Yemi Alade, one of Africa`s finest entertainers, is sadly not recognized in her own country, Nigeria due to the poor “lyrical” content in her music in recent times. Nigerians don`t take her music seriously and would rather listen to some crappy artiste (no shade here). However, with the release of her 4th studio album “Woman of Steel”, the singer was able to grab the attention of Nigerians again reminding them of the “Johnny” crooner they once fell in love with.
Since the album was released, Yemi has not slowed down in dropping captivating and colorful visuals to promote the tracks on the album. Her latest video with Grammy Award-winning singer, Angelique Kidjo ( Shekere ) compelled us to bring forth this article (Cuz it’s high time Nigerians starts appreciating Yemi’s hardwork). There’s no way we at Tooxclusive wouldn’t want to drop a review about such a record-breaking collaboration.
Angelique Kidjo and Yemi Alade joined hands to create real African music that we haven`t seen in awhile with “Shekere”.The collaboration comes as no surprise as both women despite all the fame and glory have always paid homage to their roots so it makes perfect sense that they work together. It came as a personal request by Kidjo for Yemi Alade to revamp her classic hit “Wombo Lombo” and it was a big success.
The collaboration itself is also a dream come true for Yemi because she considers the “Womobolo” singer a mentor, the one lady that inspires her and still inspires her. The inspiration behind her name “Mama Africa” is clear now – Alade is hungry to reach full icon status much-like Kidjo.
Yemi Alade revealed that it took her 2 years to finally work with the legendary Benin singer and the video for the track is her favorite It’s my favorite because I finally got to work with someone that inspired me while growing up and still inspires me, and is still achieving heights that I want to achieve as an African woman, she says.
Now let’s get on to the video! “Shekere” stands out in the “Woman of Steel” album not solely because of Angelique Kidjo but of the uniqueness which speaks of Africa`s greatness in all its beauty. The visuals did a fantastic job in portraying the message of the song.
Upon writing this review, this writer had to watch the visuals over 10 times because she wasn`t still able to wrap her head around the fact that such a video could be that mind-boggling and entertaining at the same time.
Directed by Ovie Etseyatse and shot in Kenya, the colorful video features a group of African tribesmen dressed in colorfully extravagant costumes dancing to give viewers a taste of what really goes on in Africa. The intro of the video sets one`s heart racing making one anticipate what would come next. The song comes on and boom! There are happy people dancing all over the place.
Yemi and Kidjo`s looks, the breathtaking set backgrounds are all on point. Everything was purely natural as both women looked like they were having real fun and might have even forgotten they were shooting a video at some point. That`s the kind of energy we want from our female entertainers – Real girl power!
Since it`s release on the 5th of February, the video has garnered over 1.6 million views and has received love from fans all over the continent. But hey! We have to watch out, Yemi might just be the next Angelique Kidjo or better still, a better Angelique Kidjo.
Notwithstanding, words alone cannot describe the uniqueness of this video as it can not be from us alone. You can take a look for yourself and enjoy the music video HERE.
You can also share your thoughts about this article or what you feel about the ‘Shekere’ music video in the comment section below…
