Nigerian singer and songwriter, Kingsley Chinwuike Okonkwo, popularly known as Kcee, is making waves in the music industry with the introduction of a unique sound and genre called Ojapiano.
Kcee’s latest single is projected to tally 3.5 million on-demand streams across the five major streaming platforms in Nigeria and 70 million in radio reach. In his new hit single “Ojapiano”, which is taking TikTok and the African music scene by storm, Kcee combines Amapiano (currently South Africa’s most popular music genre) and the sound of the traditional Igbo flute, the Oja. Amapiano uses log drums that produce a deep but less heavy bass, piano melodies, a touch of jazz and South African rhythms..
Kcee’s new single also showcases this fusion perfectly. The track is a harmonious mix of traditional melodies and modern beats, creating a sound that is both accessible and compelling. The production quality of ‘Ojapiano’ is another highlight of the song, which was created with the help of the accomplished music producer Jaysynths.
Speaking on the creative process behind the song, Kcee said: “So, before I released Ojapiano, we actually had like about four or five songs with the Oja recorded already that we’re not even released. In fact, it was releasing Ojapiano with one other one we were doing, and bla bla bla. But Ojaginger was recorded a few days after the release of Ojapiano. So, the idea was there. For Ojaginger, what I tried to do was to infuse a little bit of dance hall, you know, energy in it and the Oja. It’s still in the experiment corner when we did that but recording that wasn’t difficult.”
“The audio boy that was blowing the Oja for me, you know, when we got into the studio, we already had the melody. My producer Jason had to play the melody on the keyboard, on the piano and the guy had to follow it. You know, like replicating it. It was easy and that night when I heard the beat, I was just excited. I was just vibing on it, recording my voice and me and the boys in the studio, we were just jumping and getting excited. When I did it, I was like I love it. So, for me, I love it so much. I love the beat, I love the dancehall energy because I started the dancehall from Ajegunle first for the project. We had a dancehall project in Ajegunle. You know, I grew up in Ajegunle so I had a thing for that Ojaginger.”
“I didn’t even want to wait, I had to just let it go because I told myself this year that I don’t want to listen to much advice or explanation or anything, I just want to release more music. And I’m still on that frequency, it’s just a lot of people holding me back- don’t release it here, I don’t think this. For me, if you leave me, It’d be every month one song, every month one song. I can bet you, I’m ready for that. But you know, sometimes, you need to listen to your team, you need to listen to what’s happening out there . So, the process of Ojaginger was just easy and divine. It just came and we did it without wasting time. That’s it.”
