Lojay ‘GANGSTER ROMANTIC’ EP Review

GANGSTER ROMANTIC

Lojay

• Genre: Afro Soul
• Date: 03 Mar, 2023
• Content: explicit
• Region: NGA
• Track(s): 7
• ℗ 2023 KORATORI RECORDINGS

The highly gifted Nigerian musician Lojay has now made the eagerly awaited ‘GANGSTER ROMANTIC’ EP project available.

In the project, the singer simultaneously looks against the light by reflecting and providing a momentary snapshot of his emotional condition. The native of Ikorodu contributes his distinctive falsetto to musical compositions that blend Afrobeats, R&B, and Amapiano.

Except for the previously released third track, “CANADA,” which features South African amapiano legends DJ Maphorisa and Kabza De Small, the “GANGSTER ROMANTIC” extended play is almost entirely a solo run spanning seven tracks.

The EP begins with the emotional, understated song “YAHWEH,” a passionate ode to a love interest that describes the feelings she stirs in him. Afrobeats ballad with a subtle yet powerful beat and dark chords. Simple but hard-hitting rhythm.

Next is the P.PRIME-produced song “LEADER,” which Lojay first debuted in September and is an upbeat, self-assured track with memorable toplines and incredibly catchy melodies. The production provides the ideal instrumental backdrop for Lojay’s unique vocals with airy vocal loops over contemporary, thumping drum patterns.

The upbeat “MOTO,” the most recent song he released from the album, follows. Lojay produced it with help from notable names in the business, like Elementz and AOD. This song, which explores sorrow and unrequited love and has amassed over 3.5 million total streams in just three weeks since its release, is a mellow, melancholy rhythm that shows a softer side to the artist’s charismatic style.

The fourth track is “CANADA,” a powerful Amapiano song created by South African pioneers DJ Maphorisa & Kabza De Small and first made public by Lojay in November of last year. With the help of the group’s backing vocals and Lojay’s melodic vocal lines, the quick-paced production comes together to create a sophisticated Amapiano club song.

The next song is “IYD,” a powerful, soulful ballad in which Lojay candidly discusses his ongoing emotions for an ex-girlfriend and his genuine desire for closure. The song’s foundation is a straightforward but appropriate guitar melody, and Lojay shows a remarkable degree of vulnerability in his lyrics and melodies.

The EP’s penultimate track, “AVALABU,” is a fast-paced, Amapiano-inspired hit with catchy vocals and varied drum programming. It’s the ideal way to cap off a diverse and approachable music collection.

The EP’s concluding song, “OVA,” is upbeat with melodic synthesizer lines and syncopated drum rhythms. Lojay laments the end of a prior relationship in this song while singing from the heart and showcasing Nigerian hitmaker P.PRIME’s production.

Tracklisting

NO	TITLE	ARTIST	TIME
1	YAHWEH	Lojay	2:45
2	LEADER!	Lojay	2:21
3	MOTO	Lojay	2:58
4	CANADA	Lojay, DJ Maphorisa & Kabza De Small	4:08
5	IYD	Lojay	2:55
6	AVAILABU	Lojay	2:55
7	OVA	Lojay	2:54

It will be Lojay’s follow-up to the critically praised “LV N ATTN,” which he co-produced with one of Nigeria’s top record producers, Sarz, and was released in May 2021. It was a five-track EP that featured breakthrough songs, “Tonongo” and “Monalisa,” which he released earlier that year and later collaborated on with Chris Brown. Additionally, he included Wizkid in the song “LV N ATTN,” which shares the same name as the EP. “Panty!” and “Park O X3” are the titles of the remaining two songs. The body of work led to a nomination for the 2021–2022 Next Rated Artist category of The Headies award.

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