SOUNDTRACK: DAVIDO-Tiny Desk (Home) Concert #174 (February 24, 2021).
I thought I knew what Afrobeat was and that I was really starting to enjoy it, but Davido plays something other than what I was expecting.
Nigerian Afrobeats star Davido comes to us from his estate in Lagos with an intimate four-song performance that takes us on a mini-retrospective of his career.
He and his band create a sultry vibe with a unique rendition of “Gobe,” his smash 2013 single, to open the set.
“Gobe” doesn’t have the percussion and bounce that I thought it would, although drummer Stanley Unogu is pretty sharp. The lyrics are pretty funny, though
Girl your behind is a killer
I can see you’re sensual
See gobe
Omo see gobe eh
When you wiggle and waver
You must be intentional
Bassey Kenneth and Sylvia Asuquo sing nice backing vocals. Then he says that “Aye” is dedicated to his father.
Davido has long expressed pride in his father’s success. He titled his 2012 debut album Omo Baba Olowo, meaning “son of a rich man” in the Yoruba language. In his (home) concert, Davido cites his father as his inspiration in a sweet and tender moment: “A Nigerian American like myself that studied in the States…I went to an HBCU, you know… My dad went to one as well and my dad used to work at Burger King. … To become what he’s become today as a Black man starting off in America has been very, very inspiring to me.”
A cool bass slide and generally fun bouncy bass from Kenneth Ogueji make “Aye” a fun track. The rest of the song is all keys from Gospel Obi and Orowo “Roy” Ubiene.
In collaboration with the Alternate Sound band, Davido strips back “Aye,” a hit from 2014, with an unfettered rendition showcasing his natural voice devoid of any vocal effects.
It’s followed by “Risky” which is a bit more poppy.
Rounding out this Tiny Desk (home) concert, he concludes with “Jowo,” a single from the album that of conjures hope for better times ahead.
“Jowo” is a sadder ballad. I like the song, but I cant help but think that by the end the backing singers are off key.
[READ: March 24, 2021] This is Not the Jess Show
I subscribed to the Quirk books newsletter some time ago. And that explains why I received so much promotion for this book which I’d never otherwise heard of.
I read the blurb and it sounded fun, so I checked it out of the library. And I was hooked instantly.
The book set in 1998 and it rather revels in 90s culture. I though this was a lot of fun (since I am quite fond of the 90s myself). At times it seemed like the book was maybe overdoing it with the 90s love (how many reference points are there: Titanic, Jewel, Scott Wolf, Savage Garden, Chumbawamba, Tori Amos), but whatever, Jess is a teenage girl and pop culture is pretty important in a teenager’s life.
As are crushes. Her oldest friend Tyler has suddenly become… more interesting to her. When they were younger, Tyler had buckteeth and rust colored hair. He was fun but dorky. And yet suddenly, she couldn’t stop thinking about him.
Her two best girl friends Kristen and Amber just didn’t get it. They still thought of Tyler as a dork and they really discouraged Jess form pursuing him. They teased her that she was like the song “Lady in Red”
It’s like, really? You’ve known her this whole time and you’re only into her now, after seeing her in a red dress? Isn’t that a little …fickle?
In fact, they know that Patrick Kramer, the hunky soccer player (and local hero!) is going to ask Jess to the spring formal. How could she pass this up? (Because Jess thinks Patrick is dull as dirt).
Jess’ sister Sara, on the other hand, was very supportive of the whole Tyler thing. Sara was her younger sister and, unfortunately, she had been diagnosed with Guignard’s disease a debilitating and fatal disease. They spend a lot of time bonding, especially over Alanis Morrissette (when this is inevitably made into film, the soundtrack is pretty well picked out already).
Jess doesn’t go out much (there’s a few reasons for this in addition to an overprotective mother), so she spends most nights hanging out with her bedridden sister,
Sara loves reading and has just finished the first Harry Potter book–she thinks the series is going to be huge!
Kristen and Amber drive Jess to school. School is weird lately–there’s a terrible bug going around the school and it seems like half of the students and teachers are out sick This does allow for more time between Tyler and Jess tough–squee.
But they can’t risk Sara getting sick, so things are pretty much on lockdown at Jess’ house. And Sara’s illness was really all consuming for them anyway. Jess’ mom is a minor local celebrity–a favorite interior designer–and she had been diving more intensely into work lately. Her dad, on the other hand, seemed to be burrowing into himself–very distracted and speaking in short, terse sentences.
But Jess has better things to worry about–like the party this Friday She was going to go out on a Friday night! Patrick is apparently goin to ask her out that night. But more importantly, she knows Tyler will be there a swell.
And then something really weird happens–a small rectangle falls out of Amber’s backpack. It has…an apple on it? Amber and Kristen act very strangely about it. What exactly are they hiding from her? I mean, sure Amber’s dad works in tech, but what’s so secret about this drive or whatever it is?
At the party, she tries to avoid Patrick as much as possible–even though he is very persistent. Finally, Tyler grabs her and they have a secret, passionate kiss in the bathroom–away from prying eyes.
But the next day, Sara is taken to the hospital–they think its pneumonia and it seems like she won’t survive. All they can do is try to rest and hope for the best.
When Jess gets home she goes to cuddle her dog, but the dog is acting very strangely. It growls at her. And as she gets closer she notices that the markng lok different. Is that not her dog?
She tries to talk to her mom about the dog, but her mom has more important things to worry about. Her friends think she sounds crazy “my mom switched my dog?” It’s only Tyler who listened to her seriously. And then he has something very important to tell her.
I had no idea what this book was about so I was just blown away by Tyler’s confession, which I obviously won’t spoil here. Let’s just say it reshapes the story–as does Sara’s hospital bed secret.
I was thrilled by this development, although I was a little less thrilled with the way the change was initially handled.
But then Carey tweaked the story a bit more and I was caught up in the intrigue once again.
I felt like the ending was pretty satisfyingly although rather elliptical. I had no idea that the book was part of a series. I feel like if it’s done well this series would work, although I’m genuinely not sure what could happen next–there’s so many possibilities–I hope Carey takes her responsibility seriously.
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