EME – Empire State of Mind [Album Review]

The Empire Mates State of Mind album could serve as the playlist of a wild house party. Just hook your laptop to some mean speakers, hit play and turn up the volume. With a crew made up of sure hit-makers such as Banky W and Wizkid, the experienced Niyola, the rapper/singer Skales and the freshness of Shaydee Boi, this EME album is predominantly made of party jams.

EME Album

The group starts with the hit ‘Baddest Boy’ featuring Wizkid, Skales and Banky W which has already been bumping on radio stations and clubs for a while now.
The same trio appear on the next track ‘Get Down Tonight’ which gets things really kicking. It’s still the same formula – Wizzy holds the hook and drops the first verse while Banky W and Skales do their thing on the other verses. The new boy Shaydee makes his debut on ‘Sun Mo Mi’ alongside Skales and Mr Wellington. On the ‘Don’t Dull’ influenced beat, Shaydee flexes his R&B tinged vocals.
EME’s golden boy Wizkid raises the temperature on ‘Roll’ It. While Banky W features on the song, it’s quite clear that on this song, Wizkid runs the show. The party continues on ‘Find My Trouble’ featuring Banky W, Shaydee and Skales. Wizkid appears in all his pop glory on ‘Body’. He rocks this beat on a solo tip and delivers a song that will definitely be a hit on the dance floor. With Shizzy (producer of theDavido’s smash hit ‘Dami Duro’) on the beat, Wizkid’s breezy rap like flow makes sure you burn some calories.
Skales solo appearance is next. On ‘Ko Mo Le’ Skales shows that he has matured as a pop artiste. While some of his early fans didn’t embrace his debut single ‘Mukulu’, ‘Ko Mo Le’ sounds like a song that will convince even the harshest critic. The momentum stops on ‘Dance’ featuring Banky W & X.O Senavoe, as the Euro-pop sound doesn’t keep up with the groove of earlier tracks.
Niyola, with her talent and experience, picks things back up with ‘Don’t Go There’. It is a mature, well-structured party song from Ms Nini. Wizkid can’t seem to relive the magic on ‘London Girl’. Fortunately he makes up for his slip-up on the Sarz produced ‘Dance For Me’. Next up is panty dropping music, where Shaydee once again shows he is a grounded R&B artiste on the track ‘Follow Go House’. Skales vocals aren’t vintage R&B, but Shaydee’s voice comes in at the right time to set the mood. R&B lovers will surely love this one. Banky W wraps things up nicely on the track.
The half Nigerian, half Cameroonian, Skales drops another solo offering on ‘My Baby’. This time he gives us the best of both worlds, rapping and singing on this mid-tempo cut. It’s back to R&B settings on ‘Only You’ featuring Nigerian-born American singer Rotimi, Banky W and Shaydee.
The main trio (Wizkid, Skales and Banky W) appear on the thumping ‘Reppin’ EMEazzyyy’ which features a chopped and screwed line of Banky W’s on eLDee’s 2008 hit song ‘Big Boy’. Skales and Niyola handle things on ‘Wetin I Want’ which takes us back to the dance floor. But it’s not all party and steamy songs; The EME team waves the green-white-green flag on ‘Change’.
Wedding songs are the in-thing right now, and The EME team also sticks their fork into that pie with ‘See My Mama’ by Wizkid, Banky W and Skales. The song is a decent attempt to get the bride and groom moving. The crew’s disc jockey, DJ Xclusive gets his DJ Khaledon on ‘Can’t Stop Us’- the obligatory posse cut.
The Empire Mates States of Mind album is one directional at times, with its emphasis on party music. What makes the project work is the way each artiste brings their own style to each song. This ends up saving the project from not being too repetitive. With this album, EME has made its intention clear; they want to rule the dance floor. And with this present crop of artistes, they have a good shot at it.