When she released her eponymous first project, Qing Madi EP, in November 2023, it was to an audience seeking the next set of female Afro-pop stars. The dawn of the 2020s had seen Ayra Starr and Tems emerge into global acclaim, vocal powerhouses whose songwriting and performance abilities raised the ceiling in the house built by Tiwa Savage and Yemi Alade. Hit singles from the EP, Ole (feat. BNXN) and American Love, propelled Qing Madi to pop consciousness, sustained by distinctive branding around the colour ‘blue’, and established by the relative success of the deluxe in July 2024, with a not-so-suprising Chlöe Bailey feature for global appeal.
Her debut album, I am the Blueprint, arrived in January 2025, and despite arriving so early on, turned out to be one of the year’s best projects (the album’s penultimate track, Favorite Psycho, is R&B bliss). 2025 also turned out to be a trying year for the singer. In a 6 June 2025 Lagos Meets London Podcast episode, Qing Madi spoke about dealing with multiple contract issues and greedy professionals who were more concerned with their bottom lines than her comfort.
Unknown to fans and regular audiences alike, these comments were tied to issues with both her first label, Richie Music Empire, which she signed to at 15, and her subsequent label, JTON Music, under whom she released both projects. In April, Qing Madi and JTON engaged in a back and forth over an allegedly wrongful takedown of her single, Pepper Me (feat. Zinoleesky). JTON insists that she hasn’t fulfilled certain contractual obligations and filed a million-dollar suit to that effect, which Madi claims was struck out. It’s one of the more recent cases of label disputes that have spilled over to social media, sometimes even involving large labels like MAVIN (Crayon) and Dapper (Seyi Vibez, Muyeez).
Thankfully, Qing Madi appears to have found a way out of the storm via KFMD, a self-acclaimed ‘record label and creative collective out of Africa’ that’s ‘part-label, part-studio, part-movement.’ Her third project, Barely Legal EP, was released in partnership with KFMD on May 29, 2026. KFMD’s Spotify profile lists Barely Legal as the label’s debut ‘compilation.’ It would be interesting to see if this is an Ejoya and NATIVE Sound System type of release. Or otherwise. But before that, what does the EP sound like?
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.
We begin by returning to late 2010s Afro-pop on Lady—and not the good kind. Especially because production on this song is overwhelmingly without distinction. Neither Qing Madi’s melisma, nor Afro-pop royalties, Tiwa Savage and Flavour’s gracious verses could save Lady from the doldrums. Tiwa’s verse is simple but engaging. Flavour’s pitch strains almost make you believe in the song’s love-centric message, but it’s not enough. It’s like a Dr. Dolor beat forged on Mount Formula calling for Kizz Daniel and Spyro’s basic rhymes. A mess of an opener, really.
The mood changes as soon as Wande Coal’s melodic mutterings accompany log drums and Afro-R&B instrumentals on the next song, 10 Over 10. If you needed a reminder that Qing Madi’s vocals are not to be messed with, this is the song for you. Wande floats on his verse, ascending on an ingeniously placed bridge that makes the most of his vocal prowess. You can even excuse him singing “Gentility o ṣe stupidity, see how I’m moving with agility.” 10 Over 10 needs a Chris Brown-esque early 2000s video with breakdancing choreography. It’s smooth R&B. And an even smoother arrangement. Yet again, a female singer makes better flirtatious R&B than the so-called chief yearners.
“I want to spend every second with you,” Qing Madi sings on Come Slide. So far, Barely Legal seems to be leaning into themes of young adult love, which ties into the title just fine. Her vocal runs in the lead up to BNXN’s verse are light, appropriate for the arrangement. BNXN’s intro afterwards is even better; never mind the random Espanol mention. Victony’s delivery and interjection on the hook, compliments the Spanish and bass guitars in the background, such that when the outro comes around, you are moved to restart the track all over. Little wonder why this was chosen as the project’s lead single. With Come Slide, you get a sense of what a quality three-way collaboration can look like.
Midway through, the earlier mentioned Zinoleesky-assisted Pepper Me shows up, and drops the energy considerably. Zinoleesky sounds slightly out of place on the record until the latter end of his verse—and even that section is made worse by unnecessary riffs. Yet again, production is the downer: quintessential Afro-pop rhythms which do not maximise the artists’ strength.
Log drums return yet again, but are expertly paired with piano chords this time (Dear producers, it’s Amapiano, for a reason. Use your chords!). On 1 or 2, Qing Madi, rapper Zlatan, and South African singer Eemoh—whom this writer is definitely going to check out—are let down by uneven production. Lacklustre instrumentation kills Madi’s exploration of anxiety and industry politics (“Either the bread or they just want my soul”), whereas the piano chords provide proper segues for each artist’s entry. There’s a certain sultriness to Qing Madi’s voice that almost makes you forget that she’s singing about apprehension as a young star.
And she is a star. A powerhouse vocalist of a star.
The intro on Barely Legal’s penultimate track, Jowo, bears similarities to Nasty C’s See Me Now (feat. Manana), and sets up what is arguably the best song on the tape. Jowo is a song of desire and longing, a melodic take on attributes netizens have wrongly labelled as uncool, despite the dating statistics suggesting otherwise. Qing Madi sings passionately about desiring companionship (“Everybody’s awake but I’d rather be sleeping beside you…..’cause I don’t wanna be lonely”) with a rather lovely vibrato. If there’s ever a Call of My Life sequel, Jowo must be on the OST. Whoever’s in charge of such deals at KFMD better take note.
On the outro, Adding Up, Qing Madi finds solace in ‘80s-inspired R&B, complete with dashing synths and kicks. She’s talking her shit without losing the essence of earlier records. But where her verse is about her love interest not doing enough to match her efforts, featured singer Rotimi’s subdued verse is the counter foil, proving otherwise. The pseudo-choral effect is used to great effect here. And Madi’s lyrics on the outro read like a late realisation that her yearning, vulnerability, seduction, and transparency early on weren’t worth it.
If the themes of romance were consistently executed at a high level throughout Barely Legal, then perhaps we could discuss whether the EP belongs in the lineage of top-notch projects born from label brouhaha. Qing Madi has strung together a ‘compilation’ highlighting her strengths: vocals, songwriting, and collaboration. In doing so, she’s also highlighted how much of a role quality A&R-ing plays in putting together a quality project. A good A&R might have opted for new arrangements. Invariably, they would have opted for better production. Some feature verses could have been sent back, with all due respect. Halfway through at least three songs on the EP, this writer was tempted to skip to the next song to escape the middling mix of obvious musical talent and production stuck in crisis (It’s not surprising that this is the second review in a row where A&R deficiencies are on display. Sad, but far from surprising).
With Barely Legal, we have a glimpse of an artist in transition. Qing Madi’s confidence and talent are no doubt in abundant supply. And from the look of things, KFMD has the reach to attract the best names. How best these elements can be interwoven to produce quality records with broad appeal is what remains to be seen.
The Nigerian music scene has enough love and romance projects that are just average. An artist with a track record of proficiency in this regard, releasing 7 inconsistent songs, isn’t who we want to hear. Qing Madi cannot be the blueprint this way. Something has to give.
0 Comments
Add your own hot takes