The Nigerian artist teases his new album 'Tequila Ever After', discusses his One Direction cover and why he's now at the top of his game
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00:00 With each level, you know how you're playing.
00:02 You're playing Mario Bros, for example.
00:04 With each level, it gets harder.
00:06 It gets more interesting, it gets more challenging.
00:09 That's what it is.
00:09 So right now, I'm on level five.
00:12 The one that's coming soon.
00:14 Be on the lookout for that one.
00:15 Hi guys, it's Kyan, and I'm here with Adekule Gold
00:25 for our In Conversation series.
00:28 Thanks for being here with me.
00:30 Thank you for having me.
00:31 You dragged me all the way from the airport.
00:34 Maybe not literally, but I'm here.
00:37 I was going to say, it wasn't me.
00:39 How have you been?
00:40 We've already talked about your lack of sleep.
00:43 Oh yeah.
00:45 That's a huge part as well.
00:46 I mean, I've been working, working, working on my album.
00:52 And that takes a lot of sleepless nights.
00:55 I don't know if you know.
00:57 But outside of music, I've been well.
01:00 Feeling good, feeling great, grateful.
01:03 Well, that's good to hear.
01:05 Also, can we, before we get into the nitty gritty,
01:07 get into this outfit?
01:09 Yeah.
01:10 Versace baby.
01:12 Everything.
01:13 But a huge shout out to my stylist for hooking me up
01:15 with this one.
01:17 Because I didn't even know what I was wearing.
01:20 I just woke up and they're like, this is it.
01:22 I'm like, OK.
01:24 I get you.
01:25 They get me.
01:26 My manager and stylist are like, yeah, but I look good.
01:30 That's most important.
01:31 Yeah.
01:32 You just have that vibe.
01:33 I already talked about your style.
01:36 Love it.
01:37 Thank you.
01:37 You don't have to bottom me up.
01:39 No, totally.
01:39 We're here to butter you up.
01:42 But yeah, I saw that yesterday you
01:45 was out a little bit partying, had a few drinks
01:47 with your friends.
01:50 How was it like, the high life?
01:54 Because I've been away from Lagos for a while,
01:57 because I've been working on the album in LA, different places.
02:01 So I've not seen my friends in a while.
02:02 So I just told them, let's go to this place called Quacktails.
02:08 It's some small kitchen.
02:09 The guy prefers to call it kitchen.
02:11 He doesn't want to call it a bar, because that's where they
02:14 make the cocktails out of.
02:16 And the guy used to work in the bank.
02:18 So it causes a quack-tail.
02:21 But we had eight drinks.
02:26 That was fire.
02:27 It was good.
02:28 Had great conversations with my friend,
02:29 because I've not seen them in a while.
02:32 And it was a very good reunion, because I've not
02:38 seen them in a while, like I said before.
02:39 Yeah, it was good grounding before you get back to the album.
02:42 Yeah, you know?
02:44 Let me touch base with my people.
02:45 Yo, what am I doing wrong?
02:47 Am I doing well?
02:48 How are you doing?
02:49 What is life like?
02:52 What bad decision have you made lately?
02:54 All of that.
02:54 Yeah.
02:55 Yeah.
02:56 Well, I asked that, because of course,
02:59 your last EP was called "Tea and Tequila."
03:02 So I was just like, oh, alcohol connection.
03:04 But also, why did you give fans that three piece?
03:10 Yeah, I wouldn't even call it an EP,
03:11 because I don't think it qualifies to be an EP.
03:13 I think it needs to be four tracks for it to be an EP.
03:15 Yeah.
03:16 So it's just like--
03:17 No one cares anymore.
03:18 It's just semantics, to be honest.
03:20 But it's really like a taste of what you get on the album,
03:24 because the album is dropping in a few weeks.
03:26 I wanted to give my people a taste of what I've been working
03:30 on, like how different the sound is.
03:32 She listened to "Do You Mind?"
03:34 It's like sexy as heck.
03:36 And then there's "Omo Eko," which is like a party starter,
03:39 talking about where I'm from.
03:42 And it's just an imagination.
03:45 I want you to imagine what's coming on the full,
03:48 body of work is insane.
03:51 Because in the press release, it's
03:52 saying you're really gearing up for summer,
03:55 and it's a real summery vibe.
03:57 Everything feels so sultry, like you're saying.
03:59 Is this like the suave, confident,
04:03 Adekunle girl who we're going to see in the next record?
04:07 Oh, yeah.
04:08 All through the album.
