Perhaps the brightest part of collectives becoming more prominent in Nigerian pop culture is the different timelines each of the parties involved are on and the ability to learn from each other’s experiences. For Friends and Family, the collective housing artists like Femi SB, DPN, Navy, $B, Juwy Baby, Dedejàe and Dimss split across London and Lagos, each act is at different points in their music career with acts like $B and DPN having already released projects as far back as 2018. On the flip side though, an act like Femi SB has just shared his debut project with features from $odaman, KA$H and Dimss.
Throughout the project, we hear signs of a confident, young rapper willing to get vulnerable. His vulnerability, a constant throughout the project comes through in the project’s earliest moments as he sings “people say I’m soft because I show I’m hurt” on the Confessions, the first of 14 songs. Throughout the rest of the track FSB takes comfort in his small circle, borne from the disappointment often associated with believing everyone has your best interests at heart. Again FSB lets his guard down as he taps fellow Friends and Family member Dimss for Feelings, singing about an experience gone wrong with a past love interest.
The battle with opening up is highlighted as we get to hear about FSB’s vices on Yea I Still Do. He opens stating that his pride often gets in the way of admitting certain things in person and then soliloquizes saying “pop a xanny when I don’t know what to think.”
Altogether, First Impression is raw and sees FSB embrace who he is in all its different facets. Give it a listen below.