What has Olamide done for hip-hop lately? In the past week, the YBNL general has gone about answering that very question. First, he announced the signing of social media rap sensation, Picazo and in the days that followed, he added Yomi Blaze and Fireboy DML to the fray. They join a YBNL roster that at different times has had the wonderkid Lil Kesh, Viktoh and more recently Davolee.
But as much criticism as Olamide faces for not rapping enough, he gets the same, if not more, heat for changing the style of the rappers signed to him. Seemingly answering those critics, Olamide has also released his first rap song in months: “Bugle”.
“Bugle” shows Olamide still has the ability in him. Although, in the song, he acknowledges this fact: that he does music anyhow he wants to, of which he has the right to do so.
The record has Olamide wearing his “Young Erikina” hat. The rapper is in his element, dropping punchline upon punchlines to show why he is still a force to reckon with in the Nigerian rap scene. Olamide is having fun while still going really hard on the subject. “These kids think we here for fun? Ok, gunshot, ibon eyo kan loke,” he raps.
Unfortunately, his lyrics get slightly unsettling when he drops a homophobic line in the subsequent lines after the gunshot line. “Ti won ba de lo je gay, ama ge won lege, ama ge won wele wele bi ti Omo Agege.” this roughly means if these folk are gay, we’d cut them, we’d cut them to pieces like Omo Agege.
Olamide was once accused of glorifying rape in his song, “Story For The Gods”. With his homophobic lines in “Bugle” one wonders if he would receive the same backlash.