04:10 That is the whole point of Tequila.
04:12 That is the whole point of this newness.
04:16 I'm embodying everything I am, and I'm
04:20 learning to be more confident.
04:22 Not like I wasn't before, but it keeps growing.
04:25 And then being confident in my fashion, in the things
04:30 that I see, conversations that I have.
04:33 Yeah.
04:34 That's it.
04:34 That's what you're getting.
04:36 You're getting Tequila.
04:38 But personally, I find it crazy that you're already
04:41 starting on another album, and you dropped one last year.
04:44 Yeah.
04:46 I know.
04:47 No, I think what's crazier is how I'm already
04:50 working on the one that comes after this one.
04:52 Wow.
04:53 Yeah.
04:54 I've always been like that.
04:56 When I was working on my 2018 album,
04:59 I was already working on my 2020 album as well.
05:02 I knew what I wanted to be, but I knew
05:05 what I wanted 2018 to be.
05:07 I wanted to grow into the 2021.
05:10 So yeah, I've always been like that.
05:12 Yeah.
05:13 But I guess it also is a testament
05:15 to your passion for music.
05:18 I love it.
05:19 Yeah.
05:20 Making music is something that gives me joy.
05:25 Being able to just be in a space,
05:29 and then somebody is playing music,
05:31 and then you can just search the depth of your mind
05:35 to churn out melodies that are nowhere.
05:40 I think it's insane.
05:41 I think it's my superpower to just be around music,
05:47 knowing that there are just seven keys in this world.
05:50 But I always find a way to make it different,
05:53 to bring the ones that you don't have.
05:56 That's something that I really enjoy.
05:57 So making music is something that gives me so much joy.
06:03 Then being on stage, yeah, that seals it for me.
06:06 Afrobeats in general, especially,
06:09 has this ineffable energy that just evokes your soul.
06:15 How would you describe Afrobeats?
06:17 I just feel like it's something--
06:19 it's hard to pinpoint, but I wonder what your interpretation is.
06:24 It's a good feeling.
06:25 That's the music that comes from Africa, Africa generally.
06:30 But most importantly, Nigeria, we have the vibe.
06:34 Like, dating, go back in time, go all the way back in time.
06:38 Forget all these new artists that go back
06:42 in the likes of Fela, Ebenezer Obey, Ulusadebe,
06:47 all these people.
06:48 The music has always been groove.
06:50 It's always been groovy.
06:51 It's always been percussive.
06:53 It evokes emotion.
06:55 We're all about-- we're celebratory,
06:59 and it shows in the music.
07:00 We just want to make people dance for the most part.
07:03 And then I feel like it's carried on,
07:05 and it's going to carry on.
07:07 That's basically Afrobeats.
07:09 It's just celebratory.
07:12 And talking about celebration, there's
07:14 loads of records being broken by African artists nowadays,
07:18 especially Nigerian artists.
07:21 How is it seeing your fellow friends?
07:24 It's insane.
07:25 It's a beautiful feeling to know that I'm going from being--
07:30 I mean, thankfully, the internet exposed Afrobeats to the world.
07:36 That's not to say Afrobeats has never been good.
07:39 It's always been good.
07:40 It's just now people are finding out.
07:42 So it feels good to see us sell out arenas.
07:47 It's not even the accolades for me.
07:48 It's just being able to pack a lot of people in a room
07:51 is insane.
07:53 You announce your tickets, 20,000, 10,000,
07:56 and then you sell them out.
07:57 I think it's a huge feat that's happening now in recent times,
08:02 and I'm hoping for more.
08:06 A huge shout to all the players killing it.
08:08 There's only so much--
08:11 there's so much more to be done, and I'm hoping that we
08:14 will really kill it more.
08:16 Yeah.
08:16 Yeah.
08:17 Talking more about your records and stuff,
08:20 Catch Me If You Can, which was last year's record,
08:24 had a real cool transatlantic vibe with people
08:27 like Ty Dolla $ign on the record.
08:31 How is it making those connections
08:33 and almost adding your travels into your sound?
08:37 Yeah, so when I write, I envision
08:41 who else can add to the song.
08:45 First of all, if there's a need for somebody
08:48 to be on the song with me.
08:49 With collaborations, I serve the music.
08:54 That's the most important thing for me.
08:56 I've had collaborations that I didn't really like as much,
08:59 and they never made it out.
09:01 So for me, it's serve the music first.
09:04 Be sure that it's good, because that's
09:06 the most important thing to me.
