As another great music year draws to a close, the folks of Notjustok have rounded up their 15 best albums and EPs to cap off 2022.
When music watchers and music fans closely watching the growth of Nigerian music look back on 2022, it will be described as the year when the gates to international progression were wide apart, with Afrobeats acts and records making inroads and making bigger statements than some of their international counterparts. However, after a year of seismic hits and viral Tiktok challenges tucked under the belt of the Nigerian music industry, the scene’s power strides have been buoyed domestically by first-rate albums and EPs. With this in mind, Notjustok’s community of staff came together to rank the year’s 15 best albums and EPs by sonic quality, thematic, thematic variety, coherence, replay value, and resonance.
Here are the 15 best albums and EPs of 2022:
15. Riddim 5 EP- Fave
Going against the usually unannounced calendar of the music scene which tends to spot minimal activity until the end of the first quarter of the year, Fave debuted their first project on January 20th. Despite the smash hit “Baby Riddim” that already brought the competition in, Fave didn’t rest on its oars, delivering a 5-track EP that was not only sedative and hypnotic with songs like “Obsessed” but offered a refreshingly different perspective on what it is for a woman to navigate in Love in These Times and Climate – “Mr. Man”.
With these factors and aside from her early release, the terrifying vocal singer also managed to withstand the prejudice of modernity to land 15th place on our list of the best projects of the year with her. Redeem 5 EP.
14. More love, less ego- Wizkid
Over time, Wizkid has earned him an almost endless list of epithets of praise and despite his seemingly polarizing reviews. More love, less ego The album, however, managed to maintain these compliments as one of the greatest singers of his Nigerian generation.
Also Read: 21 Best Nigerian Albums And Albums In 2021
It was released on November 11 – a few days after the second anniversary of what some consider piece de resistance from his recordings– Made in Lagos, Wizkid’s fifth studio album was as expected featuring star-studded features with a selection far and wide, spanning countries and generations to include Jamaican Shenseea, Nigerian Gen-Z popstar, Ayra Starr, American rapper, Don Tolliver, British Nigerian Skepta among others. However, what no one saw was Wizkid applying his musical skills, going solo on 9 of the 13 tracks with themes of love and affluence on hand to deliver a diverse and versatile stretch from “2 Sugar” to “Slip N Slide”, “Pressure” and “Frames (Who’s Gonna Know)”, which notably saw the singer sing like never before.
13. Ethos-AQ & Brymo
If the general consensus is that Nigerian hip hop is dead, the basic fact remains that it is not from not trying to perform rappers songs and Ethos by AQ and Brymo being the prime example.
On the 10-track album, a relatively fresh, slick blend of hip-hop and alternative sounds is brought to life with musings about love, life, socio-political issues, and family with AQ expertly received for Primo’s equally sexy vocals stick-charged and poignant bars to deliver a thunderous body of work.
12. Bad Since 97 – BNXN Fka Buju
In a group of talented singers, BNXN’s beat punctuates differently with the rapper’s bounce, flow, and skill backed by melodies that either overwhelm you or lift you off your feet. This and more is evident on his Bad Since 97 EP.
Comprised of 7 tracks as a sophomore, the project sees the singer defying the concept of a stagnant sophomore to reach new levels of his artistry while holding his own alongside OGs like Wande Coal on Kenkele, Wizkid on Many Ways, and Olamide on Modupe. In fact, for most listeners and fans of the singer’s output, their criticism remains that BNXN should have expanded the extended play (EP), to offer an album instead.
11. Ololade Asake – Asake
Years from now, as music watchers follow the global growth of Afrobeats, Asake’s (re)emergence will be noted for two things; Firstly as one of the most groundbreaking shows and secondly, as a turning point in Street-Hop’s trajectory.
Strikingly connected to Neo-Fuji influences and themes of hope and prayer, amidst aplomb, Asake’s Ololade Asake was the rebirth of Mr. Money on a 4-track EP that, despite its slightly mid-tempo feel, molded itself into our subconscious and menus. Play and top the charts, and score it up to the fast-paced songs that the music-loving Nigerian populace has become accustomed to.
10. V-asa
When you’ve made a name for yourself in an industry for nearly two decades, no one holds you on a policy of respect to earn it. Instead, it is awarded, along with a pass to the hall on being a placement or switch. But Asa has never played in the status quo and 15 years in the game, she just released her fifth album, Fifth.
A mature and modern mix of RnB and Afrobeats and the unique essence of the puzzle that is Bukola Elemide, Fifth Featuring 10 tracks and three masterfully used features – Wizkid, The Cavemen and Amaarae – to produce an unparalleled Asa album, full of unquestionable resonance no one expected the musical maven to bring.
9. Palmwine Music 3- Show Dem Camp
A dictionary search for “Palmwine Music” may come up blank, but the exercise itself will be as redundant as a quick listen to them. Balmoine music 3 The album will provide all the insight needed to understand the concept of sound.
