Onyeka Popular Nigerian entertainment mogul Bright Okpocha, professionally known as Basketmouth released his second studio album titled “Horoscopes” on Friday, February 11.
Many people were thrilled when he announced he was transcending from comedy into music-making before 2020’s “Yabasi” dropped, although no one fully knew what to expect. Was he going to lend his vocals to the mic? Not sure how that would have panned out.
Instead, “Yabasi” was a fine fusion of Basketmouth’s young love for Hip Hop, and Highlife that stayed true to his Ibo roots, and like “Horoscopes,” was littered with elite guest appearances including from Duncan Mighty, Phyno, Chike, Zoro, Show Dem Camp, Waje, BOJ, Zoro, and more, with Basketmouth orchestrating alongside producer Duktor Sett.
Spearheaded by the single “Trouble ft. 2Baba and Blaqbonez,” “Horoscopes” opened to several positive reviews from listeners, but it is its elite guest list of appearances that’s turning heads. That list includes: MI, Johnny Drille, Efya, Buju, Kwabena Kwabena, The Cavemen, Wande Coal, Peruzzi, Oxlade, 2Baba, Blaqbonez, Reekado Banks, Falz, Simi, Illbliss, Dremo, and Flavour.
Basketmouth is brilliantly tapping into his influence as an ingenious, globally renowned comedian and entertainer to make these high-profile collaborations happen.
His records do open or close with his vocals, of course- the “Basketmouth” signature we’ve all become accustomed to hearing, but his influence, especially his characteristic humour is also undeniably present on all the tracks. In other words, despite not singing or rapping, you’re not surprised to hear that this is a Baskemouth project when you listen to any of the songs he has masterminded.
It’s a difficult task, planning and eventually bringing this number of superstars to combine on a particular project. It takes a whole lot of resources as well, like time and money.
However, Basketmouth is using his ingenuity and influence in the best possible creative way, actualising his adolescent dreams of making music, and making a name for himself as one of the brightest and greatest entertainers straight out of Naija.
“Horoscopes” is digital only. You can stream it here on Apple Music.
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