09:08 So when I think of this thing, when I'm making music,
09:10 I think of who can take this to a new level for me.
09:14 I reach out to them.
09:15 Or I have people do for me if I can't get to them.
09:18 So yeah, that's how I reach out to Fushi and myself.
09:23 My people reach out to Ty Dolla $ign.
09:25 I sent a message to Lucky D. I just be in people's DMs.
09:29 I was like, yo, huge fan of your work.
09:32 I have a song that's screaming for your verse.
09:34 What are you saying?
09:36 Literally like that.
09:38 If they get to read it, they always come around,
09:41 and we do it.
09:43 Yeah, a shameless slide into the DMs.
09:45 No, I slide.
09:47 I slide.
09:47 I just like, yo, let's do this.
09:49 So what collabs have been left on the chopping block,
09:51 like on the studio floor?
09:54 I mean, the ones that I want right away, I have them already.
10:02 But I don't think I'm going to out-see them yet.
10:04 But yeah, just be on the lookout.
10:06 The album will be out soon.
10:07 But "Catch Me If You Can," what was
10:10 the message for that record?
10:12 Literally what it means.
10:14 Catch me if you can.
10:15 I'm on this level now.
10:19 You want to join the train?
10:20 If you don't want to, that's OK.
10:22 But if you want to, catch me if you can.
10:24 I'm on a new--
10:26 I feel like I'm on a new level.
10:28 I'm liking my musical journey as different levels
10:33 of adventure games.
10:34 Like, Gold album, which was 2016, was level one.
10:38 2018 was level two, about 30.
10:40 That was my album.
10:42 Then 2020 was the third album, Afropop, level three.
10:47 Catch me if you can was level four.
10:49 With each level, you know how you're playing.
10:51 You're playing Mario Bros, for example.
10:54 With each level, it gets harder.
10:56 It gets more interesting.
10:57 It gets more challenging.
10:58 That's what it is.
10:59 So right now, I'm on level five, the one that's coming soon.
11:04 Be on the lookout for that one.
11:05 So what can we expect from level five?
11:07 Crazy.
11:09 I mean, from the fashion, I feel like it's already--
11:11 like, I don't-- there's no--
11:14 all bets are off now.
11:15 Like, I say anything I want to say.
11:18 And then I've pushed my pen the hardest on this one.
11:22 I need people to know that I've pushed
11:24 myself the hardest on this one.
11:25 I said to myself, before I started making this album,
11:29 I said I was going to write 50 crazy songs.
11:33 And now I'm going to--
11:34 of course, like, I wasn't going to draw 50 tracks.
11:37 But pick-- imagine trying to pick, like,
11:39 whatever number I would decide with, maybe, say, 18, 19 tracks
11:43 from really crazy 50 tracks.
11:46 That was the intention.
11:47 And I've achieved it.
11:49 I've done it.
11:50 So be on the lookout.
11:51 When you say push your pen as well,
11:53 I was like, did you want to focus on, like,
11:57 your just emotional deliveries more?
11:59 It's all of that.
12:00 Everything, actually.
12:01 Like, it's how fast can I flow on a beat, you know?
12:06 How can I not be predictable on a certain beat
12:10 that you probably already know?
12:12 Oh, once you hear this beat, this
12:13 is the kind of flow that comes with it.
12:15 I'm doing it differently.
12:16 Like, you almost think I'm a rapper on a song,
12:19 on some songs.
12:20 Like, I'm just, like, really then the yarns,
12:23 like, I like to call it yarns.
12:24 It's like the conversations, the banter is elite.
12:28 Like, it's-- yeah, I'm proud.
12:32 You've recently signed to Def Jam, which is, like,
12:35 a legendary record label.
12:37 You know, loads of cool people have come from it.
12:39 I'm not going to list their whole roster.
12:40 I'm not Wikipedia.
12:41 Everybody knows that.
12:42 You're on it.
12:43 Yeah.
12:44 How is it like, you know, being signed to Def Jam?
12:47 It feels good.
12:49 It feels good to be in the company of people that care.
12:56 You know, because, yeah, record is--
12:59 whatever you talk about, say about them.
13:01 But my one is peculiar, because I'm with people that understand.
13:07 Like, Tunji is my friend, the CEO is my--
13:10 we've been friends since, like, 2018, you know?
13:13 And you've seen his track record, like,
13:15 the artist that has helped, like, blow up.
13:19 So he cares.
13:21 Like, he understands the game.
13:22 He understands Afrobeat.