A group with a tactile summer-on-the-beach feel, show duo Dem Camp and Ghost and Tec partner with a roster of artists — BOJ, Tems, Tay Iwar, and LadiPoe who’ve gone on to look pretty alumni with a number of collaborators under their belt. However, aside from the fact that it serves as the third iteration of Palmwine’s music, they manage to pull off a project focused on themes of love, fidelity, or lack thereof that not only feels unrepetitive, but sounds fresh and mild. .
8. Outlaw EP- Victory
Not many artists have the versatility that Anthony Ebuca Victor comes with, arguably even with his technical prowess, the versatile “V” placement. The rapper-turned-singer, Vecconi cemented his full-fledged presence on the music scene with his second EP, Outlaw.
Also Read: List of the best albums and EPs released in April 2021
Interestingly, while the singer’s production on the EP was solo, doing only tapping producers Tempoe and Ktizo, the singer delivered a strong project with themes that reflect the state of country and mental health as well as the interrelationship between love and money.
7. Rave & Roses – Rema
Rima has always cut the scene as an independent person, with non-conforming vocals and a lyrical application never seen before. Thus for his debut album, Rave and roses, the new generation star stuck to his gun, presenting two sides of his music; Rima the beloved boy and Rima Al Rafid.
Filled with international collaborations from Americans, 6lack and Chris Brown to Brits AJ Tracey and French Yseult, Rave and roses It is a two-faced affair with party pieces and love songs, as well as a resounding affair with social commentary that illustrates well Rima’s artistic statement.
6. The Young Preacher Blagabonese
Not many people realize it, but other than the albums and projects featured on music streaming platforms under the Blaqbonez name, there is a much more extensive slate under the rapper’s discography. Initially a battle rapper and has now evolved into a rapper and vocalist, Blaqbonez displays a winning quality in keeping with Bruce Lee’s “Be Water” quote, making sure to move with the times while retaining its core.
Featuring great samples and well used features, Blaqbonez showed off his range on his 13-track Young preacher album, which takes up space as a rapper, singer, love skeptic, heartbreaker, and financial advisor.
Top 5 Nigerian Albums and EPs of 2022
5. Some Nights I Dream About Doors- Obongjayar
“Iridescent, racy,” these are some of the words that come to mind associated with obonggyar, Some nights I dream about doorsan album so diverse and alternative in its composition, it seems almost revolutionary.
But while this isn’t Obong Jyar’s first rodeo, it did come as his second album after his Nigerian debut with Sars collaboration on sweetness EP, the singer shows he can stand on his own, despite bucking tradition’s conventions with a fusion of alternative rock, RnB and Afrobeats – “Message in a Hammer”. Juxtaposing airiness and a sense of readiness for battle, on this album Obongjayar sings about the ailments of judgment, while endlessly encouraging us to shoot for the stars and aim for the moon.
4. Love Is Not Enough Vol. 2 – Young Joon
In the history of Afrobeats, only 3 producers have successfully gone from strength to strength with their production skills as well as being hit makers. Presently, it could be said that no one had dared to take this trip with the same influence as Yongjun.
Make your debut with him Love is not enough EP, the wicked producer proved to be a wicked hitmaker with “Dada” and “Normally,” eventually doubling down on efforts to give sly hits Love Is Not Enough Vol. 2.
3. I Love Damini – Burna Boy
His sixth studio album to cap off a stellar career spanning at least a decade and earning him 6 Grammy Award nominations and 1 win, among an endless list of worldwide accomplishments, Burna Boy proved to have unlocked the key to getting nods from the Recording Academy.
For now, while some music critics may not rate the album as highly, the singer’s production on the album earned him two Grammy nominations for the upcoming 65th release while the single “Last Last” continues to rack up groundbreaking triumphs worldwide.
2. Mr. Money With The Vibe- Asake
Last year Ayra Starr made quite an impression on the music scene and Notjustok’s Albums of the Year list by sitting on two spots, this year Asake took flowers with the Ololade Asake EP at No. 11 and his debut album, mr money with airs as the No. 2 album of the year.
The embodiment of ease, understated flair, and sensuality, Asake brought all of these things and street zest to his debut album with very rich Neo-Fuji influences, and all the songs on the album have found instant resonance on the streets, the charts, and even in the diaspora.
1. The boy is alone – his mom is Lai
His mother is Lai boy alone It may not have held the charts by ransom, but the album’s coherence from its title, to its cover art and central theme of loneliness and isolation was a good thing, it showed that perfection in art isn’t quite a myth or an unattainable pinnacle.
Omah Lay’s message was so clear on the album (from the haunting and sexy “Soso,” to the reflective “I’m A Mess” and “Sig Purple Song,”) that for months afterward, wherever music fans gathered, it was sure to become a topic of discussion. , with some troubling remarks about Uma Lai’s state of mind. But if anything, the general consensus remains that out of pain, beauty is born, and for Uma Lai, the angst and vulnerability threaded through the album earned him the top spot on Notjustok’s Album of the Year list.
2022 has already capped off a long list of great Nigerian Albums and Electronic Albums, here are some of the highlights for this year:
