Like it or not, Burna Boy is the posterboy of Afrobeats. His erroneous and distasteful comments about African music doesn’t take away the fact that he’s the biggest act out of the continent and also an amazing artist. On I Told Them, he pulls off a grand deception many didn’t see coming.
Last Last will go down as one of the greatest songs in contemporary times, made by an African artist. Partly due to the sheer magic in its sonic ambience and also due to its gravitas in pushing Afrobeats on the global scene. What’s ironic about the song’s success and impact is that in its fundamentals, it’s not even an Afrobeats song. It’s very Caribbean in its composition, yet it’s a flagbearer on the Western scene for African music. It’s this conundrum itself that sums up Burna Boy as an artist.
For reasons best known to him, he has decided to absolve himself from the identity of Afrobeats, despite being its prominent frontrunner. He does pay homage and cite inspiration from the original Afrobeat, created by Fela Kuti which evidently influences his sound but he prefers to call himself an ‘Afro-Fusion’ artist, a genre he claims to pioneer. Asides the false claim (Lagbaja and King Sunny Ade have been fusing African and Western Music in ingenious ways since time immemorial), there is really not any substantial difference between Afro-fusion and Afrobeats.
Afrobeats in itself isn’t a genre. Rather it’s an umbrella term used to classify several genres of modern African music with notable fusions from western genres and other foreign influences e.g. (Afro-Pop, Afro-R&B, Afro-Swing etc.) So in its innate nature, it’s already a fusion thus making Afro-fusion nothing more than a tautologous term. The only reason why some artists might not gravitate towards the usage of the term, Afrobeats is because of its origin in the West and how it has become a problematic umbrella to lump anything that’s African music into it. A stigma Burna seems intent on avoiding.
Prior to its release, this writer truly believed that this album was curated without Nigerians in mind. The three singles were all Hip-Hop cuts, built from classic R&B samples. It was not farfetched to assume Burna had an epiphany after the monstrous success of Last Last and so wanted to double down on the formular to sell himself even further to the Western market. His visual aesthetics in the new music videos also back it up. Sitting On Top Of The World was drenched in that classic 90’s hip aesthetic, and Burna was sporting a Wu-tang durag and brown Timbs on the set of City Boys. However, asides the singles, this album is very much Afrobeats.
From the get-go on the opening of the titular track, I Told Them—we realize that we might be in for an African album, after all. Plucked guitar strings, highlife indented synthesizers and clashing cymbals make for the production backdrop. Burna coasts over the beat smoothly, bigging himself up and singing his own praises in a self-assured way that only a superstar of his magnitude can pull off. “Because Odogwu no be nickname” he clarifies, asserting that he isn’t called Odogwu for no reason. It’s solely because of his ‘doings.’
A GZA spoken word poem that muses about shining like a star, emphasizing Burna’s stance on the track—smoothy segues the transition to the next track, Normal. Burna’s delivery is varied from melodic rapping to standard Afrobeats on the hard-hitting Grime beat, with a thumping baseline. Some Wu-Tang inspired Kung Fu chops and scratches that were mild on the preceding track, become more audible towards the end of Normal and bleeds on to On Form in another smooth transition.
Jazzman Olofin and Adewale Ayuba’s Raise the Roof is sampled on On Form, but that’s not the only interesting thing about the track. It also blends Afrobeats with Flamenco, a brand of folkloric music that originates from southern Spain. The recurring horns that jolt the song are also Afro-beat type horns and it follows a similar chord progression to the foundational genre. Nevertheless, this is a rambunctious groovy song that excels so well that this writer wonders why it isn’t the post-album release single.
The Wu-Tang sound effects make a final appearance for the segue to Sitting On Top Of The World and it’s yet another transition executed so well, that it makes the single sound even better on the album as a result of its placement. At this point, it’s important to note that despite the differing genres of the opening sequence, the album remains very cohesive. So when Tested, Approved & Trusted comes around, it’s a much needed refreshment from the tight cohesion.
It’s an Afro-Swing record with some soulful jazz horns and it has Burna wearing his heart on his sleeve, making it the most vulnerable song on the entire album. This is the closest thing we get to a genuine love song and it’s a slow burn record that only gets better with subsequent listens. At the time of writing this review, it’s this writer’s favorite track and would definitely find immense love with the ladies also.
