Much of what makes Toronto based Nigerian singer, Tobi’s music stand out is his perceived desire to constantly chase a different sound, style, story, and feeling on each song. Earlier this year, he wrapped his experimentalism in a revamped version of his debut album titled Still + heralded by the bass-heavy and fan-favorite Dollars And Cents which introduces yet another attempt to familiarise the world with his borderless brand of music, the ten track Elements Vol. 1 mixtape.
Living up to the perception veterans like The Game and Snoop Dogg have of him, TOBi raps, sings and soliloquizes in different tones as if living in different simulations of his life. He bounces between eras of music including old school Hip-hop. He swaps out mid experiences for mind-blowing ones as he simultaneously spotlights his life on one track and the state of the world on another. Basically anything you can think of that affects the average black man comes to play on Elements Vol. 1.
Elements mix of lo-fi sounds from tingly synthesized keys to heavy bass speaks to TOBi’s fluidity as a musician. The multiple characters he assumes despite their roots in his overarching storyteller character are also indicative of his vastness.
TOBi is raw and honest on one hand, vulnerable on another, and passionate on the next. The ten tracks not only explore his boundlessness as an artist but the phases he passes between releases which is why the project’s objective is for TOBi to challenge his norms which he successfully does in ten tracks.