Music Stars Who Will Ride 2022

Iyke Bede profiles some of the music stars that will steer the musical wheel of 2022

Perusing through the avalanche of records released last year, bodies of works curated by promising artistes whose charisma sometimes eclipse those of existing chart-toppers, are easily overlooked for obvious reasons such as lack of promotion or the lacklustre agency of their production team to discern possible trends.

While this isn’t always the case, some of them go on to snag the attention of music lovers on the local and international scene, albeit not having a vast body of work to vouch for their prolificity. Of course, they enjoy their time in the limelight, but at the same time, most music lovers tend to cheer them on with a bit of scepticism.

Judging by the power of their potential, here are the top picks of artists who are certain to steer the musical wheel of 2022.

Oxlade

With his breakaway song ‘Away’ released in the early months of the pandemic, Ikuforiji Olaitan Abdulrahman continues being the gift that keeps giving. This success of the groovy, guitar-laden song was followed by the dreamy ‘O2’, a quiet storm in its own right.

Characterised by his mellow, honey tinged falsettos, he caught the eye of Nigerian Rappers M.I and Ice Prince. In March of 2021, he scored the highly successful ‘Kolo’ with the Ice Prince, and this was swiftly followed by the moderately successful ‘All My Life’ with M.I.

Although no album to his name yet, the dreadlock rocking star has two extended plays (EPs) to showcase his range: ‘Oxygene’ (March 2020), and ‘Eclipse’ (August 2021). While he’s yet to gain major international recognition, his consistency is reassuring, especially of his future body of work that hopefully highlights his growth.

Liya

Reminiscent of the late Goldie Harvey, Abdulsalam Suliyat stamps her prominence with flamboyant wears accentuated by bright colours. But don’t let the over-the-top fashion sense fool you, the sultry singer is fast carving a niche for herself.

In what can be best described as the juncture where folk music marries contemporary afrobeats, Liya mesmerizes with pure melismatic vocals.

Signed to Davido Music World, the DMW first lady sounds nothing like any female act currently. This claim is calculated on her EP that houses debut single ‘Melo’, the mellow ‘Olodumare’, and the foot-tapping ‘Lakiriboto’ that gains an assist from DaVido.

With increased social media presence in recent times, it can be summed that ‘Liya is coming.’

Ruger

Tall, dark, magenta hair, and a pirate eye patch to go with, Michael Adebayo delivered one of the most memorable bangers of 2021: ‘Bounce’.

‘Bounce’ was released off his 2020 EP aptly titled ‘Pandemic’. Ruger’s musical style reveals a heavy influence of dancehall music as reflected in tracks like ‘Bow’ and ‘Abu Dhabi’. Although not limited in range, he switches to blend with what is expected of an average afrobeats artist on several other tracks like ‘Monalisa’ and ‘Yekpa’.

Following the success of ‘Pandemic’, he released the four-track EP ‘The Second Wave’ that houses the Tik Tok favourites ‘Dior’ and ‘Snapchat’.

Wearing the bad boy persona, one can only wonder what is left to be done by our favourite bad boy.

CKay

Born Chukwuka Ekweani, CKay enjoyed a ride to acclaim with the global hit ‘Love Nwantiti’. The catchy tune is the go-to track for many content creators, who put their spin on it.

No newcomer to the music scene, the singer kicked off his music career in 2016 after getting signed to Chocolate City, and went on to release three EPs: ‘Who the Fuck Is CKay?’ (2017), ‘CKay the First’ (2019), and ‘Boyfriend’ (2021).

Recently, he performed ‘Love Nwantiti’ at The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon to a global audience. Betting on this exposure he has received in his career due to the track, it is certain that budgets will be revised for better production.

FAVE

GodsFavour Chidozie, aka FAVE, makes this list without an EP. She invalidates this requirement with the existing body she has amassed. From her debut single ‘M.O.M.M.S.’ to ‘Beautifully’, she makes it clear she’s laid claim to the contemporary R’n’B in the same fashion Niniola rules as house queen.

Off the emPawa roster, FAVE quietly won a better of 2021 with her smash hit ‘Baby Riddim’, a mid-tempo track that explores elements of Caribbean music in its instrumentation and lyricism, catapults the singer to the top of several charts and into mainstream consciousness.

Judging from the trajectory of fellow emPawa artiste Joeboy in years past, FAVE is likely to follow the same route to success, with 2022 recording major highlights in her budding career.