JAZZMAN

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Jazzman
The hip hop renaissance in Nigeria has witnessed the emergence of artistes who experiment with a variety of styles and sounds, many of whom attempt to create sub-genres by fusing elements of two or more indigenous music genres together with hip hop. In fact no artist has yet attempted to do as much as a 5-cut EP of such sounds, the reason being that practitioners are yet to fashion out a foolproof formula for consummating such unions. All that is about to change though, as a certain Olumuyiwa Olofinkuade is set to do something different, pioneer a new trend and possibly redefine an era.The artist, better known as Jazzman Olofin, has not only fashioned out a formula but has tested his unique sound with music lovers and the result is a resounding success. This affable and mildly eccentric philosophy graduate started his professional music career in the late 90s as a member of the R&B quartet, X-Appeal. Their 2001 album, "Big Men", spawned a few hits, enough to earn them some recognition in the crowded Nigerian hip hop/R&B scene. The group broke up soon after and Jazzman decided to go solo in 2002. The artiste who mentions the likes of Fela Kuti, Sunny Ade, Ebenezer Obey and even Michael Jackson as some of his earliest musical influences, confesses to being unable to describe his own sound. Foremost music critics have attempted to describe his sound as an eclectic sum of all his influences - a fusion of juju, fuji, highlife, afrobeat, pop, funk, etc. with hip hop as the underlay. The result is music that is not only refreshingly different but also forcefully dynamic. His lyrics, delivered in a flow that is part rap, part sing song, is a clever blend of Yoruba, English and pidgin languages that will prove difficult to duplicate. His first radio single, "Raise da roof" released in November 2002 was a rock influenced party banger that took the airwaves by storm.His hit song, “Shake Sumthin” set dance floors on fire nationwide and put the Nigerian fire brigade on high alert. The cut enjoyed massive airplay on radio stations across the nation and the accompanying video has become a permanent fixture on the music programmes on local T.V stations. It also got significant airplay on the South African satellite music station, Channel O. Jazzman, who is signed to Storm Records, is currently in the studios working on his next album. He recently toured the country on the Star Mega Jam, lighting up the stage in whatever town they were in.
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