By Adegboyega Remmy Adeleye

Afrobeats sensational superstar singer, Adedamola Adefolahan popularly known as Fireboy DML has dropped a fire-cracker single which features fast rising singer/ fellow record-label mate, Asake.

The single, titled “Bandana” features rave of the moment Asake and was produced by P.Priime.

The song depicts the ambitious and self-assertive mentality of both artistes as they’ve shown how talented they are in recent times; dropping back-to-back hit songs as well as singing to make a mark in the music industry.

In the song ‘Bandana’ ft. Asake, Fireboy re-affirms his hit-making status and gives fans a teaser of what to expect when his much anticipated third studio album titled “Playboy” is released on August 5th.

The 14-track album is his third project and it features the international hit single “Peru” ft British Star singer, Ed Sheeran. The song has amassed over 250 million worldwide streams. The album also features his last release- “Playboy”- another hit that has amassed 35 million streams worldwide.

“Bandana” is a pre-cursor to the amazing album. The song is surely set to join the plethora of Fireboy DML’s hit singles with massive streaming numbers, listening, and airplay impressions.

Fireboy is renowned for making hits such as Jealous, What If I Say, Need You, Tattoo, Like I Do, Scatter, Vibration, Champion, Eli, Peru, Playboy, and a plethora of hit songs as well as two phenomenal albums.

Fireboy DML released his debut album “Laughter, Tears & Goosebumps” in 2019- an album that gained a lot of listening, streaming, and love from music fans. In 2020, he released his sophomore album “Apollo” which won “Album of the year” at the Headies Award. Surely, it’s going to be a ‘playboy’ season when his third studio album “Playboy” gets to be released and fans can’t wait to get into the groove once again.

Fireboy tells his true story as he makes a remarkable mark in “Bandana”

Fireboy DML has become a household name in the music scene. With just a few years in the industry, he is already a renowned artiste and globally recognized without having an ‘OG’ status yet. He states here that he has been writing music since 2006- a mark that depicts years of hard work which is getting noticed/appreciated today. Without being a rapper, Fireboy rhymes all through the song giving creative “bars” to show his dynamism and creativity.

He uses creative end rhymes to tell a beautiful poetic story- (Lowkey, notice, joking, no me, ’06, story, OG, know me) as he continues the trend all through the song.

Fireboy sings in “Bandana” :

“Lowkey
All of them don dey notice
I’m not joking
All my guys dem dem know me
Since ’06
I’ve been writing this story
I no be OG
But if you ask dem dem know me”

It is obvious that Fireboy is getting noticed by the global audience as the singer recently bagged a BET Awards nomination for Best International Act & gave a
fire-cracking performance of hit song “Peru” on the night- making him the first ever African artiste to perform on the main stage at the BET Awards.

He also made history as he became the first-ever African
artiste to perform live at the 90,000-capacity Wembley stadium when he
performed his hit single “Peru(rmx)” ft. Ed Sheeran at the British star’s
concert.

Asake delivers a monster chorus filled with meaning in ‘Bandana”

Fast-rising artiste, Asake(Mr. Money) is an embodiment of talent.

The sensational singer never disappoints when called into action. He is known for delivering a masterpiece, especially while leading the chorus of a song as he did in Omo Ope, Palazzo, Sungba, Peace Be Unto You, and many other hits. He delivers a fantastic refrain once again in “Bandana” one that we never saw coming but weren’t surprised. He typically “stepped up the ante” as he also uses end rhymes to drive a sonorous tone fo cur the chorus. He uses creative end rhymes (Far, Aleba, Shitta, 2pac, Karishika) to show his lyrical content.

Asake is renowned for thanking God for his music journey, he starts by giving the Almighty the ultimate praise and compares his fast-rising fame to the Lightning Legendary Jamaican Sprinter, Usain Bolt. Eulogizes his fans in the street for their support and uses “Bandana”- a stylish scarf that Legendary American rapper, 2pac is known for wearing, as a metaphor for being given “a cap of attaining great heights”.

Without giving any iota of care to haters who he calls “Midnight Walkers/Karashika”(Witch), Mr. Money grooves even if haters don’t expect the fame as the Naija boy is now making waves in Nigeria and all over the world.

Asake sings in Bandana:

And I thank the lord I dey go far
Usain bolt, mo d’aleba
Shoutout S’awon temi ninu shitta
Bandana l’ori bi ti 2pac
Midnight walkers, karashika

Dem never see me coming
See me coming,
Mo gbe’won ni is coming
Naija boy wey dey go foreign
Wey go foreign
Oshey Mr. Money

The Impact of a Legend: Olamide’s YBNL is blessed with a myriad of talents

YBNL has always been a record label reputable for developing talents & producing star musicians & producers over the years. From Lil Kesh to Adekunle Gold, Chinko Ekun, Temmie Ovwassa, Fireboy DML, Pheelz, Young John and many others. Asake has just joined the league of creative artistes from the YBNL “talent factory” and the song “Bandana” rightly alludes to that fact.

Huge credits and plaudits must go to the man who paved the way and gave Fireboy DML & Asake a resourceful platform to harness their talent.

Olamide Adedeji popularly known as “Olamide” is not only a legendary/renowned rapper, singer, songwriter & hit maker but also a leader, master, music business mogul, and trailblazer. Encomiums must be showered on him for blessing us with Fireboy DML and Asake. He has also placed them on the global music scene & made their fantastic music travel beyond the shores of Nigeria with the lucrative music deal YBNL signed with American Music Distribution Company, Empire Records.

Fireboy is now an international superstar and Asake has shown that he can also attain that height. The “Omo Ope” Crooner is having a stellar year and surely the rave of the moment in music. With hit songs like “Omo Ope” “Sungba” “Palazzo ft. Spinall” and many other hits including features with Afrobeats Legends, Olamide, and Burna Boy.

His latest song “Peace Be Unto You” is currently the number one song in Nigeria, garnering a lot of streams, airplay, and views on Youtube.

Conclusively, “Bandana” by Fireboy & Asake reminds me of YBNL hit collaborations such as Lil Kesh ft. Adekunle Gold- Life Of A Star, Lil Kesh ft. Fireboy- Love Like This, Olamide ft. Fireboy- Plenty,
Lil Kesh’s Shoki Remix ft. Olamide & Davido, The YBNL Mafia Album, and a lot of fantastic group-projects YBNL acts have given the music audience for years.

When two phenomenal talents from the creative house of YBNL sing, you surely expect it to be a firecracker. ‘Bandana” didn’t disappoint as it is a fun-loving song filled with impact and raves. Fireboy DML and Asake indeed made magic in “Bandana”.

Listen and watch the lyric video below: