Obongjayar announces debut album Some Nights I Dream Of Doors: listen + watch ‘Try’
PRAISE FOR Obongjayar
“Delicately fuses futuristic hip-hop and electronic influences with musical elements from his Nigerian upbringing”
“Mixing Afrobeat and electronics, Nigerian-born Londoner Steven Umoh makes music befitting a self-styled ‘king”
“Get to Know Obongjayar, Who Makes Otherworldly Spirituals for the Modern Soul”
“Obongjayar’s potential is limitless”
“A blacksmith of boundary-pushing sounds, opening the floodgates, and separating himself from the flock”
“Infectious vocal delivery”
“Stong Afrobeat core”
Some Nights I Dream Of Doors
Out 13 May 2022
via September Recordings
PRE-ORDER HERE
TRACKLIST
Try
Message In A Hammer
Parasite
Some Night I Dream Of Doors
Wrong For It (feat. Nubya Garcia)
Sugar
My Life Can Change Today (interlude)
New Man
All The Difference
Tinko Tinko (Don’t Play Me For A Fool)
I Wish It Was Me
Wind Sailor
‘Try’ is out now, buy/stream it here.
After months of speculation and tantalising hints from a run of totemic singles and collaborations, Nigerian-born, London-based multidisciplinary artist Obongjayar today announces the release of his highly anticipated debut album Some Nights I Dream Of Doors, due to arrive on May 13th through September Recordings. Alongside the announcement, he also shares his brand new track, ‘Try’. LISTEN HERE + WATCH HERE
Having garnered attention throughout 2021 by drip-feeding music in the shape of recent single ‘Message In A Hammer’ and show-stopping collaborations with Little Simz on the track ‘Point and Kill‘, Pa Salieu on ‘Style & Fashion‘ and a full EP with influential Nigerian producer Sarz entitled ‘Sweetness‘ – it’s hard to believe that Obongjayar is yet to release a full-length album. In the years that have passed since he released his first single, his music still defies easy categorisation.
His musical palette is expansive, with a nod to the rich musical textures of his Nigerian roots, he adds a multitude of influences and on Some Nights I Dream Of Doors his sound is more potent than ever. Recorded over 12 months with producer Barney Lister, he’s created an album that transcends its influence, creating an innovative and fresh body of work that is ready to define 2022.
To mark the news of Some Nights I Dream Of Doors, today also sees Obongjayar release his brand new single, album opener ‘Try’. Launched as by Clara Amfo on her BBC Radio 1 show and accompanied by a powerful Spencer Young directed video that casts Obongjayar in a dream-like montage shot in a theatrical setting, with styling that depicts a modern take on traditional African storytelling.
The track itself is an urgent and euphoric call to arms with a rousing beat and glittering production, ‘We used to be invincible, we used to be so beautiful’ he sings. ‘When you’re a child, there are so many possibilities’ Obongjayar explains. ‘You can be a pilot or an astronaut, it’s all so possible. By the time you turn twenty, you realise you’re probably not going to become a brain surgeon; reality starts to set in. That’s what the song and this record is about; where do those feelings go? At what point do we lose our innocence, our wide-eyed approach to the world?’ – as the opening track to the album, it puts across his visionary intent and sets the scene for what is to come.
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