Bobo Yi O Smart Sha, I Guess Y’all Just Found Out – Reminisce [ Let It Be Known ]
Artist: Reminisce
Album:- Baba Hafusa
Record Label: – Edge Records/Les Roses Rouge Entertainment
Distributed By:- I-Tunes/Spinlet [ Online ]
Guest Appearances: – Ice Prince, Sojay, Sossick, Vector, Sean Tizzle, Olamide And Phyno
Producers: Sarz, Tyrone , Jospo, Sossick, Chopstix, Kim Beatz, Young John, D-Tunes
Duration: 55 Minutes
Critical Breakdown
“O ye rappers, I have moved on to greater things; I will see you in a jiffy.” Ever since that sentence escaped Reminisce’s mouth on the lead single off his debut album, Kako Bii Chicken, he hasn’t looked back. a A more apt phrase has not been uttered by a Nigerian rapper in a while, as events have proven in his career. Reminisce has risen from a fringe artiste affiliated with Coded Tunes Records to a major player on the Nigerian rap scene. He has dropped three albums in four years (Book Of Rap Stories 2012, Alaga Ibile 2013, and Baba Hafusa 2015 ) and has bagged endorsements with Samsung Mobile and the Guinness-produced drink Orijin as a brand ambassador, and capped it off with an appearance on the Time Magazine Feature on world Music as a Rapper outside the United States that the world needs to know.Ultimately the stage was set for him to drop his third album [Baba Hafusa], and when he released the album cover last month, the theme became more clear, inspired by his ascent in the rap game and his position as a husband, father, and provider, which was evident as he named the album after his daughter (who I am guessing is Hafsat) and clutched an eye-catching red teddy bear on the cover. The album was released to a great reception by fans and held down the number one spot on the iTunes chart, displacing the 50 Shades of Grey soundtrack, as well as the soundtrack to the critically acclaimed US series Empire.
The opening track on the album is the Tyrone-produced Grind, which features Edge Records’ new signee Sojay who opens up the Album with a touching hook which was well executed and had Reminisce rapping, “I love myself, no homo.” They said, “Rap for me was a no-no. That area is a no-go. But Mi O’she Yaya Sanogo”, owning the beat in his usual fashion, and his work was made easier by Tyrone, who switched the beat up for him to rap and slowed it down for Sojay to croon over melodic piano keys to create an appropriate album opener. The title track, Baba Hafusa is next in tow. This one is a street rap song that would definitely go down well with rap heads and has Reminisce channelling the “3rd World Thug” in him and representing for the streets, declaring, “This Ibile Shit Would Be Nothing Without Me.”
Saida The next track is a song that remixes a popular Yoruba “church song” and borrows from the Nigerian gyration rhythm, complete with clinking bottles in the background and a very catchy hook. He sings entirely through this one and created a soundtrack to Owambes Worldwide. The Sarz-produced Skilashii which sounds every inch like “Shake Body” by Skales is the next track and showcases the chemistry between him and Sarz who has produced over 50% of his discography, and though it is a solid street-rap single, it sounds more like an album filler. Difference Entertainment meets Edge Records on the next track, Gbamilago, a love song featuring Sean Tizzle who serenaded the love interest on the hook perfectly to create a solid radio single which I think has all the qualities of a chart-topping record. The next song, I Need A Girl, follows in the direct path of the last one, a song geared towards the ladies. Produced by Jospo, it sees Reminisce switching up his usual gruff tone to a smoother flow, which resonated well with what he created on the song. Jospo, who has produced on all three Reminisce albums, is responsible for the next song Olomoge, an uptempo raunchy song which I know NBC Would gladly put on their “No playlist”, The production on the song is top-notch, marrying the Nigerian Highlife sound with the “Afro-Pop” sound to good effect, and has Remi rhyming and singing effortlessly over it, celebrating the feminine anatomy. The controversial Tyrone Produced Local Rappers is the 8th joint on the album; it features Olamide and Phyno and has elicited responses from different quarters of the Nigerian hip-hop community. On this one the three rappers declare that “punchlines do not sell records anymore” , it’s an “I don’t give a fuck” record , where they celebrate their ascent and domination of a hip-hop scene where “indigenous rappers” were once told that their brand of Nigerian hip-hop music wasn’t viable and couldn’t move records. It’s a statement and arguably the standout track on the album, which would definitely cement and solidify this album’s place in the minds of Nigerian hip-hop enthusiasts.
