Afro-fusion Nigerian artist, Fasina, first appeared on the scene in 2017; stealing our hearts with his effortless delivery on DJ Femo collab, ‘Adara’. Shortly after, he serenaded us with a follow up stellar single, ‘5 Star’, which many have collectively deemed as ‘a true cultural reset’. Since then, the singer has blessed us with standout tracks like ‘Freaky’, ‘Mixed Signals’ and the Adey produced cut, ‘Split’; relishing in his Afro-Fusion palette.
2020, however, saw Fasina switch up his creative direction and opt for a rap soundscape; serving up his first single of the year ‘Stacks (Story Tell)’, and it seems he isn’t relenting anytime soon. For his latest offering, he enlists a slew of skilled rappers in their own rights: Mojo, Seki SuperVillain and JoulesDaKid, for new single, ‘GTA’.
The track starts off spotlighting Seki in a perfect pocket with the infectious, melodic trap flow signature to him as he sings-raps, ‘Know I had to hit them with the PSA/All my life, I swear I feel like GTA’. Fasina and Joules follow suit, trading catchy bars over the head-bopping, 4LA Powers produced trap beat. Mojo then closes the show with his witty rhymes served up in Yoruba, English and Pidgin English, leaving us with the catchy line, ‘Orisha the hip hop avenger’.
The track is overall a fair effort, however what it packs in ambience, it lacks in intent. Fasina is prominent for dishing up perfectly curated numbers like his aforementioned previous singles; from the musical composition/arrangement to the features, each track is clearly intentional. ‘GTA’, however, exudes a less premeditated feel. The featured artists, while providing commendable efforts, all don’t seem to fully congeal together. It’s obvious this track wasn’t so well thought out; it seems like a group of rappers just came together and hoped for the best.
Nevertheless, this may have been the intended vibe Fasina was going for, as all year, he’s seemed to tap into his more carefree side as was perfectly encapsulated on ‘Stacks’.
