By Ayomide Tayo
To be the best they say you have to retire the best. Eager to be on top again, 9ice features the biggest pop stars on his 5th conceptual album Versus. On each track he features (or as this album is structurally designed- he goes against) acts such as 2face Idibia, VIP, Wizkid, Banky W, M.I, Timaya, Tiwa Savage, Psquare and others.
9ice should be encouraged for pushing out a conceptually driven LP in this day and age when everyone wants to play safe. 9ice Vs 2face is a good album opener. It might not be another ‘Street Credibility’ but it possesses enough soul for it to stand out in the album.
9ice Vs Wizkid as expected is a dance song chuck full with Yoruba phrases. The new wonder kid of Nigerian music dazzles on this Spellz-produced track. Wizkid’s boss and mentor, Banky W features on the next track. This isn’t really Banky’s kind of thing but he adapts well and even adds a few Yoruba phrases on his verse. It is a cool clash of two worlds on this raunchy track.
9ice enlists the help of hottest female pop act out now on 9ice Vs. Tiwa Savage. This might look like a mismatch on paper when one considers 9ice’s coarse voice and Tiwa’s smooth and sexy appealing vocals. But Tee-Y Mix makes it work; creating a very groovy song. This is one of the album’s strongest collaborations and should be pushed as a single.
The Alapomeji boss also features rappers on his new album. 9ice Vs M.I is a strong match-up. The re-worked Cheepho-track which now features a harder bass line sees 9ice taking shots at his (imaginary?) foes. M.I has one of his best cameo appearances. ‘We are the most incredible out of Nigeria/ everyone talks about our music in your area/ fever high lyrics killing rappers like malaria’, spits a flashy M.I.
9ice Vs Dagrin is a track that more than adequately delivers to its target audience. This song will bump in ‘Owambe’ parties for a while. Sadly 9ice Vs Modenine doesn’t live up to the previous rap collaborations. The song is incoherent and is all over the place.
On the 9ice Vs KWAM 1 song, 9ice pays homage to his Fuji roots by featuring the almighty KWAM 1. 9ice slightly outshines the legend on this one but that doesn’t hold the song back.
Like on the Basorun Gaa album, 18 tracks is quite a stretch. Also for such a conceptual album, a chief sound architect would have helped this album sound better. An ID Cabasa or any producer of his experience would have known how to make the album sound like one whole unit. Versus sometimes sounds like a collection of songs and not an album. Despite these however Versus shows that 9ice can go toe to toe with some the best names in the land even though he isn’t ready to beat some of them yet.
Rating- 3.5
22 comments
9ice did a very wonderful job in dis album,d collabos are on point,luv i matter vs timaya&insanity vs kwakwase
9ice’s album is one of the albums i knw i didn’t waste my money on.This guy style of music is unique,i lyk for d fact dat he is not trying to fit in wat pple are singing now rather he stood with his yoruba style of entertaining us.
9ice as did a good job in nigerian music lndusty
D album was a well packed 1
Alapomeji 4 life. Aluta continua, won bi ya eyan… I hail ooo
9ices 2albums are on point pls,,,**** u for rating it 3.5,tell us what u ve done”musically” or who u are for u to rate songs pls don’t spoil our songs for us,,we the streets buys the album and listen to it properly cos his songs send messageS to us,,and pls forget about him not using cabasa,,pls with cabasa or not the album was on point,ever since they are busy separetly?they ve being doing well,,and 9ice has even made more hit songs that cabasa but its not the topic now,,so pls u guys should pls,,,9ice is Good,,kudos to him and his alapomeji crew,,u guys want to popular abi?use another acts
D one vs Timaya was on point. Gr8 collabo!
9ice u r d best Nigeria indigeous singer that gives message to the people, Just like- DON’T GO track!
9ice is making me go gaga
9ice baba o wòn le é ba allow
Who d heck is ds person writing stupid stuffs about ds talented artists album.Go get Joy frm a Reverend&stp critisizin.9Ice ur Our Very own Best.
I want a good mp3 i want to use it for my incoming call alert
dis every won is the est iv ever hard
Cabassa would have made this album 9ice’s best sound because 9ice was on fire on Versus, I hope he works with Cabasa on this kind of inspiration soon.
9ice did is best and the best is the best i love the album…..u are my num 1 fans in nigeria even u sing rubuish i go still be ur num one fans i love u die
Bashorun, i like ur tracks called Shakashiky i use 2 sing it 4 my enemis. Baba u too much o
Haa haa haa haa, alapomeji master u re 2u much joo. Don’t mind those hipocryte, Adigun u re my best nd ever b d best in all d musician in dy world, just bcos u’ re 2u much, almost 64 of ur track dat i listnin 2 in a day startn 4rm gongo aso album 2 d latest bashorun gaa nd versus dat i’ve in my music player. To round it up all d tracks re very sensible, touchable, learnable. Kip it up.
you guyz are too much….keeo it up and doin and don”t let me down…..
Adigun is the best, as for me i dont listen to nigeria hip hop but nice had proving to me that he style of perculiar song will change my view. i give it to him. is my favourite musician. ni se lo n se mi bi kin poguro ma n gbon kan mu lori nice.
Wel 9ice has creat alot of tins in 9ja music industry if u ca listen to is one of is album d latest one dat say dat ju won lo he say he pass them people mak uh na listen to 9ice music it has mean alot 9ice oju won lo