13:23 He's Nigerian.
13:24 He's a Yoruba boy.
13:25 Like, he's a-- it's deep, like, in the culture.
13:28 So he gets it.
13:29 It's in his blood.
13:30 So he gets it.
13:31 So I don't have to do any convincing.
13:34 I send a song to him, like, yeah, that's a fucking record.
13:37 Like, that's a jam.
13:38 He, like-- he just gets it.
13:39 I don't need to do any presentation.
13:42 Like, it's just so-- it's good to be in the company of people
13:46 that get it.
13:47 And that's what Def Jam is for me.
13:50 Do you have, like, a label mate that you
13:52 would love to collab with?
13:54 You know, I've not--
13:55 I've not actually really thought about that,
13:57 because I've been too into my own shit.
13:59 So I've not really thought about that.
14:01 But that's something to look into, to be honest.
14:03 Is there any dream collaborators you want?
14:05 I used to have a lot.
14:08 But now I just want them to come to me.
14:10 Yeah, it's time for them to come.
14:11 You only slide in the DMs of those who need to be on songs.
14:15 Yeah.
14:16 Who was, like, one you used to have,
14:18 but now it's like, I'll wait?
14:20 Oh, I like that question.
14:21 It's Bruno Mars.
14:23 I'll wait.
14:24 It will come.
14:26 No, I hope--
14:26 Yeah, I've been saying that.
14:27 It will come.
14:28 I can hear that in my head.
14:29 That would be crazy.
14:30 Yeah.
14:31 Like a nice-- I could see you, like, being the third member
14:34 of Silk Sonic.
14:35 No.
14:36 Like, with the--
14:37 Oh, yeah, that's-- that's-- yeah, that would be fine.
14:38 --with the fifth cut, throwing, like, the big lapel.
14:40 I'll just-- I'll just join them, like, the most fashionable one,
14:42 and then give them the melodies.
14:43 [LAUGHTER]
14:45 I also wanted to talk about your accolades, of course.
14:48 You have been nominated for Best International,
14:52 Act at the Mobos.
14:53 You've also performed at the Grammys.
14:56 Like, all these huge moments for yourself as well.
15:00 How is it like, you know, getting your comeuppance as well,
15:04 if you think all the way back to 2015 and--
15:07 I know.
15:07 --Sade came out?
15:08 I mean, it's-- it's good to be--
15:11 for your work to be recognized, you know?
15:15 I'm grateful that these things are coming up, you know?
15:17 And then there's more that will come.
15:19 But I think the most important accolade for me, really,
15:21 is people growing with me.
15:25 Because it's been nine years since my first--
15:28 like, first single that blew up, since Sade in 2014.
15:34 And to see that I've done all of these things, all of these,
15:38 like, changes, you know?
15:40 People don't like change.
15:42 People don't-- people don't--
15:43 they don't fuck with change that much.
15:45 Well, I didn't care.
15:46 I was just going to do it anyways.
15:48 I did it.
15:49 But it's-- it's beautiful to see people stick by me, like,
15:52 just stuck with me still.
15:54 Like, just followed me all the way.
15:57 I announced my ticket-- my shows--
15:58 my shows sell out, you know?
16:00 It's crazy to see that.
16:02 Nine years in, to some people, I'm even like a fresh artist,
16:07 you know?
16:08 That's how much they--
16:09 they rave for me.
16:10 So I think that's the joy that I--
16:12 that I'm getting the most.
16:14 I think that's the accolade for me,
16:15 seeing how my music is penetrating, like,
16:17 territories that I've never been before,
16:19 places that I don't even understand their language,
16:21 that they don't even understand what I say.
16:24 It feels good to be--
16:26 to be in rooms where people are talking about my greatness.
16:29 And I think that's--
16:31 that's the most--
16:32 that's the best accolade that I've been getting,
16:34 that I love the most.
16:35 Afrobeats, and especially London itself,
16:38 have, like, this really close-knit connection.
16:43 So how is it, like, every time you come to London?
16:45 London, you know, I have a, like, special love for London.
16:49 London is where I had my first headline show, you know?
16:52 In fact, like, the first time-- the first time I ever
16:55 traveled out of-- out of Lagos, it was London I came to.
16:59 You know, London was one place I always wanted--
17:01 always wanted to come to, you know?
17:03 And then I came, had my first show with Olamide,
17:07 the YBNL crew, then--
17:09 I think twice.
17:10 Then I decided to do my-- my one in 2017,
17:14 sold out the O2 Academy Slim thing.
