With the amazing year 2022 was for Nigerian music, it is no surprise that music listeners at home and worldwide now have their eyes set on what projects the country has to offer in 2023. While some artists prefer to shock fans with unannounced releases, mostly hoping it boosts listenership, there are a lot of artists that would rather have fans anticipate their releases by giving them expected release dates.
In this article, we take a look at some of the Nigerian projects we’re expecting in the first quarter of 2023 and what we know about them.
King Perryy – Continental Playlist (February 10)
Early this month, King Perryy announced his debut EP Continental Playlist with its tracklist featuring Tekno, Victony, Ria Sean & 1Da Banton. He shared the announcement along with a link to pre-save the 7-track EP. The 7 songs on the project are On God, Turkey Nla Remix, Tight Condition, Oh No, Flamingo, No Stress, and Denge.
Pheelz – Pheelz Good (February 10)
Pheelz shared his new single Stand by You alongside details of his upcoming sophomore EP release date. The project’s collaborators include BNXN and Davido on Finesse and Electricity respectively. Pheelz Good is an eight-track project. Songs on the EP are Ballin, Stand by You, Pheelz Like Summer, Electricity, Finesse, Pablo Escobar, Emi Laye Mi, and Ewelle.
AQ – God’s Engineering 2 (March/April)
On February 2, AQ took to his Twitter account to announce that he is working on God’s Engineering 2 and that it would be out on streaming platforms by March or April this year. While we do not know the number of songs or features to expect, AQ is a master lyricist and any project from him is sure to be a scintillating body of work.
Spinall – Top Boy (February 17)
Spinall has confirmed multiple times that his album, Top Boy, is dropping on the 17th of February. Top Boy is Spinall’s 6th studio album and in the words of Spinall himself, the album will feature all the “Top Mamas and Top Boys” in the music game worldwide. Constantly tweeting updates, Spinall has informed us that he’s still working on the project but it will still be released on the announced date. The 17-song project will feature Adekunle Gold on Cloud 9, Asake on Palazzo, Reekado Banks, Phyno, and Ntosh Gazi on Top Mama, Kemuel and Olamide on Bunda, Fireboy DML and 6lack on Sere Remix, Summer Walker, DJ Snake, and Äyanna on Power (Remember Who You Are), with Nasty C on the Power (Remember Who You Are) remix.
Kel-P – Bully Season Vol. 1 EP (February 24)
Kelp-P is one more producer turned artist that is tired of playing behind the scenes and wants to dominate the music industry at the forefront. He recently released his single, One More Night, and shared an Instagram post announcing the release of his upcoming Bully Season Vol. 1 EP. Apart from One More Night, the tracklist includes 4 other songs: Tropicana Baby, Sundress, True Love, and Feel Lucky.
L.A.X – No Bad Vibes (March 1)
Earlier in the year L.A.X teased his forthcoming No Bad Vibes album with the official music video for the song, Rora, produced by Shyne. L.A.X has stated that the album is ready but there are a few things that need perfecting before it is released officially. The album release date has moved a few times before, but L.A.X has confirmed that it won’t be moving anymore. No Bad Vibes is a 12-song project with the only known songs on the tracklist being Options with Ayra Starr, Waist Drop, Para, and Rora.
Rexxie – Big Time (March 3)
Following the success of his hit single Abracadabra, which has a Wizkid remix on the way, Rexxie is set to put out a 12-track sophomore studio album Big Time on March 3. Abracadabra featuring Naira Marley and Skiibii, the incoming Abracadabra remix, Lagos featuring Busiswa, L.A.X, and Shashie, and No More Condition featuring Zinoleesky are some of the songs on the project. Rexxie has confirmed that the project is ready, but the full tracklist still remains a mystery.
Wande Coal – Legend Or No Legend (March 31)
His first album in 7 years, Legend Or No Legend is Wande Coal’s grand reentry to Nigeria’s increasingly competitive soundscape. With recent hits like the rejuvenated Gentility, Come My Way, Hate Me, and Umbrella and features like Kenkele, Flex, and Mama Maradona, the Nigerian legend is confident that there’s still a piece of the fast-changing music scene for him, and is set to claim it with this project in 2023. With the title already painting a vibrant picture, Legend Or No Legend is Wande Coal’s opportunity to remind Nigerian listeners why he’s second to none when it comes to albums. The 13-track project features 2021’s Come My Way and the recently released Kpe Paso featuring Olamide.
Lojay – Gangster Romantic EP (March 3)
Lojay is set to release his new EP Gangster Romantic on Friday, March 3. The 7-track project will include lead singles CANADA, LEADER! and MOTO. New additions to the project’s tracklist include YAWEH, IYD, AVALABU and OVA. DJ Maphirosa and Kabza De Small are the only publicly known collaborators so far. Meant to drop last year, Gangster Romantic was pushed back to this year for reasons we hope helped perfect the sound and deliver peak-quality work. MOTO is also Lojay’s first credit as a producer; he produced the song alongside The Elements.