Johnny Drille’s ‘Before We Fall Asleep’ is Worth the Long Wait

Iyke Bede

Since the proliferation of Afrobeats sounds in the early 2000s, a majority of up-and-coming musicians latched on to the genre due to its widespread appeal. However, a few artistes dared to veer from this path.

John Ighodaro, famed as Johnny Drille, started making imprints on the music scene by adopting alternative music — a genre that is less popular amongst his peers. Despite that, he built a musical identity, one that he is revered for.

He began his quest for music glory on the stage of Project fame in 2013 before proceeding to release his debut piece ‘Wait for Me’ in 2015, two years before his signing with Mavins. After years of working behind the scene in the capacity of sound engineer and producer for other artistes albeit releasing several singles, he concretises his status as a singer with the release of his debut album ‘Before We Fall Asleep’, released Friday, September 3, 2021.

While his previously released tracks bear different styles influenced by instrumentation or tempo, the singer’s je ne sais quo, which influences the manner he crafts songs, is an apparent feature across all the tracks on the album. Simply put, you will know a Drille song once it comes on. ‘Before We Fall Asleep’ features Don Jazzy, fellow label mate Ayra Starr, Styl-Plus, Ladipoe, Chylde, Lagos Community Choir, Kwittee, and Cillsoul.

On the album, Drille explores themes such as activism, dreams, corruption, and love. Each track comes with a mind of its own. For example, ‘Loving is Harder’ reveals a sensual side to him, while ‘Odo’, which gains an assist from Styl Plus, proves he has the flair of the average Afrobeats act.

The album’s general feel is one of mellow nature. But on certain tracks, he goes a notch harder, like his performance of ‘Lies (To Whom It May Concern)’, a genre-bending track where he incorporates rock, pop, and afrobeat to vent his frustrations at a broken political system.

On his choice of collaborators, emphasis was beamed on chemistry rather than glueing big names to tracks. Each collaborator helped him to better express tones and emotions.

Vocally, he shines in the low registers. Tracks like ‘Sweet As a Mother’s Love’ fully showcases the richness of his voice.

Lastly, the musical genius understands not just music, but also the music terrain within which he operates. By engineering his creative process, he turns into a sound alchemist. Despite taking a long time to release his debut, the final product is outstanding, further revealing that his creative process is not compromised. And frankly, any true artiste deserves all the time they need.