Title: Spectrum
Artiste: Yinka Oshodi
Genre: World, R&B/ Soul & AfroBeat
Release: November 28, 2018
Gorgeous Nigerian singer and songwriter Yinka Oshodi is an obvious star-in-the-waiting. Her curvaceous
image and melanin appeal work together with her emotive, romance-filled songs. Out of nowhere, she released her debut EP, christened 'Spectrum'. Like the title suggests, the project offers a fair range of sounds that the artiste seems truly comfortable with.
Looking at her Instagram
feed, Yinka exhibits a fondness for American acts like the legendary Tupac Shakur, Kendrick Lamar and Jill Scott. Judging from this selection, you can immediately analyse that her sound is greatly influenced
by the West. Listen to the six-track
effort and you will easily pick how she pleasantly gravitates to the Western sound. Truly, she's like an African version of Ella Mai, and this being her first project, it can be proudly be considered a remarkable feat.
You only need to dedicate about 21 minutes to listen to the EP, which begins with a collaborative effort called "Young Love", featuring rapper Alpha. The track explores how delightful romance is for youthful couples. "At All" is the complete opposite of the opening track, as it details a failed relationship where the singer is distraught because
her lover has moved on.
"Continue" adopts an Afro-pop tune, as the artiste tells of how gleeful her lover makes her. She goes ahead to sing about her career's journey on "Waves" before she recruits Remy Baggins on the lead single "Options". The album closes out with the sensual "RSVP," a track that details the singer's desire to be with a past lover.
On this debut EP, Yinka Oshodi gets an opportunity to introduce the world to her own sound. As an introduction to the artiste, 'Spectrum' isn't perfect, but it sets a more cohesive mood than a lot of her contemporaries. From what we can tell is that she can be super diverse, but we pick —
if restricted to a choice —
she'd comfortably go with the modern sound of R&B/Soul. Anyway, it's a great way to start.
Star rating: 3 out of 5