By Henry Akubuiro
The poet, James Eze, has finally confirmed his place in the Nigerian music industry with the release of Exhale, a fascinating mosaic of lyrics, rhythm and breathtaking poetry that showcases a range of emotions which only gifted poets are capable of. Although Exhale is Eze’s second album released this year within a short span of five months, the artist, who is also a journalist and PR expert, comes across on this album as though he has been a crooner all his life.
Exhale opens with an infectious tribute to mothers entitled “Mama”, which is a perfectly cadenced rap song rendered fully in Igbo language. Riding a heart thumping hip-hop beat, Eze shows his mastery of the lyrical craft in his native Igbo, spraying a plethora of double and triple entendres, proverbs, wise cracks and gorgeous wordplay and showing a sexy side to Igbo language that many people did not know was possible.
“My intention was to create a tribute to my mother in Igbo language that can rise to the same level as 2Pac Shakur’s ‘Dear Mama’,” Eze says of his song “Mama”, adding, “I think we don’t celebrate our mothers enough in our music and other art forms in these parts. As popular as these parts. The Afrobeats genre has become a big brand across the world, but it is yet to produce any outstanding song of tribute to our mothers. In writing and recording ‘Mama,’ I am simply saying to our mothers, ‘Hey, we haven’t forgotten you. We love you.’ In fact, the only Nigerian song that comes to mind when I think of tributes to mothers is ‘’Sweet Mother’ by Prince Nico Mbarga. I hope my song will become one of those timeless songs that celebrate mothers,” he says with a flourish, “and live in the collective memory of our people forever like ‘’Sweet Mother’.”
Eze has always been idealistic. It shows in his poetry and journalism. His debut collection of poems, dispossessed, show great concerns about the major themes of our time. The book won the Association of Nigerian Authors Poetry Prize in 2020 and was also longlisted for the Nigeria Prize for Literature in 2022. His music has taken a similar trajectory, engaging topical issues to confirm that artists must always strive to make their art relevant to the needs of their society by appropriating the voice of the people and showing outrage where necessary.
Eze shows considerable outrage on the song, “Shege”, which featured the singers, Zani and Kassy, on the backup vocals. “Shege” is pure poetry in motion with the opening lines inviting the audience to a poetic feast. “Come listen to my poetry and my song/let me take you through my imageries, tag along,” he raps, drawing the listener into the labyrinth of a song of anguish rendered with children’s voices on the chorus to invoke a complete spectacle of the tragedy and ruination that have befallen Nigeria.
Indeed, “Shege” is the ultimate apocalyptic tribute to a nation overwhelmed by grief as the backup vocals chimes in with tear-suffused lines: “We hear the voice of children crying, we don’t say nothing/We watch so many people dying, we must do something/Please don’t wait cos is getting too late/Excuses are sounding so lame/Common let’s save tomorrow/And stop the sorrow.” The atmosphere the song evokes is extraordinary!
“Flesh of my Flesh” is another standout track in Exhale. It is a rhythmic love song that draws the listener to the dancefloor with magical ease. “That song is a gift from God,” Eze reveals. “I woke up in the morning with the lyrics fully formed in my mind. I wrote that song in less than an hour. It is a love song that gives shape and form to the Biblical injunction, ‘You’re the flesh of my flesh and the bone of my bone.’ I recall that it was the only place Adam found utterance in the Bible. I think it is symbolic to realise that Adam found his tongue only when Eve was presented to him and he made that declaration. It speaks to the power of a woman. It speaks to the power of love,” Eze further enthused.
Following the same lyrical footpath as “Flesh of my Flesh” is the awesome love song entitled “I Love You.” On this song, Eze’s magical vocal abilities came to the fore. The highly experimental song has no chorus but maintains a steady stream of glorious poetry as the poet-singer empties his heart of its sugary lyrics. The song leaves the listener breathless and pining for more. Eze quickly obliged with the song “Fire,” another intense and searing love song that took his vocal dexterity a notch higher, breathing fire into the reluctant ears of unsuspecting listeners.
Exhale finally ends with the exhortative “Make the World a Better Place”, featuring the singer, Masthamind, belting melodious harmonies with exhilarating vocal delivery as backup, drawing a fitting close to a musical journey that spawned many amazing detours. The song carries a strong message and drips with harmonies that leave the listener delirious with excitement.
In all, lovers of good music will find Exhale fascinating from start to finish. The album is a validation of the promise Eze showed in his first album, Open Secret, and an affirmation of his artistic vision of deploying music as a veritable vehicle for poetry in a manner that hits the listener differently and leaves an everlasting impression.
It can’t be gainsaid: James Eze is doing what no Nigerian poet has done before – consistently weaving a disarming blend of poetry into a song that leaves the audience asking for more like Oliver Twist!