In the five years since Baby Riddim, FAVE has become one of Afropop’s more ubiquitous stars. It’s a paradox because, although she hasn’t released much music in that time frame, she somehow manages to snag a huge moment or two every year. Sometimes it’s on standout album features like Llona’s Cold War (Homeless) or Olamide’s Pon Pọn (UY Scuti). Other times, it’s a smash hit like Davido’s Kante (Timeless). Or a deep cut track like Bloody Civillian’s Escapism remix alongside Tay Iwar (Anger Management: At LEasT wE tRIED EP). Or her solo work, including last year’s ingenious handling of the Urban Chords gen music AI controversy to push her single, Intentions, to even more listeners. On rare occasions, like the ‘design challenge’ stunt for her single, Belong To You, controversy is the calling card.
FAVE hasn’t been so successful on the project front. Her debut EP, 2022’s Riddim 5, housed one other minor hit, Mr. Man. The follow-up, Dutty Love, barely left a mark in 2024. And her live EP, FAVE (Live), was exactly what most live projects turn out to be: novelties. Hers is a unique case as one of the few stars from the early 2020s yet to put out a full-length project. When she’s ready, one hopes the audience is, as well.
Her fourth EP, RnBlings, was released on 8 July 2026. Not so much fanfare, but still, piqued our interest. There’s the title, which this writer supposes hints at an R&B core, a slight departure from her dancehall-influenced Afropop. Then again, titles are hardly, if ever, definitive of the music in Nigerian EPs.
In typical one-listen fashion, there were no skips, rewinds, fast-forwards, or pauses. Certain reactions have been edited for appropriate language. All opinions expressed are those of the writer as parsed in real time.
The immersive major chords opening Body Talk share slight similarities with Rema’s Trap Out the Submarine. But there’s barely enough time to dwell on that as almost immediately, we hear violins, log drums, and FAVE singing with all the verve she’s known for. “What are we even fighting for? It’s you and I/Can’t we say sorry and move on?” Not sure if this is ‘Gaslighting Central’ or a simple getting-back-together number as she makes it out to be on the even simpler chorus. There’s an achingly short EDM drum break into a bridge where, yet again, her lover is told to talk with their body—no doubt, courtesy of the featured LE: GEND.
FAVE returns to sing about love and lovin.’ Grand chords blare again on the second track, Miss You, as do log drums. But one of the kicks sounds gratingly out of rhythm. It would take Chike’s verse to reverse that distraction, helped along by an uncharacteristic calm, staggered entry as he reassures this missed lover, “Your number go still dey my phone.” It’s refreshing to listen to a heartbreak duet that doesn’t sound cliché; not even at the end when we overhear a lady on a phone call pining for the receiver on the end—as with old R&B— and admitting in the end that they did the hurting.
Midway through, we’re told to Dance. Not a fan of how syrupy her voice sounds here, but it doesn’t diminish the dancehall record by a lot. Dance is made for the clubs, although whether it’ll take is another question. A lonesome bass guitar hooks into the chorus, drawing you in and leaving you at the mouth of trumpet calls. Lines like “No be say I sabi you before” and “Na the time when I close the door, you turn my heart open” extend the EP’s seemingly overarching theme of romance (the next two songs will determine how right this is). Lazy writing buoyed by intense production. Next, please.
If this writer hadn’t seen the name of German producer group, 255, as featured artists on Drown, and someone had mentioned that they produced the song, it still wouldn’t have been surprising. The hard percussion accentuating each syllable on the pre-chorus is the sort of thing they do. Log drums return, up-tempo Amapiano sweetened by violins. Slight choices like FAVE’s “Now you are a strange-ah-ah” being autotuned elevate the song a notch. And it’s perhaps the best arranged song on the project, yet. Down to the singer’s voice coming on again in a lament about finding escape from heartbreak in alcohol bottles in the final seconds.
Worry not, though, sexy Spanish guitar-driven reggaeton is here to save the day. It’s rather comforting to hear a song about the Paparazzi and what a life of fame is like from a Nigerian singer’s perspective. Props to FAVE for that. And Yemi Alade’s “Who’s got the keys to the beamer?” entry? Fierce! Verses like these are what we need from Mama Afrique, a departure from the 40+ Afropop snoozefest she served us on Yemi My Lova earlier this year. She almost steals the song from FAVE, who fights back with a hyper-aware 3rd verse that would give George Orwell a run for his money(“I see them [paparazzi] through the corners of my eyes. Are you there?”). Another well-arranged record—ahead of Drown—mining nostalgia the right way with that 2000s-girl-group-harmony outro.
On the final track, La La La, we find ourselves in ‘80s disco territory. Unnecessary panning and echoes distort FAVE’s voice a bit. And it doesn’t help that she builds to such a rudimentary chorus of literal “La-La-Las”. For heaven’s sake! How do you sing about making love forever and being out of your head, only to plateau with a nursery rhyme of a chorus? A sorely underwhelming conclusion if you ever heard one. Boo! Boos to everyone who allowed that chorus transition from demo to finished record. Boo!
Regardless of the outro gaffe, RnBling is worth the listen. It’s a reminder of FAVE’s ability as a composer, but also that Amapiano doesn’t have to sound dated. There’s a freshness to the tracks that many singers could do well to learn. Additionally, while the production choices are in and of themselves exciting, the singer complements them with standout arrangements. It’s enough that this writer wishes to have been in the studio session for Paparazzi, watching the producer move stems around to find the right spot for the micro-actions that bring the entire song together.
On the flip side, FAVE’s penchant for ‘over-singing’ hampered the overall experience. At the risk of sounding vague, think of how listening to recent Wande Coal projects or Oxlade’s OFA can be exhausting because of the excessive runs and riffs. Get the picture? Exactly. Her melodies on RnBling needed more vocal variation, as seen in the second half of Miss You’s chorus. That and the excessive echoes, or is it reverb, that sent her voice flying everywhere while listening.
Is RnBling R&B? Not really. Does it matter? Also, not really. Is it worth your time? Yes. Does FAVE need to release a full-length LP for the lovers with serious attachment and commitment issues? 100%, yes. Enough time has passed. We need to hear her take on more complex romance themes over the course of a half-hour, expanding beyond the staples of yearning and heartbreak.
