The UK has been a teeming afropop hub in recent years. Apart from the genre’s very prominent presence at the MOBO Awards (which stands for Music of Black Origin), the UK is also responsible for a considerable chunk of streams that Nigerian afropop giants like Burna Boy and Wizkid get from the global audience.
A number of Nigerian artistes have sold out major arenas within British borders, and the genre is set to make bigger strides in the coming years.
One of the Nigerian afropop sensations who is expected to continue the project of building bridges between Nigeria and the UK is the prodigiously talented Curtis J.
On his latest banger titled “Check Your Balance”, Curtis J recruits another promising act Tomie Boy. Together, both mavericks weave in and out of the AlexayBeats-handled production with melodious inflections and their bad boy charm. Even Curtis J himself has production credits on the song, which is testament to his multi-equipped talent arsenal.
He kicks off the song by confidently reinforcing his superiority and rattling off bar after bar, effortlessly transitioning from rapping to singing. Tomie Boy later comes in with his distinct voice and his shape-shifting flow.
With the music video (directed by Jalen Gravesande and James Agbona), both Curtis J and Tomie Boy make a statement that they haven’t come to play. The visuals are of global industry standards and the production design accentuates the vibrant, ebullient, and expressive nature of the music.
Even as a South Londoner, Curtis J is never afraid to embrace his Nigerian roots. He has worked with an array of artistes such as Odeal, Naira Marley and Mic-L. But his feature on Darkoo’s ‘Gas Station’ is arguably his most successful endeavor till date, achieving almost 400,000 views on YouTube.
There’s an afropop project going on, and all the artistes actively within the genre are contributing their quota to it (whether deliberately or not). The sound is about to cast a spell on the global market, and we see Curtis J as one of its major ambassadors in the future. He already has his feet on the ground in the UK. His next destination: worldwide.
Curtis J definitely has what it takes to be compete with his contemporaries, and he’s off to a great start so far. There’s definitely more to come from his promising talent. You can follow him on his social media handles:
instagram.com/officialcurtisj
twitter.com/officialcurtisj
