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He points to industry suits clamoring him about the “Classic Man” ethos. “Nobody was saying ‘Wahala she no dey give me.’” (Translation: She doesn’t give me any trouble or worries.)īut Jidenna admits he’s not fond of his first studio project. “That was the first time on the radio you were hearing real pidgin from a U.S.-based artist,” he recalls. He points to “A Little Bit More,” one of four singles from his debut album, The Chief. He’s humble about the notion, but Jidenna and in-house producer Nana Kwabena were some of the early U.S.-based artists to blend the sounds of Afro House and Afrobeats into hip-hop’s obsession with trap beats. That’s why you hear the direct nod to an old Busta Rhymes record but still making it new.” That means us as 45-year-old parents of the culture allowing our 16-year-old children to express themselves. “And that means sonically, subject matter wise and style-wise. It finds a calming balance on the album’s lead single “Tribe” with a psychedelic video to match. “If we are to be stewards of what this culture is, we have to allow it the space to evolve,” Guru mentions of Jidenna’s marriage of Afrobeats and hip-hop. The lustful vibes continue on “Zodi,” which masterfully samples Busta Rhymes’ 1997 hit “Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Can See.” “Sufi Woman” plays to any soul sister keen to Yoruba, Brazillian Candomblé or whatever intensifies the spiritual vibrations. However, on the track, Jidenna compares the practice to a night in Ankara sheets. Throughout the album are odes to Caribbean and African culture like on “Sou Sou,” an offhand way of saving money in West Indian households.
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I don’t know if the average American knows what a ‘Sou Sou’ is.”Ī lot of times you don't get to see the full scope or run the gamut of what that artist can do and I think that on this album, he's shown you his full gamut of what he can do as an artist. That’s the general purpose and the idea, along with very mature subject matters. “Jidenna’s album is sort of a bridge, that’s why it’s 85 to Africa,” he says when asked about engineering the album.“It’s bridging those gaps, but not only bridging those gaps musically but bridging those gaps politically, bridging those gaps business-wise. Jidenna’s sonic road trip is laced with good intentions, legendary producer Young Guru says. Eazi shining on “Babouche” and “Zodi,” respectively. Horns blow with endurance on the album’s title track with special guests like GoldLink and Mr.
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The album takes listeners to his once-humble abode in Atlanta-a cultural hub for black excellence in its own right-to sounds currently taking over Afrobeats and trap-themed parties. “Someone described me as an aux cord for the diaspora to the continent,” he says. It’s enough to overwhelm any online revolutionary but Jidenna isn’t built that way. The son of a West African scientist and chief, the artist is not only knee-deep into social issues that plague the African-American community, but has strong ties back home. Jidenna’s big ideas aren’t without merit. When we're hip-hop historians, all old and grey, we’re gonna say, 'Migos was doing to the platter platter platter.'
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You have to deal with all of that to integrate the diaspora and the continent.” The economics in the hood, the idea of it being gentrified, the positions of power with women, the LGBTQ+ community worldwide. There’s plenty of things we gotta work on because if we do, a lot of other things will actually change. There’s nothing more important as black people as that. If you look at him, that generation’s mission statement was to integrate people of color and mainstream society, but mine is the diaspora into the continent,” he adds while elongating his goals.
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“I want the album to integrate the African diaspora with the continent,” he says of the LP’s mission statement, which features a polished display of Afrobeat(s), R&B, psychedelic soul, funk and raw bars from an artist many haven’t figured out yet. Instead, the Nigerian-American gives life to hip-hop’s current identity crisis by stamping its passport across the African diaspora.