THE CUTS: EP 02 Vol. 01
THE CUTS is your weekly round-up of songs and videos-and anything that has caught our attention and think you must hear or see. The music featured here aren’t genre specific. THE CUTS is delivered every FRIDAY
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Kula feat Klem – Don’t Blow It
Kula is steadily growing his clout as one of the top prospects on the music scene. His profile took a notch up from last year when he was featured on some of the biggest shows in the country. After his song ‘Go DJ’ (an ode to DJs in GH) became the official theme song for this year’s DJ Awards, he’s out with a new single about love. On ‘Don’t Blow It’, featuring singer Klem (XtraLarge Music ), the two remind us to not blow it when our partners offer us their heart and trust. Produced by Timmy (producer of Kojo-Cue’s Tsio Benke Mi), ‘Don’t Blow It’ carries a mid-tempo Afropop vibe. Kula on the first verse narrates how they met (first as friends, later lovers) in a calm, simple and fun manner. On the second verse, he teases out her qualities. The Klem delivered hook is an assurance of his unwavering love. Should the ‘Kw3’ heard at the end of each bar of the second verse become a thing, know who started it first. And, did Kula say ‘me bo mu s3 karat?’ Ei, #SaBoiWei Paa!!
Kwadjo SPiRi – Ogya (Fire)
Confession: I’m a sucker for samples. I get ecstatic when young Ghanaians rappers sample good old classic Ghanaian works, use them the way they like and get it right. One rapper to do both is Kwadjo SPiRi. A single off his ‘The Fly EP’, produced by Lik-Wid Ice- samples the hook of Ogya by legendary afro band Osibisa. The song rides on trap bounce. It’s your true hip-hop tune with Kwadjo SPiRi boasting about his credentials (he’s the fire) in many styles of rhyme- slow, fast and dense; switching between English, pidgin and Twi. ‘Rising to the highest/ flying on this flying feathers/ we shining bright/black stars in the night’, he raps. One noticeable thing about him is that, he knows how to ride beats.
King Promise – Oh Yeah
King Promise has promise. He has the qualities to become a force on the music scene. A good songwriter, an ever improving artiste. His growth is seen with every song or feature he drops. His new song ‘Oh Yeah’, produced by Killbeatz is turning heads and it’s obvious to note why: the melody is catchy; the lyrics are simple and easy to sing. The accompanying video runs on similar plane. The storyline is easy to grasp. King Promise ‘accidentally’ bumps into a nice girl during his morning jog. The two exchange phone numbers and a date follows. The rest of the video is a club scene. This Lex MacCarthy shot has good visuals: the tone of light used in the club is perfect. The video isn’t crowded with people-Killbeatz makes a cameo. King Promise’s fashion sense is on point. That coffee brown jacket is awesome. Even though black is my favourite colour, I won’t hesitate to rock that jacket. It’s a smart move to release ‘Oh Yeah’ now that he’s getting attention off the back of his performance of DJ Vision’s ‘Double Trouble’ and also penning a VGMA winning song for Adina Thembi (Too Late). My only reservation is that, the lyrics for ‘Oh Yeah’ are basic compared to that on ‘So Special’-his first single. But, then again, it could be deliberate; after all easy lyrics and catchy groove is what reigns lately.
Suede – Alkebulan
https://soundcloud.com/suedeoff/alkebulan
‘Alkebulan’ is jazzy in tone, Pan-African in it’s lyrics and afropop in sound (soft drums, horns). This new Suede released single is a celebration of Africa-the continent and it’s people as suggested in the chorus: ‘I can’t my lady oh/She be fine lady oh/ Africa my home’. Suede proceeds to beckon Africa and her many countries ‘to rise up’. Even though they have been many excellent odes to Mama Africa by incredible artistes, Suede’s ‘Alkebulan’ is refreshing partly due to the recording approach -the vocals are distant and hollow yet appealing. The only downside to ‘Alkebulan’ are the lyrics-they aren’t creative enough. They feel like a collection of phrases that came to his mind rather than a well thought out and written lyrics. They sadly pale in comparison to the strong and impressive sound of the song. ‘Alkebulan’ is, however, a timely released song to mark the African Union (AU) Day
