it should be a thought that has to go with your day to day activity. No matter the amount of money I have on earth, it is still God. That’s why we chose the title “God Over Everything”.
How His Music Is Created
“I write my music around my life and where I come from. I try to be a representative of the ghetto where I come from. I try to be a spokesman for them. Most of the time, I’m thinking of what some particular set of people are supposed to be saying, and I’m saying it. Songs like ‘Make am’ will tell you that, you know what is going on in the country. This is me giving people assurance that no matter how things look rough and tough, there’s nobody that cannot make it.”
“My woman my everything” has nothing to do with God over everything. For me, I am a topical singer. My music has topics and they are being treated as topics. Check out ‘Alubarika’, ‘Another level’, ‘Make am’. I write my music in the topical form, where I have to explain. You know the little education I have has dominance in my music. If I want to sing about bottled water, I have to sing about the cap and everything. “My woman my everything and “God Over Everything” have nothing to do each other. “My woman my everything” I still under “God Over Everything”.
On Collaborations
“I started as a reggae dancehall artiste, and the truth is, the country is not rich when it comes to that culture. They love the sound because it’s different, and it’s new to them. And you know Nigerians. If you want to be here for a very long time, they don’t need to see you coming. I want to make music for everybody.
“I brought Phyno because he is from the east, so we need to give them something from the East. I brought KWAM1 because I was born here in the West, we need to give the Yorubas something. I brought in Sarkodie because of my Ghana fan base, and Ghanaians in the diaspora. I brought in Elephant Man and Konshens because ‘My woman my everything’ is really doing very well in Jamaica, so I needed somebody to bridge the gap.
I brought Olamide because the streets is where I come from, and Wizkid is to take it international. I try to make music for everybody, not just for the Patoranking you know, and for the Nigerian pop market. I went too hard in some tracks, and not in others. I didn’t go too hard because, to be honest, I want a four year old to be able to sing Patoranking’s music. At the end of the day, I want to make music, irrespective of the genre, irrespective of how it is being done. I just want to get it done, and get it delivered.
“I want to see a 2-year kid singing my song. On the track 1 of the song I went really hard, just to let people understand that my name is Patoranking, and dancehall is all I do. You have some pidgin tracks as well for my people in Ajegunle. I try to carry everybody along.
One of the reasons why the album was delayed was: we could have dropped an album after ‘Girlie Oh’, but I just felt that I needed the acquaintance, that I wasn’t acquainted to the people. I felt that I wasn’t felt all over the country. Down South, down North, they didn’t know me. I needed to get closer to the people, and that was why I had to delay the album for a while, and we kept up dropping singles.
Roles Of VP Records and Foston Music On The Album
The contract I signed with VP Records was a distribution contract. Their work was to distribute Pato’s album, singles and everything. Even though what they wanted was a recording contract. Foston Music is the label. It’s like every other record label that makes sure that everything is being done properly for the artiste. VP was on the international side, trying to take the face and brand of Patoranking outside Africa. They’re distributing this one, it’s four days, and it is looking good. I was so surprised to see it on the world reggae chart. I think it was number one after day 3, and right now it is number 3.
Time Frame For Creation Of Album
There’s a single on the album called “GOE”. That was not the first track recorded. The first track recorded was ‘Stammerer’, and that was four years ago. “GOE” was recorded three years ago. We started working towards the album three years ago. The challenge was obviously like every other challenge. Every challenge that every artiste would face. In terms of putting songs together, the kind of sound you want to hear, the producers and engineers, the cost of production. Those were some factors that would have delayed and caused a lot of hindrances on the making of the album. A lot of people don’t know that the songs and tracklist was picked by my team and friends. I was not even there. From the arrangement of the tracklist, to the songs on the album, I was not in the vicinity when it was picked.