Reminisce – Local Rappers Featuring Olamide And Phyno [ Official Video ]
Previously released single Tesojue which was actually the lead single on the album, is another song I am sure would get that infamous NBC-ban stamp but would definitely be embraced by the streets. It’s another catchy X-rated record, which advocates facials (a sex act ) , and is geared towards the clubs, and it’s one of the tracks on the album, which is already a fan favourite. The song also immortalised another widely used catchphrase, “We are not hooligans.” The next song, Alagbara, features Sossick, who also served as its producer, and sounds a bit lazy on the English part of the hook, using the famous “Rose/Moet” rhyme; however, Remi is in one of his sober moments on this song, thanking God for his success and praying that it would go on for a long time. Otiya is another song on which he basks in his rise to fame. It’s a proper song, and Reminisce’s sharp bars were matched adequately by the instrumental, with a melodious guitar solo at the end of the song, which was one of the most musical moments on the album. Koshosi Featuring Sossick has him name-dropping UK megastore chain Tesco in his verse. Producer Chopstix lived up to his name on this one, lacing the track with a very progressive drum pattern which is fast becoming his signature sound, though the hook was a bit below the standards of an artiste of Reminisce’s calibre. Choc Boy Ice Prince links up with Reminisce on the next song Busayo , where they both get their pimping on and boast about how they get girls and money. Both rappers went in with a back-and-forth flow, which sort of reminded me of American rappers Jadakiss and Styles P who are well known to sometimes trade bars in this fashion on records. It’s one of the better tracks on the album, which had YBNL in-house producer Young John exhibiting his “wickedness“, showing why he is one of the hottest young producers in the game. Nothing Featuring Sojay and Vector is an ode to hustlers and go-getters, which was produced by Sarz, and the bassline on the track was strikingly similar to that on They Don’t Love You No More, which was performed by American rappers DJ Khaled, Meek Mill, French Montana, Rick Ross and Jay Z. Vector came through, but Reminisce easily outshone him on this one. On the outro, Reminisce thanks his fans and everyone who has been with him since the beginning, discusses his last album, which reportedly sold a million copies, and introduces his artist Sojay, as well as predicting that Baba Hafusa will go on to sell 10 million copies. Let It Be Known, featuring Sojay, ends the album just the same way it started, with a collaboration with his labelmate, who really killed this song with an amazing bridge, and Remi ends the album with a pledge to continue to go hard in the game and keep slaying competition.
Reminisce – Let It Be Known Featuring Sojay [Official Video]
No Indigenous rapper in Nigeria has a wider scope and uses a wider range of vocabulary like Reminisce, This album shows he has mastered the art of making hit songs and has finally arrived at a level where he can be regarded as an A-list act. His football references are something he has made a trademark of sorts, name-dropping past and present footballers like Yaya Sanogo, Marko Marin and Davor Suker in tracks on this album; however, his biggest selling point is his ability to water down his Yoruba and blend it with Pidgin English, as well as the English language, to create a widely acceptable variety of Indigenous Nigerian hip-hop music. With this album, it’s clear he has mastered his subgenre of “Ibile Rap” and is staking a claim to the top spot in the rap game.
Remi managed to bridge the gap between hip-hop music, the Yoruba language, and the Nigerian urban music sound. Though not his best effort, it would definitely go down as one of his most successful projects. It remains to be seen whether it would top Alaga Ibile in terms of sales, but it is definitely on its way there. Apart from a few missteps (too many “radio-crafted songs” and a handful of sub-par choruses), the album is a distinct-sounding and engaging one which would definitely go down well with Reminisce fans, who started off with Kako Bii Chicken, but some of his core rap fans who started off with One Chance, Gbagbe with Da Grin and XP and his verse on Bachelor by 9ice of the critically acclaimed Gongo Aso album may not be too content with the sound and direction of the album, but they need to understand that Reminisce has evolved into a multi-genre artiste who has adapted to suit his musical terrain, and his number one priority is to make sure Hafusa is comfortable and doesn’t want for anything. He may have said he would see you in a jiffy, but he’s not in a Hurry to stop Enjoying “Greater Things”. Not just yet.
Beats/Production: 7.5/10
Lyrics:- 7/10
Composition/Arrangement: 8/10
Best Verse:- Baba Hafusa [Full Track]
Standout Track: Local Rappers Featuring Olamide and Phyno
Musical Moment: The Piano Keys On Grind, and The Guitar Solo at the End of Otiya
Album Rating:- 7.5/10
Reminisce – Tesojue [Official Video]