A Lord Wapi Review
A great disservice is done whenever consumers of an album sit with it less than 24hrs, not let it breathe, not let it sink in, not let it spread in their mind, and conclude as to whether it’s a good album or not. This, of course, is only motivated by an urge to be the first to have an opinion about the project because I highly doubt one can tell whether an album is good or not by listening to it only once. Also, we seem to be a biased society when it comes to music. Everyone is loving Chef these days. Everyone is hating Slapdee these days.
Most people thought Chef 187’s ‘Bon Appetit’ was a good album just by listening to it once and now Slapdee’s ‘Mother Tongue’ is a wack album when you only listened to it once. The manner in which we consume music these days makes us incapable of paying attention to and appreciating detail such that because everyong is bubbling about how wack Dizzo’s album is, we probably will say the same thing. The album is an EXCELLENT ALBUM.
Yeah, well, since we are comparing ‘Mother Tongue’ to ‘Bon Appetit’, I must mention that according to me, unlike Chefy’s album, Slap’s album isn’t necessary as much a pure Hip Hop album than it is a “Feel Good” album. Sort of like a collection of Summer Hits. Music you can listen to in your car as your drive down a highway on a sunny day with your roof off. You’re on your way to a Picnic or a Party and you want music to get you in the mood.
Slap’s ‘Mother Tongue’ would be the album to play. The production is very well done and danceable. Even before you are paying attention to the vocals or the lyrics, the instrumentals alone are enough to make you tap your feet or nod your head. They are catchy, cool and potentially serious earworms that you might find yourself humming to in the library. And them the vocals, my goodness. Yes, Slapdee has an annoying monotone but the features he brought on board brought serious games to this project.
DAEV on “Fire” almost brought tears to my eyes because I realized just how much wealth the Zambian Music Industry has lost in terms of a Brilliant Vocalist. Maybe I care about Slapdee’s verse, maybe I don't but bottom line is, to hear DAEV sing “Ah Nah Nah” is enough to have me love this song and put on repeat in my bathroom as I did my daily push ups before I shower. Something about it is motivating. I only hope that more artists did tracks with DAEV that are yet to be released because I really haven't accepted that this talent is taken away from us. RIP DAEV.
ELISHA LONG on ‘ZANGA’ was the first voice I fell in love with. I have no idea who this artist is but I absolutely love this song because mainly of his hook. He nailed it. Besides that, like I mentioned, this is a feel good album. And what makes you feel good than a song about friends? Your Day 1s? Slapdee made me think deeply of my friends on this jam such that I wanted to make up with even those I don't talk to anymore. When I listen to this song, I see Slap at a party by the pool, chilling with his friends. And then there’s
PRINCESS NATASHA CHANSA on ‘Ku Wire’ a song that rubs it in the face of that ex that left you because they thought you weren't good enough. I have known about PNC for over 2 years now as an Underground New Wave Artist but I think we are ready for this rapper/singer to be on the top. PNC is the best part of thing particular song. She covers the chorus of the hit Country Song ‘My Love For You Will Never Die’ by Don Williams and I can listen to her version the whole day. Well, actually, I did listen to it the whole day. It was on repeat from 6 to 6 the other day. At first, I disliked the Slapdee part of the song but after a couple of listens, I am rapping along. It's a well tailored banger. But not as well tailored as
TIM on ‘Greatness’. T.I.M., of course, standing for ‘This Is Murder’ because that's exactly what he does to Slapdee. Sorry, King, but much as you both brought your superior lyrical game to this old school type jam and exchanged clever and well penned lines to deliver what I can only describe as one of the best Zambian Hip Hop tracks of the decade, TIM was the star of not only this particular track but also the one of the stars of all the features you recruited for this album and if I were to even quote one of his lines on this very track TIM is the type to “...Twinkle, Twinkle in the middle of the day; Son is a Star (SUN IS A STAR). But even though Slap brought bars to this track, what I would call the best Hip Hop track of the album is
KEMBO MU MATERO. The reason I say this is because when the King announced this project, I was expecting this. Him rapping away and only featuring other artists on hooks alone. He's been criticised for having too many features on the album. Why? Because features dirstract us from the main guy. Also, it makes it easy for the main guy. Also, the main guy doesn't tell any stories properly with features. And even though no particular story was told with this track, it was refreshing to have Slap do all the rapping. It also has one of those laughable and lazy lines like “I’m like Chicagos and Capones; I go bar for bar” but it still sounded good haha! Speaking of Bars. Here's a song from the album that would make me spend my cash someone’s daughter
MOTTO feat. Jay Rox & Sampa The Great. Or, as I’d like to call it, a Jay Rox song featuring Sampa The Great and additional vocals from Slapdee. This is definitely more of a Jay sound than it is a Slap sound but maybe that's whats unique about this album. It experiments, not only with different artists but also with different sounds. That's what I love about it. Every song sounds different and has a different vibe. There's no consistency with the sound through out. That's why I said that this is a feel good album. So maybe it shouldn't be called ‘Mother Tongue’. It should be called ‘Mother Land’ highlighting all the sounds that can be relished in terms of Zambian Music. Slapdee is a King. He has nothing to prove. He can rap. He can write raps. He is therefore allowed to make an album that only gives us good music. This IS good music.
Thank You
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