17:17 That was-- that was amazing.
17:18 And then 2018, we did O2 Indigo, you know?
17:23 For a long time, London used to be, like, the highest
17:25 on my--
17:27 on my analytics everywhere.
17:29 You know, it still is.
17:30 I'm just saying, like, for a long time, like, I enjoyed just
17:33 London showing me so much love.
17:35 Like, if my song blew up in London, it felt good.
17:37 Like, yeah, this will get me.
17:39 Obviously, people back home, like, that's a no-brainer.
17:42 People back home will always, like, show me love.
17:44 But London is a--
17:46 is the first international place, you know, to--
17:49 the UK generally.
17:50 Sorry, I keep saying London.
17:51 Yeah.
17:52 But-- and-- and then I came last year,
17:55 sold out O2 Brixton, did Manchester.
18:00 And it's-- it's this-- this place,
18:03 the love that you show music is--
18:05 is insane.
18:07 It's-- like, it's-- it's beautiful to see that, like,
18:12 we can come out, no matter how many artists, like,
18:15 announcing tickets, they just get filled up.
18:18 Like, people just buy tickets.
18:20 You know, people listen to music here.
18:22 It's beautiful.
18:23 A huge shout out to the UK, London,
18:25 most especially for me.
18:27 Yeah.
18:28 Yeah.
18:28 Also, we scream the loudest.
18:29 Yeah.
18:30 Yep, yep, yep, yep.
18:31 That's been confirmed.
18:32 That's no lie.
18:33 Yeah, it's been confirmed by even Beyonce herself.
18:36 That's no lie.
18:38 Sade, how do you look at that song?
18:40 Like, what's that-- what's the meaning of that song now to you
18:43 compared to back then?
18:45 It means the same thing to me.
18:48 I hold that song so, like, so dear to my heart
18:51 because it was my story.
18:53 I was talking about how I liked a girl,
18:55 and then she wasn't feeling me back, and that was it.
18:58 Then it was just like, OK, you know what?
19:00 Innocent, I just wanted to--
19:04 and it was a cover of One Direction's "Story of My Life."
19:06 So I didn't even invest so much in it.
19:08 It was just like, oh, just another cover.
19:11 Then I wrote the song.
19:12 Like, I literally changed everything around.
19:14 The only thing I used from the song was the beat, not even
19:17 their melody or anything.
19:18 So then I released it, and then it changed my life.
19:21 So I'm grateful that I could share my story,
19:28 and then people really loved it.
19:29 And then the one time that I decided to share my story
19:33 has brought me all this way, nine years in the game,
19:37 from just a cover.
19:38 It's surreal.
19:40 Like, it's not-- it's not like-- it's not even the hardest--
19:45 I wouldn't even say-- it's not-- definitely not my hardest song.
19:47 Like, it's just-- it was just a cover that was "Innocence,"
19:51 and then I said what I wanted to say in the song.
19:53 And it was the reason I came to London for the first time.
19:57 It was the reason I toured in America.
20:00 All of these acronyms that you've mentioned,
20:02 that song is the reason.
20:03 So what that song meant to me then is still the same now,
20:07 and it'll be the same forever.
20:09 So with that record, what else is coming?
20:13 Oh, yeah, I'm announcing--
20:15 I'll give you that one.
20:16 I'm announcing a show here.
20:19 I'm announcing a show in November.
20:23 We're playing Wembley this time.
20:24 Wembley Arena?
20:25 Yeah.
20:26 Oh, that's a big one.
20:28 So yeah, see?
20:30 I gave you something.
20:32 But yeah, I'm announcing a whole tour.
20:34 But we're stopping in London, of course.
20:36 Yeah, where else would you be stopping?
20:37 Oh, North America, Australia, Africa, of course.
20:43 Going everywhere.
20:44 You have to take this walk there.
20:46 It's beautiful.
20:47 Everybody must hear it.
20:49 Anything else you want to tell the fans that will hopefully
20:52 watch this video?
20:54 I just want to say to everyone who's supporting me
21:00 that I really fuck with you, because it's
21:04 insane to just be following me all the way,
21:08 like rooting for me, sharing my song, telling people about me.
21:13 I want to say thank you.
21:15 And then this new album is everything.
21:21 Yeah.
21:22 You have to carry this album for me.
21:24 Just like as I'm hulking this album,
21:26 you have to hulk it for me as well.
21:27 But yeah, I'm excited to release this album to you guys
21:30 very soon.
21:31 And all my love.
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