Perhaps, one of the most enjoyable trend of the last couple of years on the Nigerian music scene is seeing the influence of those in the diaspora and the impact they’ve made. Sometimes, this involves adding a new element to already defined sounds. Sometimes, it could be their mere existence in a particular space not particularly reserved for Nigerians. People like Juls and Maleek Berry come to mind in the former class while Kah- Lo is a good example of someone in the latter class. That said, the New York based duo of Nick Lee and Halima is a good example of the latter class.
Halima’s a Nigerian born in New Jersey and raised in London whilst Nick has Chinese and Japanese roots thus offering a diverse cultural landscape upon which to build their sound. The duo who are based and educated in New York- Nick at Juilliard and Halima at NYU’s Tisch School of Arts, came together in their dorm rooms to write and record the afrobeat-flavoured Hotspice taking the chords from Nick’s jazz background and fusing them with Afrobeats and rich electronic sounds.
The song which has been picked up by RCA Records is a potential summer hit.
Listen to the song below;