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Album Review: Vector’s “Teslim: A Lover Boy’s PTSD”
by DJ Daggash
The title of the latest Album (and 6th studio album) by Lafiaji Lagos born & bred, Hip-Hop Legend, Vector (Olanrewaju Ogunmekan), has a refreshing shock and disturbing factor. One wonders the basis of “PTSD” (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) in the title of a Hip-Hop album? ‘What can fa ?’ (what’s the issue?)
Rappers are meant to be tough guys. They are not supposed to be traumatized and stressed. At least they are not meant to exhibit it, abi? Conversely, the title speaks volume of the theme of the album: the irony of romantic love. The bitter sweet nature. According to Vector: “it’s for the ladies”. The album is the antithesis of the often criticized macho and misogynist leaning of Hip-Hop. It is also groundbreaking in that it is a full album on the concept of love. You often find a few tracks on a rap album on the idea, if any. This is a whole album.
Vector is a songwriter, MC, singer and philosopher. This is his 6th studio album. Other works include “State of Suprise(2010), The Second Coming (2012), Lafiaji (2016), “Vibes Before Teslim: A Journey to Self-Discovery (2019) and “Teslim: The Energy Still Lives in Me (2022). A battle rapper per excellence, who many believed won the celebrated rap battle with Mi Abaga in 2019. He has consistently won awards for his work from 2012. He is widely rated as top 5 Nigerian rapper, dead or alive.
“Teslim: A Lover Boy’s PTSD”’s language is quintessentially Lagos: English, broken, Yoruba and street slangs. Multi-lingual. Only a few Hip-Hop legends thread this path. Lord of Ajasa, Dagrin, Olamide, Foxy Brown, Nicki Minaj and a few others. Vector also tried French on “Fefe”. The track with Ivorian artist Shado and French Rapper, Scridge.
This body of work is not dense or unnecessarily long. It is accessible to the soulful/R & B crowd as well. It is a 10 track album. 34 minutes. An average of 3.40 sec per track. It reminds one of the greatest Hip-Hop album “Illmatic” for brevity. It takes a lot not to pander to the TikTok era demands for 1-2minutes tracks.
It feature tight collaborations with Tiwa Savage on “Repay Your Part”; Falz “Bum Bum of my Heart”; Top Adlerman, Emmsong & Jossman on rap, highlife and reggae inspired “My Dada”; Niniola on “Iya Nla Iya”; and, Ivorian Shado Chris & French rapper Scridge on “Fefe”. One could hear the fusion of R & B, highlife sound, reggae and other genres on the album.
However, I have a bias against having more than one to two tracks with other artists by MCs (as against rappers) on albums. An MC is usually a songwriter, lyricist, and rapper. Whilst, rapper is usually someone that can rap and not necessarily a songwriter or lyricist. In my opinion, 1-2 features on an album by an MC is an emphatic statement of intent and confidence to create a timeless album. A classic. Though “Teslim: A Lover Boy’s PTSD” is an exception to my bias. All the tracks are bangers with diverse value to the work; and not fillers. I would not sacrifice any of the tracks for my bias.
With catchy hooks and lyricism at its finest throughout the tracks, the album is easy to listen to. The lyrics are funny and serious at the same time. For example, on “Repay Your Part” with Tiwa Savage, Vector rapped “strong head/ coconut type, when you compare/Yoruba charm. Demons yes. Angels yes/Eni ti olo ko so/it’s a 2 seater ride ko mo o”. Tiwa Savage was not left out, she went in “Make nobody come stress my life/my love is easy: kogbagidi, kogbagidi, kogbagidi/ I am a sweet pot but mo lagidi like a colorful graffiti”.
The work also appears to celebrate African sound for Hip-Hop, which is projected to be the future for the culture.
Is this a classic album? Time would tell-it’s a discussion that can’t be fairly had before 10years. The album must endure. People must be able to go back to it without prompting. But it has the capacity to endure and be a classic album. It is a respectable work by a fellow Lagosian.
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