Olamide The Most Consistent Artiste In Nigeria?

Did somebody say king Baddo is the
most consistent artiste in Nigeria? Of
course yes, I’m in undoubted
agreement but… there’s a but!
When Olamide attracted the attention
of music fanatics with his style, I
thought what he sought out to do was
totally genius and out of this world!
(since Da Grin of course). I mean who
raps in a local dialect the way
Olamide does? His is an art and style
exclusively reserved for him. There’s
this “Olamide-ness” (originality) to it
when he does it and it’s totally off the
hook especially when chills are sent
down your spine.
Now here’s the but. Olamide’s
consistency has become common
place! Please understand that I’m
really not one for being the underdog
but the facts must be presented
obvious as they are. King Baddo has
become a constant feature in songs
that have been released in quick
succession. His most sought-after
status made him easy bait for
prospective new comers who desire to
be heard across large fan markets and
even a-list category artistes who want
to boast an impressive track record.
Olamide started his 2014 career year
with a visual release for Eleda Mi ,
one of the tracks off his third studio
album Baddest Guy Ever Liveth.
Before the dust and frenzy created by
the panache picture could settle, he
fast pedaled into music features that
were spread within a very short time
space of 2 days and 2 weeks .
After Eleda Mi ‘s release, Olamide
has featured on works of artistes
whose list might be almost
exhaustible to mention. And that’s just
for the first half of the year. This is
asides his personal releases where he
even gets to feature other artistes.
Olamide has become too comfortable
in this art that he seems to have
conquered, and his most recent
releases (features too) clearly depicts
that. It’s no news that many of our
industry’s acts are resting on their
oars while some are settling for less
but should we (they) continue to
accept the status quo? Olamide began
by thinking outside the box but
funnily, has been thinking outside the
very same box. His lines have become
too tailored and that’s because he’s
barely allowed himself time to take it
all in. He’s barely allowed us to take
it all in either. The music market has
too much“Olamide” out there and it
makes it really difficult to savour his
music choices. While you’re thinking
he’s steady working on maintaining
presence and giving fans what they
want, he’s also making records that
will fade fast into oblivion like dusk
to dawn.
So it makes me wonder, when does he
find the time for self evaluation? We
may think he’s doing everything right
but the painful truth is that he’s not
and I’m sure even he knows this. It’s
only normal for an artist to have a
re-dress period, a personal timeout to
assess situations and choices, then
make necessary changes and re-
strategize (he’s human afterall).
Olamide really needs to chill. Not the
phase out into ghostmode kind of chill
but a coffee break perhaps (only a few
will understand this). He needs to
take it all in and then come back
fresh, renewed, re-energized and you
can bet, his next release will literally
set the industry ablaze.