It’s the end of another month and you know the drill. The fifth month of the year saw even more releases from big names and niche artistes alike and there’s even a more plethora of projects to pick from, so without further ado let’s dive into our top five projects of the year.
1. Easy On Dem – Semzi & Easyscope
Semzi has been a prominent name since his days of collaborating with Bad Boy Timz, but he experienced a resurgence of dominance after helming the production of Olamide’s Ikigai, Vol 1. On his debut project, he teams up with the ardently talented street-pop singer, Easyscope and together they craft the best EP 2025 has offered so far.
Over a backdrop of melodic production and energetic pop beats, Easyscope glides with the swag and precision of Asake-esque melodic rapping flows and a unique vocal texture, that bares little semblance with Terry Apala’s. We already know Semzi is a problem on beats, so the true revelation on this EP is the prodigious talent that is Easyscope.
2. Uncle K: Lemon Chase – Kizz Daniel
It’s been almost a year since Kizz Daniel teased, Uncle K but for various reasons the album has been postponed multiple times. However, we got an Uncle K spin-off this May and Kizz sounds the most inspired and refreshed he’s sounded in years. No one has mastered the art of giving the people what they want like Kizz, who occasionally veers too much towards the deep end of ‘nothing‘ lamba just to create a resonant moment but his talent has never been in question.
On Lemon Chase, he straddles a fine balance between those simplistic mainstream elements of his biggest hits and competent songwriting that conveys meaningful storytelling. The bulk of the production handled by blaisebeatz and rewardbeatz is also a tad experimental and visceral, giving Kizz a lot of heavy lifting to do on songs like Secure and Eyo that is quite atypical of his sonic identity, but he delivers nonetheless.
3. The Feast – Falz
Not many artists can boast from Falz’s generation can boast of having a better discography than him, as the rapper has had the critical acclaim, awards and even commercial success to show for it. However, things haven’t been the same since his 2022 effort, Bahd, where an ambitious Falz flirted with pop soundscapes, while retaining his rap persona. It was an underwhelming project that failed to offer the best of either worlds, but his new album is a much bigger improvement.
The Feast doesn’t bother too much with catering to a mainstream audience, although it does have party starting bops like No Less and Jump, however it prioritizes an album experience and places Falz’s identity as a versatile rapper, center stage. Well curated features like Majeed, D smoke and ODUMODUBLVCK—with his best guest verse in a while—elevates the album.
4. Paradise Now – Obongjayar
Obongjayar has built a reputation for himself with music that is sonically progressive and constantly pushing the boundaries of sound and storytelling. His 2022 debut album, Some Nights I Dream Of Doors was a masterclass of Afrobeat, jazz and pop fusion, while chronicling spiritual tales of survivor’s guilt and rebellion. Prior to that, he’s also shown us he could deliver soulful, R&B records on his collab EP with Sarz and on his new album he’s doing both.
The drums on this LP are defiant and constantly going off in hyper-pop fits, like they’re trying to break free from shackles. Talk Olympics ft. Little Simz pushes this sentiment the highest, with the sort of tempo that requires breathless rapping cadences but Obongjayar manages to put his stamp of artistry on it and it’s no surprise that a rapper as dexterously talented as Little Simz does her bit in elevating the song too.
5. This Feels Like An Interlude – Lady Donli
Like the title implies, this EP does feel like an interlude at only seven minutes long, however that doesn’t mean Donli pulls her punches. If anything, it only emboldens her to go all the way. The opening 2-track sequence is a two-parter on beckoning for love and feeling empty, when it does come. The production is larger than life with dramatic drum rolls and triumphant saxophone riffs.
The EP devolves into something much more mellow in the second half, where Donli admits she isn’t sure her lover still feels the same and consoling herself on another song that time heals and she’ll be fine. While the drum arrangement of these beats feel familiar in the sense of them being swing oriented and disco infused, the inherent elements feel western nonetheless.
