Artiste- Solidstar
Album- Grace $ Glory
Guest Appearances- Flavour, Xcellente, Vector, Jesse Jagz, Ikpa Udo, Timaya, Iyanya, Jojo, Eva, Olamide
Producers- Solid Star, Popito, Master Kraft, Jay Sleek, Mecca E, Rundatrax, Endee, Slim Beat, Tyrine, Prodo, Bonesnack, Kukbeat
Label- Achievas Entertainment (2013)
Solid Star’s second album is titled Grace and Glory and it contains 21 tracks from the singer who broke through with ‘One In A Million’ featuring 2face Idibia. To his credit, he has dropped equally successful follow up singles then. ‘Omotena’ and the club banger ‘Skibo’ have helped raise his profile in the crowded pop terrain.
But when you listen to Grace and Glory the already mentioned singles are arguably the best songs on the album. Solid Star falls into the same trap many of his contemporaries have fallen into: He stacks his album with random songs that gives the album a loose and sometimes directionless feel. There is no story behind the album.
The project starts with ‘Halle’ which gives you hope that the album might be about something more concrete. Solid Star retraces his steps and thanks God for what he has achieved in his career so far. ‘Worry Me’ is another standard Nigerian pop song about a woman whose physical attributes are overwhelming. ‘Anointing’ is a boring song even with its banging beat. There are too many repetitive lines in the song which is a hallmark of many Nigerian pop songs.
‘Chop Money’ featuring Xcellente is an attempt to construct a song that will appeal to the Francophone countries but the construction is not properly done as Solid Star abandons words for gibberish talk. ‘Zizi’ is a skippable cut on the album.
Luckily ‘Omode’ comes in to breathe life on the album. Singing in Yoruba Solid Star shows that he has something to offer when he takes his song writing seriously. ‘Rich and Famous’ is an interesting track. Featuring Ikpa Udo the Calabar rapper delivers his verse in his native tongue Ibibio. ‘No be say because dem say na me sing pass. No be say because dem say Solid handsome pass. Study hard and read your books you will pass your class because this life is just a lesson’ sings Solid Star on the song. This is one of his brightest moments on the album. He just fails to seize the moment and falls back to his shortcomings.
‘Position’ featuring Timaya is basically what you should expect from a standard pop song- repetitive lines, cheesy rhyme structures placed on a beat that seems to do all the work. ‘Shashiwowo’ featuring Iyanyaoffers something slightly better but it is nothing grand.
By the time you get to the last third of the album you are exhausted. Probably sensing the boredom, Solid Star delivers the reggae influenced ‘I’m Sorry’ featuring Eva. This is a welcome deviation and Eva’s verse adds some needed depth. ‘Shepe’ featuring Olamide boosts the album a little. It seems this singer has a good thing going when he collaborates with rappers.
‘One Nigeria’, ‘Money Movement’, ‘Balling’ and ‘Everyday’ ensure that the album ends in a less than graceful note.
Solid Star’s album is a reflection of the state of Nigerian pop. The whole genre seems to be in a slump and sadly Solid Star’s debut contributes to it. There are bright flashes on the album but they are not enough to see that Solid Star’s first album is graceful and glorious.
Rating-2.5
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