ALBUM REVIEW : Solidstar – W.E.E.D
Artist: Solidstar,
Album: Witness Everything Exceptionally Different
No of tracks: 21, 2 bonus tracks
Duration: 66mins, 37secs
Producers: PBanks, Kukbeat, Del B, Orbit
Record Label: Achievas
For Joshua Iniyezo, the musician who goes by the sobriquet Solidstar, the journey to the album has been a heck of a long one, perhaps longer than he had envisaged when he began doing music professionally.
One of the illustrious sons of the Ajegunle ghetto town, he started music quite early, charting that familiar path leading from the church choir to talent hunt shows. By 2010, he had released a mild hit titled One in a Million, a decent low-tempo swain’s croon. What followed instead of a meteoric rise was abject silence. Not that one imagines that Solidstar was not working, but far from what his name embodies, his star was neither in a solid state nor in the skies, where it belongs.
Six years later, he releases an album which he titles Witness Everything Exceptionally Different stylized as W.E.E.D. First impression: this double entendre won’t be lost on the music industry or members of the marijuana subculture. Second impression: does Solidstar expect listeners to get high before listening to this music or get high on the music itself. Either way, this title works as a memorable text.
At 21 tracks with 19 featured acts, W.E.E.D is too star studded for Solidstar to showcase his acoustic range and lyrical proficiency. Hence W.E.E.D is better listened to as a collaborative effort, best seen as an afrobeats jam session with Solidstar and his friends who often dwarf him. That the Delta State native goes solo on five songs does not quite save his face much.
W.E.E.D starts with ‘Emergency’, a short if witty song referencing a slew of artists and songs that they are best known for. You probably guessed right that the song is named for D’Banj’s Emergency and it is an ingenious way of giving respect to those who came before him.
The chap who washes his hands well must dine with the elders. 2Face is featured on ‘Nwa Baby’, a minor humorous love song, which begins a list of collaborative songs often punctuated with few songs on which Solidstar stands alone.Solidstar
The Timaya-featured ‘Silicon’ is a tepid song discussing real, artificial and imagined big buttocks. ‘Trigger me’ features Mr Eazi, the toast of the moment, and is easily a feel good song leading up to the album’s iconic moment on that song, ‘Wait Refix’ a brilliant duet in Yoruba and pidgin English involving Tiwa Savage.
This song, in all its glory, is memorable for its repetitive bridge and dancehall feel. The Davido-featured original appearing down the tracklist doesn’t catch as much fire but it is still decent. Ditto for the Tanzanian Diamond Platnumz featured ‘Money’. ‘Legit’ is yet another iconic moment that samples its featured stars, Flavour and Phyno. ‘Girlfriend’ features Burna Boy and even if it is not so remarkable, it trumps ‘Trigger me’.
Summarily, every song that involves input by a featured act is adapted to that individual’s style. On ‘Find Dem Go’, the styles of Oritsefemi and Solidstar coalesce into a dancehall delight on which Solidstar says assuredly that his dance will reduce your potbelly. ‘Sharp’ is easily a Duncan Mighty song, since he outshines the celebrant.
Solidstar comes across strong only on the bonus tracks, ‘Good Woman’ and ‘In My Head’. On songs like ‘Flirt’, ‘Shokor’, ‘Fashion Killer’, and ‘For You’, his sound is at best derivative. And, of course, the music never quite comes out of the boy-meets-girl-and-can’t-seem-to-get-his-eyes-off-her mode. Sometimes this promenade requires adulation but every time, it requires dance.
In essence, Witness Everything Exceptionally Different (WEED) aspires mostly to lover’s dance. And if anyone is deserving of a pat on the back, it is the various featured artistes who grace the album with guest appearances. The dilemma will be to either judge Solidstar by the songs he stood alone or the ones he featured other stars. On either count, his performance is a letdown although he is saved by his occasional sparks of brilliance especially on ‘Wait’ – perhaps the biggest song of his career. Perhaps Solidstar needs an exceptionally different approach to making an album.