Ademola Adefolahan also known as Fireboy DML has churned out songs like ‘Peru’ and ‘What If I Say’.
With his new album titled ‘Playboy’, Fireboy scares us with the reality that he is changing in the sense that he is no more the lover boy we used to know, but he has now evolved into a playboy. Fireboy DML put his love, dedication, and commitment on full display with this album. If you haven’t gotten the chance to listen to all the songs on the album, you’ll love this review. And even if you have listened, you’ll still want to read this thorough and concise article on the Playboy album and what it might mean for the future of Afrobeats in the music industry.
The playboy album
The album’s release date is the 4th of August 2022. The highly anticipated album contains a total of 14 songs that all fall under the Afrobeats, Afropop, and Nigerian RnB genres. Playboy is Fireboy’s third studio album and it has gotten Fireboy’s fans and lovers of Afrobeats excited. The album is coming two years after the last drop from Fireboy titled ‘Apollo’. The album features several stars such as Chris Brown, Ed Sheeran, Asake, Rema, Shenseea, and Euro spanning different countries like the United States of America, Britain, Jamaica, and Nigeria. The entire theme of the Playboy album has to do with letting one’s hair down and not overstressing things. Fireboy himself said that his headspace changed and that influenced the new ideas expressed in the album. He told Billboard in an interview that his “headspace” changed after his trip to the US for his tour. Out of all the 14 songs on the track list, a few particularly stand out. The song ‘change’ expresses some of the thoughts going through Fireboy’s head. The lyrics ‘Now, I’m number one, I’m going global’ shows that indeed Fireboy acknowledges his quickly increasing fame. In his new album, Fireboy doesn’t hide the fact that his newfound fame and success have played a big role in this obvious recent change.
Bandana features Asake and the visuals of the song are absolutely stunning. The cinematic video shows a sort of gangster-ish setup with Fireboy and his team all wearing bandanas (Hence the name of the song). The instrumentals coupled with Fireboy’s is honestly explosive. The video for the track was published on 16th August 2022 and it already has 4 million views plus.
In ‘Diana’, Chris Brown and Fireboy shine brightly with their smooth vocals. All I can say is ‘Diana’ makes for a powerful collab. Let’s not forget Shenseea’s contribution to the song which added that extra oomph that we didn’t even know the song needed. In ‘Diana’, Fireboy and Chris Brown repeatedly beg her not to leave. One notable thing about the song is that it is almost nostalgic as it is one of the few songs that sound like what Fireboy has released in the past. After listening to this song, the name Diana will probably ring in your head over and over again.
As for ‘Ashawo’, I don’t know why anyone would name a song “Ashawo” but it seems that his fans don’t mind at all. The song doesn’t exactly pass the best of moral lessons to us. Some of the lyrics like ‘If I cheat on you, I’m sorry and if you cheat on me, don’t worry’ sound to me like Fireboy is encouraging you know what. Still, the songs on the album are wildly celebrated across continents because of course it is something a bit different from what fireboy has been bringing to the table. He even makes a bold claim when he said “Na all of us be ashawo”. From an analytical point of view, the highlife and Afrobeats elements in the song elevates it and make it stand out.
Another song that stands out in the Playboy album is ‘Sofri’. Fireboy didn’t even give his fans time to think before dishing out this nice track. ‘Sofri’ is an enchanting track largely because of the professional combination of good instrumentals and rhythm. In ‘Sofri’, Fireboy declares to his love interest that he doesn’t want to waste her time. It might not be Fireboy’s best song ever. But it sure gets you grooving so it’s forgivable.
If you have been asking which of the Playboy songs Euro featured in, it’s called ‘Adore’. The track has impressed Fireboy’s fans because of the unexpected twist and surprising elements of melody. Of course, I’m not going to end this article without talking about the song named after the album. ‘Playboy’, fireboy calls himself a playboy. If nothing else did, this song was the biggest confirmation that Fireboy is embracing a new identity as a playboy and has already discarded his former front as a lover boy. I might be wrong, but I believe ‘Playboy’ is one of the most streamed songs so far on the album. Even on Youtube, the song has racked up over 6 million views which is one of the highest out of all the videos of songs on the ‘Playboy’ album.
In summary, the songs on the Playboy album are 14 in number. ‘Change’, ‘Sofri’, ‘Adore’, ‘bandana’, ‘Diana, ‘Playboy. Other equally good songs not discussed in this article are ‘compromise’, ‘Glory’, and ‘Havin fun’. Playboy remains consistent as a song that can change the narrative of Fireboy’s identity in a world of newfound fame and international success. Hence, we could also say that he has put smiles on the faces of his fans.
Conclusion
Playboy is already making waves in the market even though it is still relatively new. My thoughts on the album are that the sudden transition from a lover boy to a playboy seems forced. Although the melodies are on point which makes the songs danceable just like others. The lyrics seem to be a bit over top but it doesn’t downplay the fact that the album and the songs on the popular are already scooping up millions of views and streams. Below is the audiomack embed where you can stream the tracks for free.
