BlaqBonez Reinvents Himself on His New Album "Sex Over Love"
The self-proclaimed 'best rapper in Africa' creates a new persona on his latest project, and over contemporary hip-hop and Afropop beats, he sings and raps about sex, hedonism, and women.
Blaqbonez is immensely gifted. And this goes beyond his music. It is evident in his approach toward his career as an artist that he is one of a kind. When Mamiwota carried him to the shores of the mainstream, he was no longer just a rapper. He had digested the concept of being an artist who wouldn’t limit himself to strictly rap. It is this constant evolution that has seen him mature into a fully-fledged artist. On his latest project, his debut album titled Sex Over Love, the young, hardworking rapper allows himself the freedom to tell his truth.
Many rappers cannot boast of what Blaqbonez has done in the Nigerian music industry. In this part of the world where there’s hardly any blueprint for rappers to follow, we have seen rappers (artists, generally) come and go. When artists get signed to big labels, they seem to conveniently forget that it is only the beginning of the journey. Many of them become relaxed and unbothered, mainly in a hurry to start living luxuriously like a celebrity. They refuse to put in work and eventually end up blaming the label when their careers go south. Blaq did not allow that to happen to him. Since he rose to stardom, he has continually hustled his way through.
I was in a meeting with a music executive one day, and he said;
You don’t create momentum for an artist. You can only amplify it.
Those words hit me strongly. I have always had an idea of that, but when he put it that way, it made so much sense. Nigerian artists fail to realize that their careers rest solely in their hands. Any other person - your team or label - only serves as an auxiliary. Blaqbonez is not an artist that waits for anyone before making his decision. He is actively pushing his music in creative ways.
Bad Boy Blaq and His Entrance into The Mainstream
In 2018, Blaqbonez tasted spotlight. Signed to 100 Crowns, a sub-label of Chocolate City, the energetic rapper released a project titled Bad Boy Blaq, executive produced by M.I Abaga. Bad Boy Blaq was one of the three projects in the L.A.M.B series released by the label, supposedly aimed at bringing hip-hop back to life.
On Bad Boy Blaq, his seventh project, Blaqbonez showed he understood that to achieve commercial success as a rapper, he had to do things differently. With songs like Mamiwota, Play, Denied, he attempted being more than a rapper. He wove melodies with his infectious style of rap, transitioning from the *rappity* rapper he was on his previous project, Last Time Under, to a more commercially viable act. The songs on the tape ranged from trap to Afrobeats. The EP featured acts like Oxlade, Terry Apala, Loose Kaynon.
Bad Boy Blaq Re-Up
After a few months, Blaqbonez dropped Bad Boy Blaq Re-Up. It shocked many music listeners as it was barely six months after Bad Boy Blaq dropped. It appeared as if the rapper couldn’t stop himself from flooding fans with new music. The project was a compilation of remixes of some songs on the EP and three new songs. He featured prominent names like Dremo, Ycee, Ckay, Psycho YP, amongst others.
The Birth of Mr. Boombastic
When Blaq released Shut Up in 2019, it was like a subtle announcement that he had entered another phase of his artistry. The Reggae-influenced single, produced by Tempoe, was unlike anything from his previous projects.
Tellin man shut up! Who are you talking to?
He had once again evolved into a new dimension while experimenting with proper dancehall sounds. Using his enchanting personality and antics, he consistently promoted the song until it became an anthem on social media.
What followed after Shut Up was an EP titled Mr Boombastic - a persona he claimed to be the energetic side of him. Mr Boombastic contained seven songs (including Shut Up, Run My Race), all heavily influenced by dancehall. He is audacious enough to enter what other rappers consider uncharted territory. Blaq is inspired by the likes of Drake and Partynextdoor. He also revealed to have been inspired by Prettyboy D-O’s Everything Pretty album for the EP. He tapped the likes of Falz and Black Magic for this project and was able to deliver a cocktail of dancehall and afro-fusion vibes. His eccentric approach also came to play in the music video for Shut Up.
One thing that should be noted is the rapper’s staggering confidence in himself and his art. Proclaiming himself as the “Best rapper in Africa,” Blaqbonez is willing to go to any length to prove himself to anyone.
#StreamHaba Era, BBC, Bling & Emeka The Stallion
You cannot be on social media and not have experienced the era of #StreamHaba. At some point, it was an epidemic. That was how much Blaqbonez disturbed the internet. Shamelessly promoting Haba, his first single in 2020, Blaqbonez posted different skits and content to get people’s attention during the lockdown due to Covid-19.
In October 2020, Blaqbonez released a new single titled BBC. The song was sexually provocative - BBC being an acronym for “Big Black Cock.” An Afro-Caribbean sound produced by the talented Spax, BBC depicted Blaq in his ultimate raunchy form - combining sexual innuendos and fascinating wordplay. Doing what he does best, Blaqbonez used various elements from the song to market it on the streets and on social media. To further his penetration into the mainstream, he did a remix of the song with Tiwa Savage earlier this year.
Starting his 2021 on an elevated level, the “leader of the new school hip-hop” collaborated with Amaarae and Buju on a track titled Bling. The instrumental was produced by Type A. Amaarae and Buju did justice to the song respectively. With Bling came the announcement of his album, Sex Over Love.
Sex Over Love
As this piece isn’t an album review, the first thing I want to say about Sex Over Love is that it’s an exciting project. And I’m saying this because I respect how much Blaqbonez experiments as a rapper. Truly, the man wants to give Drake a run for his money.
Sex Over Love might not be Blaqbonez’s best work so far, but it is definitely the most daring. Starting from the intro, Novocaine, you can feel the braggadocio with which he sings/raps. The album is a proportionate mix of mid-tempo Afropop, Caribbean vibes, and contemporary hip-hop. He is more laid back, handling each instrumental with mastery. Emeka The Stallion is the new persona that serves as an avenue for him to speak his undiluted truth. He is unabashedly a sex maniac, and that’s exactly the theme the album follows.
On Heartbreaker, together with South African rapper, Nasty C, he boasts about breaking hearts on a trap beat. Shoutout to BeatsbyJayy for the scintillating instrumental. Sex Over Love is basically boldness meets creativity. How many rappers can make a genre-bending project like this? Especially one that requires the massive use of vocals.
Every artist that was featured on this album played their part well. From Joeboy to Psycho YP, everyone brought their A-game. You can always count on Cheque to come through on a trap beat. Big ups to A-Q for the wonderful mixing and mastering job he did on the album.
Ehen. I don’t understand what Haba is doing in this album oh. Personally, I think Blaq shouldn’t have put it.
PS: I know I’ve said this a million times, but I want to write and publish more often. Nothing gives me more joy than when I’m writing to publish for you guys to read. I really want to do better, and I hope I’m able to.
Thoroughly enjoyed this one
You should definitely write and publish often🥺