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Wetin Dey Dis Asha Sef?

Written by Abraham Adegoke

Friday, 18 July 2008

I’d like to implore you not to mind my headline…that’s how it occurred to me and …ehm, it’s in line with feeling wholly Nigerian – that’s nigerianised English. For those who may not know, ‘Asha’ is the title of Asa’s debut album which was released towards the end of last year.

It has come to be an undisputable fact that Asa is a damn good musician whose music “grows on you” as a writer recently put it. Deservedly, her album has won her some awards and even one for her producer, Cobhams Asuquo.

Also, it is no longer news that the album is already almost a household commodity. In fact, I’m almost getting tired of hearing words like, “That Asa can sing”, “I like Asa’s songs” and “I will buy Asa’s Album” – those are the words you hear almost everywhere in the country these days. This piece would try to review the eleven-tracker album.

The album opens with the ‘Jailer’ track which could be rightly termed alongside ‘Fire on the Mountain’ as the most popular in the album. Actually, they are the first two tracks I listen to in the album. ‘Jailer does well to welcome the listener to the world of the musician – a world of a sonorous voice and attractive guitaring. The track gives life to our general knowledge of the relationship that exists between a jailer and a prisoner…how they both seem to be serving jail terms. The popular proverb towards the end of the song, “If you’re walking in a market place, don’t throw stones, if you do…you know the rest makes you feel at home with the piece. It is also believed in some quarters that the track alludes to someone with whom Asa has since fallen out…I’ll be sure to ask her about that whenever I get a hold of her for an interview.

‘We don’t have to go to 360 degrees, now is time we go to 180…for all you’re looking for is within you’ begins the second track titled 360 degrees. I think Asa used this track to urge her audience to discover what there is within them and not go looking for something that is in their ‘sokoto’ (Trousers) in ‘Sokoto’ ( a state in Nigeria). The track also preaches love and understanding.

A little bit more soulful that the first two tracks, ‘Bibanke’ meaning ‘If I’m crying’ if am not mistaken in number three tells a simple tale of love that ends in disappointment.

Track four is another love song in which Asa refers to herself as a ‘Subway’…that’s also the title of the track anyway. In it, she has a message for ladies looking for love…’my mama say baby be careful, if anybody comes to say I love you…. So, be careful with that thing we all call love.

Next up is my favourite track, ‘Fire on the Mountain’. It might first awaken memories of that nursery rhyme – there is fire on the mountain, run, run, run…ehn, ehn, now you remember. Unlike that rhyme however, Asa’s song is a good reflection of what is really going on in or country these days – there is fire on the mountain and no one is running. I mean there are so many things that need attention that we are ignoring. She asked that billion dollar question; ‘who’s responsible for what we teach our children, is it the Internet or…?’ I think this track has attracted the most attention as evident in the amount of airtime it enjoys in the media…electronic that is.

One of the slowest songs in the album follows with the title, ‘Eye Adaba’. With its meaningful and rhythmic slowness, the song is a good choice for early morning listening pleasure.

Another of the upbeat tracks comes at number seven. Titled ‘No One Knows’, it sounds close to a rap song and to be candid, I had a little difficulty catching her lines in the song. It’s a great addition to the album as it brings with it some kinda flair and sharpness.

Presented in her local dialect, as with Eye Adaba, ‘Awe’ is the eighth track in the album. This song did well to project Asa’s mastery of the guitar especially in the opening stages.

‘Peace’, the ninth track also carries a message for the artiste’s teeming fans especially those of us back home who sometimes regret ever having been born – ‘I cry when I see that am born’. A little bit upbeat when compared to the previous track, it urges us to take one step at a time and not to jump…you hear?

Track ten titled beautiful is a song I have termed a perfect dedication to a mother one truly loves. It highlights the role of a woman in the life of her children in no way that resembles those we have heard before. The ‘E bami Kira fun mama mi’ part meaning ‘Help me hail my mother’ adds a kind of traditional tone to it which only makes it more interesting.

The album ends with a track rendered in the local language which pays homage to the heavens and to God.

In all, I think Asa and her entire crew deserves real commendation. Commendations not just because she made the album but because she also rubbished the general belief that a successful artiste in Nigeria is the one that sing dance hall songs.

She has proved that it’s the duty of the artiste to choose his/her audience which she did and, as evident in the reception of her album, not everybody is a lover of party songs after all. I’m also quite sure that’s the reason the album is still very much relevant after more than six months in the music market.

And to Asa and all contributors to the ‘Asha’ album, we say, well done,…kaare,…tres bien, what’s the igbo translation…well, y’all can help translate those words in any other language. You can do that right in the comment box right after this paragraph.

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