Every single sounds better when played on the album as part of the overall experience and that extends to Cheat On Me ft. Dave, but it still isn’t enough to redeem this song from sounding monotonous. Burna isn’t very dynamic with his delivery and Dave’s trademark talking-esque flows doesn’t do much to prevent the song from sounding lax. Virgil acts as an interlude and pays an emotional tribute to Virgil Abloh, the revolutionary fashion designer who died in 2021 and seemed to have a tight-knit relationship with Burna.
Big 7 samples Qlas & Blacka’s Willemstad and unlike Cheat On Me, it has Burna in his raw, uncut element with an energetic delivery that elevates the record. It is definitely the best out of the pre-released singles. Dey Play starts a 3-track party starter sequence. The beat is minimal but the bounce is roof-raising and Burna glides so smoothly over it like he’s a surfer and he’s breezing through wild torrents of the ocean. It’s such a good song that keeps building up to even better heights with its progression.
An humorous J-hus skit kicks off City Boys, the psychedelic Hip-Hop fusion with Afrobeats laced kicks and bass. Blink and you’ll miss the Jeremih’s Birthday Sex sample because Burna manages to do something utterly different with the record. It’s a great song but unfortunately the most exciting part of the song was used in the snippet and so it doesn’t peak the way it should, because you’ve already heard it before. But this is a personal thing, not everyone might feel the same way.
Giza ft. Seyi Vibez doesn’t work as well as the other songs, because it’s an absolute deviation from the prominent soundscape of the album. Tested, Approved & Trusted was a refreshing addition that did something sonically different, but it doesn’t sound out of place on the album. Unfortunately, same can’t be said for Giza because Burna goes out of his way to create the ideal Seyi Vibez Apala-fusion atmosphere and whilst both of them aren’t necessarily bad on it, it’s not exactly the best Apala fusion you’ll hear and it detracts from the album experience because it does sound out of place.
On the second interlude, 12 Jewels RZA highlights key possessions that he believes every man should aspire to achieve. If I’m Lying is a ballad rife with acoustic Country-like guitar strings. On the song, he’s multiple things. In one verse, he’s offering a shoulder for his lover to cry on and in another he’s being inspirational and reflecting on some strife from the past. The pathos of the song doesn’t reach the soulful heights of Burna’s most emotive records (like Alone) does and it has a lot to do with the minimal approach to the song. More instruments could have been infused and it wasn’t the best Burna’s vocal performance either.
Thanks is a rather disappointing use of a J. Cole feature. The beat isn’t sure what it’s trying to be with its pulsating reverbs and fluctuating talking drums. It also lacks a defined structure as it’s hard to make out what’s the verse and what is the hook. From the lyrics, you can glean that the song is borne out of the charade of Burna Boy feeling underappreciated. Which is ironic because he is the biggest artist on the continent and couldn’t be more celebrated. Indeed he has gotten some scathing criticism, but that’s the plight of superstars.
Disregarding all the immense love he gets just to focus on the negativity alone is simply gaslighting and so the sentiment just doesn’t resonate, at least with people who aren’t his stans or mindless minions. J. Cole makes the most of what he can do with the unstable nature of the beat and he does shine through but it’s not enough to salvage the track. Overall, the closing sequence of the album’s last 3 tracks is quite underwhelming.
I Told Them is still another great offering from Burna and is easily a better album than Love, Damini as an holistic album experience. But it’s hardly a top 3 Burna Album (African Giant, Twice As Tall are much better) although you could make a case for it being better than Outside. Nonetheless, it’s a pleasant surprise to see Burna release an album that’s dominantly Afrobeats when we were mostly expecting something leaning more towards the Hip-Hop/R&B spectrum.
Final Verdict:
Sonic Cohesion: 1.5/2
Unharried Transitions: 1.5/2
Expansive Production: 1.5/2
Songwriting: 1.6/2
Optimal Track Sequencing: 1.4/2
Total: 7.5/10
–This review is written by T.J. Martins, an avid lover of music.
