Changing it up a bit this afternoon. A set from the 2024 Glastonbury festival by rising star Nigerian Singer-Songwriter Ayra Starr, recorded by BBC 6 Music on June 29, 2024.
Here’s what Wikipedia has to say:
Sarah Oyinkansola Aderibigbe , known professionally as Ayra Starr, is a Nigerian singer and songwriter. She achieved mainstream international recognition in 2022, with the release of her hit song “Rush“. The song charted in several territories, including Switzerland, Ireland and the United Kingdom, where it peaked at number 24. It earned Starr a nomination at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards for Best African Music Performance.
In early 2021, Starr began her career with the release of her debut EP Ayra Starr and its lead single “Away“, which spent two consecutive weeks at number four on Nigeria’s TurnTable Top 50 chart; the song also peaked at number 17 on the Billboard Top Triller Global chart. It was followed by the release of her debut studio album, 19 & Dangerous (2021). Categorized mainly as Afropop and R&B, it received favorable critical reception and spawned two top forty hits in Nigeria. The lead single “Bloody Samaritan” peaked atop the Top 50 chart, becoming the first solo song by a female artist to reach the number-one position. In August the same year, Starr was ranked number three on Billboard’s Next Big Sound.
Her self-titled debut extended play was released on 22 January 2021 through Mavin Records. The album has been described as “a topsy-turvy chronicle of love or love-themed situations” and “merges elements of R&B/neo-soul with Afropop percussion.” Starr said her intention with the record was to make music that would resonate with both young and old listeners. The mixing and mastering of the EP was by Ikon, Louddaaa and Johnny Drille. Starr wrote one of the songs on the EP alone and co-wrote the remaining four with her brother Dami. Shortly after its release, the EP became the number-one album on Nigeria iTunes and Apple Music. As of March 2021, it has reached the same position on Apple Music in 4 other countries, racking up over 15 million streams across Spotify, YouTube and Audio Mack. The project spawned the hit track “Away” which peaked at number four on Nigeria’s TurnTable Top 50 and number 17 on US Billboard Top Triller Global. Its accompanying music video also debuted on MTV Base‘s Official Naija Top 10. OkayAfrica included the song in their list of The 9 Best Nigerian Songs of January 2021. Starr released remix versions of “Ija” and “Away” featuring Tokimonsta and Lilo respectively between March and April. Around the same time, Crayon’s EP Twelve A.M was released with her vocals on the track “In Sync.” She performed at the “UC Berkeley” Nigerian Students Association virtual culture show titled The Olori Awards. In April 2021, the official music video for her song “DITR” was released on YouTube via Mavin. In June 2021, the music video for another song titled “Sare”, was released. Both music videos were directed by Afolabi Olalekan.
Although musically diverse, Starr’s sound has predominantly been categorized as Afropop and R&B. Her voice has been described in the media as “silky”, “cozy”, “delicate”, “sturdy”, “arresting” and “soulful”, with music critics noting the dynamic nature of her range and emotional delivery.[12][45] Her lyrics are a mixture of English, Nigerian Pidgin English and Yoruba, often exploring contemporary topics such as love, relationships, empowerment and freedom.
With the release of her first EP, some critics felt that her vocal technique bore a striking resemblance to Tems‘ musical style. In an interview with Cool FM, Starr spoke about comparisons to Tems: “I’m a young artist and Tems is an amazing musician, for people to compare me to such an amazing musician, it’s a compliment and I’m honoured.” Motolani Alake, reviewing the EP for Pulse wrote that “Ayra Starr isn’t exactly a replica of Tems, but when she manipulates her vocals to stress the final syllable on words, sentences and cadences by flexing her octaves, she definitely sounds like Tems.” Alake also opined that both artists are different and that “Tems can be more alternative while Starr is more Nigerian and more Afropop with more lamba in her soul.” Schön! Magazine‘s Thandie Sibanda called the EP “a coming-of-age jukebox.” Karen Chalamilla of The Floor remarked that Ayra Starr “not only solidifies the singer/songwriter as a standout vocalist, but also serves as an acute window into her artistic sensibilities.”
You got the lowdown now – all you have to do is Press Play, grab your lunch and dive in.
Easy, no?
