Asake: Why I sing in Yoruba

Nigerian singer Ahmed Ololade, popularly known as Asake, says he feels more comfortable expressing himself in Yoruba in his songs.

Asake said this at a recent interactive session with fans on Instagram.

The singer added that although he can sing in English, he prefers Yoruba.

Asake went live on Instagram to chat with his fans after releasing his new album, ‘Lungu Boy’, and a curious fan asked him why he always sings in Yoruba, his native language.

Asake responded that he was more comfortable singing in his native language, saying whoever does not appreciate his songs in Yoruba should stop listening.

“I am more comfortable singing in Yoruba; it’s not that I can’t sing in English. If you fvck with me, fvck with me with my Yoruba. If not, then don’t,” he said.

All three of Asake’s albums, including ‘Mr Money WithThe Vibes’, ‘Work of Art’, and the latest ‘Lungu Boy’ feature predominantly Yoruba lyrics.

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However, his hit song ‘Amapiano’ was nominated for the ‘Best African Music Performance’ category at the 2024 Grammy Award, despite being sung mainly in Yoruba.

‘Lungu Boy’ was released on August 9 and it featured several singers, including Wizkid, British rappers Central Cee and Stormzy, American superstar Travis Scott, and Brazilian singer Ludmila.

The album tallied 5.86 million streams on Spotify Nigeria on its opening day, making it a new record on Spotify Nigeria, breaking the previous record of 4.91 million streams held by Davido’s ‘Timeless’.

The first track of ‘Lungu Boy’, ‘MMS’, recorded 870,577 streams on its first day of release on Spotify Nigeria, setting a new record after surpassing the previous 626,000 streams set by Wizkid’s ‘IDK’ featuring  Zlatan.

The album’s release is coming ahead of his upcoming ‘Lungu Boy’ tour which will include stops at the acclaimed O2 Arena in the United Kingdom and Madison Square Garden in the United States.

The Star