- Afrobeats singer Asake has had an unprecedented run with his last two projects
- Both albums, his debut and sophomore, have recorded remarkable milestones since their release
- TheRadar compares Asake’s debut Mr. Money with the Vibe and Work of Art, his sophomore
With the use of his uptempo Afro, Fuji and Amapiano-styled production, Nigerian Afrobeats singer, Ololade Ahmed, has set himself apart in the music game.
He never misses his fusion of Yoruba, Pidgin English and slang to drive home his music and messages culturally. The fast-rising Afrobeat star uniquely uses backing vocals to spice up his songs.
Success may be available to all artistes but how fast or slow they achieve it solely depends on the consistency and quality of their music.
For Asake, the quality of his songs and his achievements skyrocketed him to be one of the biggest Afrobeats artistes alive —all in the space of three years.
From his debut, Mr Money with the Vibe in 2022 to his sophomore, Work of Art in 2023, the 29-year-old singer has risen to an acclaimed superstar status under the YBNL record label.
However, prior to the release of his debut, Asake had been active in the Nigerian music industry with singles like Mr Money, Don’t Hype Me, My Lady and Yan Yan—his success story a remarkable turn after his official signing under Olamide’s YBNL Records and Empire.
As his latest project and third studio album Lungu Boy gears up anticipation to drop Friday midnight on August 9, TheRadar draws a comparison between his last two projects and how it significantly defined a remarkable era for the artiste.
The indices for the comparison rest solely on milestones, streaming numbers, and record-breaking feats. The question that lingers, however, is whether Asake will beat his previous records with his upcoming Lungu Boy.
Milestones achieved by Mr Money with the Vibe and Work of Art albums
In September 2022, Asake’s debut Mr. Money with the Vibe, after its release, broke the record for the biggest opening day for an African album on Apple Music at the time. It was also recorded as the highest-charting Nigerian debut album in the history of the chart and ranked 66 on the Billboard 200 chart. That was a significant moment for the talented artiste.
A record-breaking debut was his way of showing the world what he had in store for me. Little wonder he won the Breakout Artiste of the Year at the All African Music Awards in 2022 and the highly coveted Next Rated Award at the Headies in 2023. The 12-track album produced by Magicsticks won the Album of the Year at the 2023 Headies Awards and amassed over 300 million streams on Audiomack.
In June 2023, Asake released his 14-track sophomore album, Work of Art. It became his second album to debut at number 66 on the Billboard 200. With the Work of Art album concert, Asake joined Burna Boy, Wizkid and Rema as the Nigerian artistes who have sold out the 02 Arena in London.
It debuted at 66 on Billboard 200 with 13,000 units sold and was reported as the most streamed Nigerian album in 2023 by the Nigerian Turntable charts. Another feat was ranking 20 on the UK Albums Charts. Significantly, the sophomore album peaked at number 4 on the US Worlds Album. Amapiano, one of the tracks featuring Olamide off the Work of Art album, was nominated for the Grammy awards in 2023. It was the first time either of them would be nominated for the award.
Comparing Asake’s first two albums
In all fairness, Asake has had an unprecedented and remarkable run since 2022 under the YBNL Records and Empire. Both his debut and sophomore albums have competed almost head-to-head at the same pace, achieving their different feats. For instance, in April both albums surpassed 300 million streams on Spotify.
The album showcases both the depth and quality that Asake holds to a high standard for his style of music. It is one that makes his projects both a masterpiece and a commercial success. With barely many collaborations on both albums, Asake proved his hitmaking ability as a singer.
Comparing Work of Art and Mr. With the Vibe album, Asake’s debut might be his best. Aside from the fact that it was his first, it had all the energy and quality. Though, Work of Art seems to be the album with the most significant milestones but it cannot be overruled that its commercial success spills off from what Asake did with his debut.
With over 1.3 billion streams on Spotify, Asake seeks to yet again thrill his fans and listeners with Lungu Boy—which is just a day away from its release date . Will the award-winning singer meet expectations or perhaps surpass his standards?
We can only wait to find out.
6 things to note from album cover, the tracklist of Asake's ‘Lungu Boy’
Asake has achieved astounding feats in three years. At this point, his superstar status is neither a doubt nor a facade. It is not out of place to place him among Nigeria's biggest music exports.
As the countdown to his Lungu Boy album trails to Friday, TheRadar earlier analysed 6 things to note from Asake’s upcoming album. What is new? What to expect? What is obvious? the background of the artiste, and more.
