On His Latest Full Length LP, Josh Gets Real Candid And Expresses His Deepest Emotions.
Josh made a name for himself in the late 2010s, as one of the foremost skit makers in the country with a perchance of infusing his humor with comical music. Before his foray into comedy and mainstream success, he had dabbled in making music but hadn’t experienced the meteoric rise to fame he enjoyed in comedy. Now he’s back to taking another crack at it, with his second project in three years.
The album kicks off with International, an Amapiano-fusion cut featuring Ice Prince where Josh indulges in chest thumping antics to big up his success as a creative. He uses Kung fu allegories to emphasize his fighting spirit and Ice Prince ties up the relentless spirit motif. Jembe is more uptempo with raucous log drums and inebriated shakers. Josh is keen on having a good time here and the song isn’t big on narrative like the previous track, so he doubles down on vibes and encourages his love interest to be lively on the dance floor.
On Ndi Oma, Josh gets candid and is intent on letting his love interest know now much she means to him. We remain in Amapiano territory, but the drums are more exhilarating here to match the celebratory sentiment of the record because love is being extolled here. Ball deviates from the soundscape and heads into Igbo Hiplife territory where Josh doesn’t hesitate from rapping about the luxury of life on the fast lane. Story stays within Hiplife territory but instead of a romantic outlook, it has a more wholesome narrative of gratitude for life and God for blessings.
Sorochi doubles down on the earnestness of the preceding track and strays deeper into gospel territory, with Josh admonishing listeners to follow God in all their dealings. Nmiri has an Afro-Swing/Garage template to it. Evelle brings a feminine touch to it with her sultry and sings from the perspective of a lover letting go and trusting in the conviction of her lover. The bounce here is infectious and the chorus is catchy too. It’s one of the LP’s brightest moments.
There’s more to love than butterflies fluttering and Josh sings about the dark side on Toxic and how aggravating fans and loved ones can get but their antics won’t cut it in killing his resolve to mantain peace. Okoso has a pulsating rhythm that’s inspired the grooves of a Makosa track. Acoustic guitar strings are sewn into the stitches of the beat patterns and it reverbs with every kick. Mahdéy sings that love has no patience for being indecisive on Undecided and Josh supports with the perspective of a man that has to bear full responsibility of being the pacesetter.
MRGVN and Vas Angelov deliver potent life lessons on Badman Lesson, iterating the need to remain grounded in the things that matter and not get lost in the licentious pleasures of life. It does get a bit preachy at a point but Josh’s self awareness in brushing off the message of the song in a comical bid to “have fun” makes it more bearable. Josh makes it abundantly clear to his detractors on More, that he won’t give them the impression of seeing him fail because he’ll keep delivering.
Josh is back to singing duets on Watin I Go Do with RAYBEKAH where the point of contention is a lover who doesn’t show appreciation. Like the other feminine duets on the LP, it’s the contrasting dynamism in the different vocal textures that elevate the track. Enjoyment is spiritually a Tekno track in the chord progression and thematic focal point of living large.
There’s no back and forth like the prior duet tracks and Lady Zamar turns in her verse that’s big on the sentiment of surrendering to the whims of her lover. Egwu na da ends the LP on the same Amapiano fusion note it started on and what better way to end the album than bigging up yourself and establishing the fact that you’re unstoppable and no one can touch you. Indeed the balls needed to transition from popular skitmaker to singer, songwriter is no small feat and Josh speaks on it.
on beHALF of JOSH is a personal voyage into the mind of Josh2funny. His confidence as a medium bending artiste, his aspirations and personal proclivities in love are all documented. It also depicts a personal maturity and growth that can only be put into full perspectivem, when one understands where Josh came from to fulfill his dreams.
