The Afrobeats star has been on what seems to be a hiatus from music, dealing with personal loss and mourning the death of his son Ifeanyi Adeleke, who drowned in a pool at the singer’s Banana Island residence. There was no public appearance from him until his performance at the 2022 Qatar World Cup where he delivered an energetic performance, showing fans that he was back on the road. “There is a time for everything. A time to grieve and a time to heal. A time to laugh and a time to dance. A time to speak and a time for silence. We have the choice to do this in our own time. But thank God I’m grounded by your love which is ‘timeless’. These are the words Davido uttered in the album’s announcement., with confirmation dates.
Davido is an excellent mood curator, known for dishing out songs that define groovy moments at parties, this trait has earned him numerous hits, and on his fourth Album, he aims to keep the run going. “Timeless” is far from dull, a depiction of Davido’s mood over the past year, and slots for new signees with an attempt to merge Amapiano with Afrobeats. As expected, the album starts with a Religious intro, “Over Dem” is more like a triumphant story, a gospel one, with reference to the battle of David and Goliath, where David emerged as the victor, he links it to his actual name, surviving through it all. The album’s attempt to lean on the smooth rhythms and jazzy melodies of Amapiano starts on the next song. Produced by Blaisebeatz, who has mastered the art of “Afropiano” and has two more songs to his name on the album, he suffuses “Free” with the trademark log-drum loops, jazzy piano melodies, and Davido’s ever-soaring vocals finds a comfortable range to croon with ease and emotions.
One of the album’s exciting moments is the introduction of the second DMW signee. Morrovey, a young Port Harcourt-bred singer/songwriter who summons up the extraterrestrial dynamic patchwork of neo-soul & Afro-fusion on “In the Garden”, a mellow, Afro-infused record on which she sounds so bright, leaving enough space and light for Davido to complete a smooth song. Just like every other artiste that has worked with Blaisebeatz, they end cooking some more, and on “Godfather”, Davido channels his inner Vito Corleone on a lush production, he sounds gracious, intelligent, yet iron-willed, just like the character that inspired the song.
Four songs in, and you’d be wondering when the party is starting, well you give the right hand of Asake’s sound a chance and he will deliver, Magicsticks crafts the anthem for Davido, “Unavailable” is like a sequel to the lead single “Champion Sound”. Running on a tempo that hovers around 110 bpm, typical for Amapiano, he recruits Musa Keys, whose verse is pretty much one of the best on the album, considering the fact that he is South African, maneuvering his way through his native sound with the flow and bouncy moments that sum up a song that comes with a dance challenge, it’s a new era and Davido is embracing it. If any song is going to break the charts, this is it.
The party anthem rolls on to the next song, “Bop” which features an unlikely icon, Dexta Daps, unlikely because of his ties to dancehall, but then again, what is a Davido project without a crossover? The Jamaican singer sticks to chord progressions that don’t stray from dancehall’s conventions here, backing the sing-along tune with a different approach.
Davido goes on a three-track run where he operates alone, he is himself on “E pain Me”, a pure Afrobeats song that plays around the conditions of the heart, depicting the blow-by-blow of a break-up and losing a lover, yet he sounds so alive on “Away”, and alive-Davido mode is always the best, it’s the type of song you play while getting ready to see your lover, with Magicsticks’ wand performing the charms here, it makes it one of those top solo Davido performances. Shizzi and Kel P’s influence on “Precision” allows Davido to express his ways, with lyrics that show there’s clearly much more than dancing, for Afrobeats.
The second half of the album flexes the quality of features. If you thought Musa Keys stole the show, wait till you hear Fave’s generational performance on “Kante”. Her sugary, football-inflected writing style produces glistening ballads, with lyrics that pay homage to one of the best midfielders, comparing his skills to her lover. Fave‘s influence is so charming here, her presence breathes life into Damie’s production. “Na Money” is not your typical Davdo anthem, but it is pretty much the best-structured song here, with features from The Cavemen and Grammy Award-winning Godmother, Angelique Kiddo, the Beninese singer mounts the song with originality, from her roots, whiles The Cavemen refine highlife with twitchy approximations of Nigerian pop polyrhythms, there’s little for Davido to do here.
If any rapper is enjoying the benefits of Afrobeats, having smooth run-ins with features, it’s Skepta, loaded with snarled rhymes and hyperlocal references, big smoke runs through “Juju” with ease, allowing Davido to croon about a lover he is obsessed over. “No Competition” was the lookout song because of the Asake feature, you’d expect a club-type of record but it’s one of the smoothest songs here, running on straightforward hooks built around Davido’s fluttering vocals, they both sail with the required pace.
You have to credit Davido for letting new-age producers work on this project with free will. Rage, whose production earned Davido a no.1 record with “unavailable”, continues his greatness on “Picasso”, and with DMW’s Logos Olori, his desire for unhurried love and affirmation matches against the breezy production, siding with his boss as they blossom the idea of love and it’s emotive power, it’s the calmest song you’d hear Davido on. “For the Road” is a silly record that would make it to your Afrosex playlist.
You just wish “LCND” was the outro for the album, so fitting. The song is a eulogy to his late mother, his late friends, and his son, Ifeanyi Adeleke. It’s a meditative work as he processes grief and navigates self-discovery, with a sample of his happily playing at the end of the song. Overall, his attempt to make Afro-piano songs doesn’t miss, especially with the help of refreshed producers.
It is a little bit of everything, with songs that catch the singer at his most vulnerable, trying to remember the sketches of good days and praying for the best, while living it all to the fullest.
Written By Edwin Quartey.
