The year 2022 is filled with exhilarating album debutants and the veterans in the game also came in with solid works.
However, a new generation is poised on the verge of unprecedented success. They’ve really honed their sound, and they have a stronghold on their audience.
1 . Omah Lay – Boy Alone
Omah Lay’s “Boy Alone” is a sonic treat, a novel account of a protagonist’s search for love and a secure sense of self. There are a total of fourteen songs on this album, and they each pay their own unique tribute to individuality and turbulent love.
The album’s lyrics are well-organized and they work together to soothe the listeners. Featuring a sprinkling of imagery, they provide the necessary impulse for some mental cruising.
To sum it up, Omah Lay’s first album is a really engaging blend of mid-tempo harmonies, and it demonstrates an impressively coherent production value for a debut album.
2. Rema – Rave & Roses
Rema has focused all of his energy on perfecting this sound. He passionately incorporates his feelings into this endeavor, which results in the creation of immediate classics like “Divine,” “Wine (with Yseult),” “Jo,” and “Calm Down,” amongst others.
3. Burna Boy – Love Damini
Burna Boy has come a long way from his experimental debut album L.I.F.E. (Leaving an Impact for Eternity), to the “second album slump” of On a Spaceship Ship, and finally to the genre-blending Outside album.
Maybe his present worldwide trajectory was boosted by African Giant, but Twice as Tall pushed it to a whole new level.
The album has a track for every mood; parties, self, love and what have you. Burna Boy flex his lyrical skill as he invited listeners to the dance floor.
4.Vector – TESLIM
The album’s title, “Teslim,” is an obvious reference to his father, and it’s part of Vector’s moving attempt to bridge three generations in the album.
He begins the project with a conversation with his daughter and continues with 16 tracks of profound, introspective music.
It’s intriguing how, throughout this body of work, Vector still manages to deliver catchy hooks using his vocals, as it delves into the varied skillset of the seasoned Nigerian rap veteran.
5. Asake – Mr Money With The Vibes
Asake’s meteoric rise to fame has defied every rule book and success formula for modern Nigerian pop.
Featuring profound Yoruba lyrics and a style tailor-made for choirs and percussions, and supported by fluid transitions, this album is a masterwork.
Asake satisfies every sonic requirement simultaneously.
His music is delightful. New artistes who effortlessly appeal to audiences in both urban and rural settings are extremely rare throughout generations. Asake is able to do all of these things and more.
6. Fireboy DML – Playboy
Fireboy dives audaciously into “unfamiliar” terrain as he melodiously rhymes over Caribbean beats (Havin Fun), and he skillfully delivers hints about his casanova nature throughout the album.
The album is a buoyant investigation of worldwide music genres, and Fireboy does so with buoyancy.
7. Adekunle Gold – Catch Me If You Can
The real magic about the 14 tracks album is in its arrangement and harmonious Afro-highlife melody which rings throughout the whole album.
The artiste has shown us the difference between Adekunle Gold and AG Baby and how both characters can cohabit inside one man- same artiste, same album, different musical themes.
With this album, Adekunle Kosoko has proven beyond every reasonable doubt that he is one of the most versatile Nigerian artiste of the 21st century, with his transition of singing about love and prayers to singing about lust, sex and drugs, what else can’t he sing about?
8. Brymo – Theta
Theta is a corpus of work that is the definition of what a Brymo can do. It’s an astonishing truth that he has kept his style and music direction throughout the years and he keeps setting the pace for young artists who wish to toll that line.
9. MI Abaga – The Guy
It’s safe to say that, after “Talk About It,” this is M.I.’s most meticulously curated album, and the one that finally establishes his place as a bona fide A-List musician.
Each music was meticulously calculated, and its accompanying characteristics were just right.
10. Seyi Vibez – Billion Dollar Baby
This is an album for the streets. Seyi Vibez takes us on an introspective musical trip as he croons quietly over gentle piano chords and intermittent saxophone solos.
In this album, Seyi Vibez recounts his rise to fame and credits God as the driving force behind his success amongst other topics.
11. Wizkid – More Love, Less Ego
The album takes a deep journey into love (sex) and ego (money). On this album, Wizkid was full of praises for a woman’s body, he describes it as a beloved country – a place he can walk at night where everything is dark and still wouldn’t miss his way.
The first track Money and Love opens with the alluring sensual track, a mid-tempo song that is inevitably a sex laden lyrics. Here is where the singer is telling his lover how he wants to get wasted. The second track Balance is also synonymous to the first track, though with a more fantastic flow.
Wizkid has his sound, though many of his fans want the Wizkid of Superstar and Ayo but the singer is now leaning to a new sound, perhaps a new culture, call it anything you want, Popsy as he is fondly called has moved further.
12. Wurld – My World With You
The Los Angeles-based artist’s third solo album, My WorlD With U, feels like a coming-of-age statement because the title is identical to his own name.
The album aims to popularize afrobeats by including a wide variety of catchy melodies and rhythms across its 19 songs.
13. Bella Shmurda – Hypertension
In particular, Bella Shmurda’s output shows his growth as an artist. Most tracks include sophisticated orchestration, and the album’s producers do a solid job of providing Bella with a musical framework that works with his aspirations. This album centers on them.
There is no unifying theme or concept. Bella’s use of the playlist is more akin to an artist’s use of a demo reel.
14. Boj – Gbagada Express
Boj’s influence in the African pop sphere, which spans over ten years, has come full circle, and he is rightly recognized as a pioneer of the Altè movement.
Boj, who makes up one-third of the band DRB Lasgidi, uses the album Gbagada Express as an outlet to release pent-up emotions, have difficult dialogues, and learn valuable lessons.
How The Albums Were Rated
These albums were rated based on the following metrics; production/sound, melody, performance/delivery/replay value and lyrics/wordings.
What do you think about this list? Share your views in the comments section.
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