Ruger introduced himself to the industry in 2021; he has never been one to shy away from controversy. His public spat with former rival turned collaborator Bnxn showed that he wanted the smoke wherever it was. So it was no surprise when he fired digs at Joeboy, whose only offense seemed to be the audacity of dropping his album on the same day as Ruger.
While Joeboy has always portrayed an easy-going, music-first personality, he doesn’t mind indulging in the smoke, as he showed during the puzzling event of Asa’s lawsuit asking him to take down his song “Contour.” So when he fired back at Ruger, this writer was far from surprised.
I’ll remix the popular African proverb for the purpose of this article alone: when elephants fight, the audience is entertained. Even though it was obvious that there was no static between both artists, the shots fired were a bit exciting to see. Afrobeats has been peaceful for a while; there needs to be some violence, and Blownboy Ru is taking initiative. At the end of the day, both of them have albums to sell. Surely, a little bit of violence as a marketing strategy wouldn’t do any harm to anybody. Bring it on.
As for the albums, I can confidently say both artists cooked. I listened to Ruger’s album immediately after it dropped and played Joeboy’s album as part of my early morning routine. Both albums are beautiful albums from two supremely talented artists.
I was a bit disappointed with the lead singles to Joeboy’s album. “SMH” didn’t really do it for me, and I thought “Taxi Driver” was a dud. Hearing them on the album has changed that perspective for me. Both songs work in the context of the album, and both songs slotting right in the middle of the album does it for me. Whether Joeboy and his team picked the wrong singles or they played their cards close to their chest, we will find out in the long run.
I’ll give a detailed breakdown of both albums in their respective reviews.
I’ve been consistently impressed by Crayon’s dedication to maturing and evolving his sound. Witnessing his growth from its inception to the present has been a true delight. His latest release, “Bodycon,” is a masterclass in Afropop, boasting smooth, sultry vibes that make it a standout track from this week’s new music releases..
His labelmate Bayanni also dropped a song titled “Princess Treatment.” The song continues a string of disappointing singles from Bayanni. He’s really struggling to find his footing in a saturated industry, and it’s worrying to see because he’s a really talented artist.
Joe Dwet Filé is the latest beneficiary of the Burna Boy stimulus package as the African Giant gets the island of Haiti excited this Friday morning. He jumped on the remix of “4 Kampe,” one of the hottest songs on the island at the moment. He continues his impeccable run of international features as he lends his unrivaled talent to the young upstart as we get towards the release of his highly anticipated seventh album.
Speaking about impeccable runs of features, Bella Shmurda is on one crazy run at the moment. He lends his talent to Ghanaian sensation Arathejay on his new single “Fire.”
Emerging talent Dxtiny releases a brand new single, “Babcock.” I’m really enjoying this kid. He’s onto something with his sound, and I’m here for all of it. Looking forward to an EP from him.Be sure to check out the latest releases from Kashcoming, Smur Lee, Erigga, Africaine, Noon Dave, Eli Jae, Tesh Carter, Raevin, Cazulee, Highstarlavista, and Evado– these records are absolute must-listens.
