After so much speculation and a long wait by fans in Nigeria and across Africa, Afro hip-hop star, Orezi Esegine Allen, popularly known as Alhaji Orezi is set to drop his debut album.
Scheduled to be officially released on September 1 on Sprisal Entertainment, the initial copies of The Ghen Ghen album initially printed have been exhausted due to high demand, according to the management of the record label. “We are reprinting a large quantity of the album as we speak because demand is high even before the official release date,” a source at Sprisal Entertainment said on Thursday.
The album which features collaborations with top Nigeria artistes and an international star has been described by music critics as one of the best things to happen in the music industry at a private listening party held in the Victoria Island area of Lagos last week.
Orezi with hit songs such as ‘Shuperu’, ‘Shoki’, ‘You Garrit’ and ‘Rihanna’ is one of the most consistent and talented entertainers in the country at the moment with lots of local and continental awards and nominations to show for it alongside an international recognition.
”I am now ready to drop it (album) because it is hot. Every other artiste planning to drop an album in September should be advised because from September till next year, Orezi will rule the club houses, the streets and airwaves. My fans can never be disappointed.
“We are working with a reputable marketer to make sure it is widely spread. I am really grateful to everyone that has supported me since day one till date and I bless the name of Almighty God that maketh things come to pass. I am really grateful, and just to add, expect great and unique hit songs (RnB, Dancehall, Afro and hip hop). It is really hot,” he submitted.
He has shot the video of the chart busting ‘Shoki’ and ‘Rihanna’, two of the songs in the album. Rihanna’s video last year created the kind of buzz in the industry that a young artiste had not achieved in a long while. When all efforts to get the American super diva Rihanna to feature in the multi million naira video did not work out, Orezi and his management team as well as his label, Sprisal Records, went online and decided to shop for a Rihanna look alike. The search finally paid off when a ‘Rihanna’ sent in her entry from Mauritius.
The young, beautiful ‘Rihanna’ named Kim was chosen from over 200 picture entries. Orezi’s management till date declined to reveal the cost of bringing the stunning beauty down to the shoot location in South Africa. However, an inside source disclosed that Orezi’s label paid an initial deposit of $10, 000 to ‘Rihanna’s (Kim) master card account.
Rihanna’s video was rated number seven out of eight Most Incredible Videos Around The World by the world’s number one online TV channel YouTube late last year. The presenters singled Orezi out for commendation for what they described as the great video concept especially for him going extra length to get a Rihanna look alike to feature in the video. The concept, quality and directing was great, they said.
He also travelled to South Africa to shoot his ‘You Garrit’ song video.
He spoke on his hit song, ‘Shoki’: “God has been good to me, as you can see things have really changed for me in both my music career and life. As you all know, I have a song in this album that has reshaped the music industry, it puts smile into everyone’s face anytime you listen and it’s titled Shoki.
“Shoki is actually a dance that has been in existence but not popular until I saw a boy in my hood, dancing and I asked him what kind of dance is this, he said it’s called shoki and at that moment the inspiration came and played it along a beat that has been on my phone since and behold it went well I called the owner of the beat “Popito” and the rest is history.
