If the intersection of ardent Afrobeat and immensely soulful hip-hop – the chill-out sensuality of Afro-Fusion – needs a patron saint, Burna Boy is the man for canonization. Between the gently flow…
The 2-billion-streamed single “Last Last” is a nice place to start discussing the heart of Afro-Fusion and “Love, Damini.” Everything about the track, from its introductory chant and the coolly, contagious sample of Toni Braxton’s “He Wasn’t Man Enough” to its fluttering guitar line, bathes Burna’s tale of manipulating love and adulthood’s missteps in an odd, alluring amniotic fluid.
The click-clackety “Science,” with its softly stroked guitars and Studio One-toned brass, the simmering, Sade-like “Whiskey,” the galloping playfulness of “It’s Plenty”: the diversity and flair for the dramatic that producer Burna Boy shows here might not be as staggering as that of a Lee Perry or Legendury Beatz , but, when applied to his short, sumptuous melodies, the fit is bespoke and snugly exceptional.
When he chooses collaboration, as Burna does with Lady Blacksmith Mambazo’s effortlessly gorgeous chorus on “Glory,” and the album’s title track, there is a deep, loving focus on his partner’s voice. That’s not always the case with most features, where having the name attached is enough. It is almost as if Burna Boy is listening intently during the conversations with Momodou Jallow, the U.K.
When another lover-man, Ed Sheeran, comes to play on the pillowy “For My Hand,” Burna opens the door just enough for the British crooner to drop his terse verse and a few lovely harmonies before making the moody track his own again. Remember I used the word ‘machismo’ up top? There is a hearty brand of male competitiveness here, on “Love, Damini,” that never bleats or chest-beats itself into maddening braggadocio. Everything on Burna Boy’s new album is never too hot or too cold. It’s just right.
On occasion, such symmetry and solace is overbearing and a little too perfect. The dream pairing of Burna and Khalid on “Wild Dreams” never achieves the steam it should have. The frankly fluid “Jagele” is a little too watery. And the wordy socio-critique of “Common Person” merely drifts into the overly oxygenated ether of Burna’s mix.
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