East Africa’s wildlife is a major tourist magnet and West Africa’s music equally enchants many international tourists. In this breath, Nigerian music albums in 2023 prove to be the ultimate travellers’ puller this year. These albums are the ultimate show of African artistic prowess. They bring even the dullest of genres to a monumental thrill. Naija music is iconic and it carries the hope of Africa’s music industry to an international level. The 2023 BET Awards and the Oscars had a fair share of Nigerian artists winning awards in different categories.
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Top Nigerian Music Albums in 2023
Here are the top albums released this year.
Work Of Art – Asake
Asake, a Nigeiran fusion artist. Photo/The Guardian Nigeria
Work Of Art is Asake’s sophomore album stamping his Amapiano, Fuji and Afrobeats style of music. The foundation of his music is Afrobeats which is an authentic Nigerian sound characterized by Fuji which is often loud and percussive. Amapiano completes his style with piano sounds which create the party mood in his songs.
This 14-track album carries on Asake’s musical style, with his Naija Amapiano feel resonating throughout this song. Asake first released one of the album’s top hits “2:30” in April 2023 to give his fans a preview of the album. He made a comeback with this song, which had Amapiano beats from beginning to end with a dash of pop.
This song, which BlaiseBeatz and Magicsticks created together for the new Amapiano-infused soundtrack, showcases Asake’s exceptional musical talent as a whole. Asake, who has a lot of Amapiano fusion, navigates each verse and chorus successfully and properly. The song’s quick tempo explores an evening’s theme that is quite fascinating.
Every other song in this album carries this charm and it speaks loudly of Asake’s musical prowess. Given that he released it barely a year after his debut album ‘Mr Money With The Vibe’, it suffices as one of the most anticipated Nigerian music albums in 2023.
Thy Kingdom Come – Seyi Vibez
Seyi Vibez took the Nigerian music industry by storm. He released his latest album Thy Kingdom Come’ when no one expected it. The album provides an engaging listening experience while exhibiting Seyi Vibez’s artistic development. He expresses gratitude to his family, friends, and followers for their support as he takes satisfaction in his successes. One who appreciates parental sacrifice; he offers a sincere homage to his late mother for loving him the right way when she was alive. This tribute shows his vulnerable side masked beneath strong log percussion and swaggering flows with improved sound. He bravely explores love and desire as expected.
Tequilla Ever After – Adenkule Gold
Adenkule Gold. Photo/Yours Truly
Being is fifth music album, the Afro-fusion star singer is promising nothing more than ultimate happiness with Tequilla Ever After. Adenkule put his heart and mind into this project which he tags as the craziest musical undertaking he has had in a long time. One of his lead singles in this album is ‘Party No Dey Stop’ featuring Zinoleesky. He combines his signature rap fused with Amapiano courtesy of Zinoleesky’s genre experimentation overtures. All in all, it is an outstanding musical project.
Body & Soul – Joeboy
Nigerian artist Joeboy. Photo/BET
The anticipation that was with Body & Soul makes it one of the Nigerian music albums in 2023. It is his second album that restored hope among his fans who hadn’t had any release from him since 2021 when he released ‘Somewhere Between Beauty & Magic’. This sophomore album is sensational which he is pretty good at. The Nigerian crooner astonishingly soothes his audience with brutal honesty and directness. Body & Soul production has a mid-tempo flow and a subtle but noticeable charisma to it.
Timeless – Davido
Davido. Photo/The Guardian.
Timeless was the most-awaited of Nigerian music albums in 2023 and Davido delivered an astounding discography with this album. The 17-track album is a mixture of musical greatness in one record. He brings a trendy musical vibe with Amapiano beats to it. Unavailable featuring South African Amapiano star Musa Keys comes with the trendy piano-afrobeat fusion. As expected, he pushed boundaries with this new album and featured some of the top artists in and out of Nigeria among them Asake, Focalistic, Moravvey, Skepta and Dexta Daps.
Legend or No Legend – Wande Coal
Wande Coal. Photo/Pan African Music
Renowned Nigerian artist Wande Coal reinvented his musical charm by releasing his third album Legend or No Legend. Coal dropped his first three singles from the album in January titled Let Them Know, Come My Way, and Kpe Paso featuring Olamide.
His performance in this third album is not only excellent but also spectacular, complete with a spontaneous popular dance song. Wande Coal combines amapiano from South Africa with a variety of West African musical genres. He ultimately creates a legacy with this album, punctuated by musical diversity and fusion.
Unruly – Olamide
The 14-track album features the crème-de-la-crème of Naija’s Afrobeats pushing Unruly to the top Nigerian music albums in 2023. Some of the featured artists include:
- Asake
- Fireboy DML
- BNXN
- Rema
Maverick – Kizz Daniel
The Tere singer dropped his fourth album Maverick further asserting his exceptional music style and a growing fan base outside his home country. This album has 20 songs touching on different subjects about life. Buga is one of the big hits from Maverick album.
Tears of The Sun – Teni
Nigerian artist Teni released ‘Tears of The Sun’ album which she describes as a great teacher about life. Photo/Daily Post Nigeria
Teni talks about the great lessons that life has taught her in Tears of The Sun album. The afropop star capped the 16-track album with a sturdy production as she delves into her life, relationships, success and low moments. While at Nigerian music albums in 2023; Tears of The Sun is special because it carries life’s lessons.
Sincerely, Benson -BNXN
BNXN’s musical talent is exceptional. He brings it all out in Sincerely, Benson, a splendid afro-fusion musical masterpiece. Its 15 tracks feature big names such as Seyi Vibez, Taves, Popcaan, Kizz Daniel and Headies One.
Blessed – Mohbad
The late Nigerian artist Mohbad left his musical legacy with Blessed album. Popularly known in the streets as Imole, his fans have his last six songs to keep his memories alive.
The More The Better – Tekno
The More The Better is 12-track album with the best of Tekno’s musical Genuity. His lyricism and production give away his brilliance as far as making music goes. His Afrobeat style in his sophomore album is emotive, clearly thought of and perfectly blended.
The Evil Genius – Mr Eazi
Sixteen tracks in The Evil Genius marked a special place in the hearts of Mr Eazi’s fans. It’s his first album released under his label emPawa Africa. Grammy Award-wining singer Angelique Kidjo, Joe Boy, Tekno, Efua and Soweto Gospel Choir are among the featured artists.
I Told Them – Burn Boy
Would Nigerian music albums in 2023 be complete without Grammy Award winner Burna Boy? He released his sixth album I Told Them with standout tracks such as City Boys, Big 7 and On Form.
