**Artiste: AGUIKE, alias Allah-Bama,
Genre: Afrobeats, Highlife, Rap, World, Neo-Afrosoul

Reviewed by Franz Dickson.

Aku (wealth) is an anthemic, massive, banging track delivered contemporaneously and stylishly. It’s Afrobeats, hip-high life, and dance. It is your party song, without a doubt. It’s another praise for Allah-Bama’s versatility in songwriting styles.
With a steady beat and prosperous, whole, harmonious, and zesty choruses, pidgin rap leads with a spattering of genre-respected highlife vocal feels and adlibs here and there. It’s all done with great expertise.
And those crisp, fun, pidgin rap verses had AGUIKE deliver his message and call to “stay humble even when you’re on top” in a contemporary, avant-garde style.
His highly loveable pidgin rap style is well-measured, rhythmic, timed, executed on the bar and beat with great flair and precision.
A brilliant use of drum rolls and ear-friendly contemporary piano tones set this track up for great likability.
This is another cautionary song so brilliantly executed you won’t be able to help sing along with the highly singable choruses. The sweet choruses knock you off your feet.
“Eeeweh Onye akunaba ru raka Yaga ririwe o…”
“Ririwe… Ririwe o…” ( if heavens smile at you, enjoy it)
“When you’re at the top, Stay humble. Be mindful.” That’s the translation.
Neatly executed guitar riffs run alongside the track’s throbbing rhythm. Depending on the leads, AGUIKE switches adroitly between his trademark sweet falsetto and teasing vocal scats and adlibs to come through on this song.
His use of genre-respected highlife feels and adlibs are noticeably heartwarming. He takes you nostalgically into that zone. With some of those classic late Osita Osadebe’s feels on a contemporary groove, complete with a chorus you can’t resist. That gives you an idea of what I am talking about.
The bassline tones and play attitudes are all on point.
What you will need help to avoid about this party banger is the power of the musical, zesty, full choruses to pull you in. You will sing along after a couple of replays. That’s a promise.
AGUIKE again displayed amazing songwriting skills. From the sweet melodic structure of the choruses to his fun-styled pidgin rap verses, it’s all expert work. It is a thundering five-star track, trust me. 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟
Franz Dickson is a music critic and is the author of The Contestant
franzdickson@gmail.com