BOJ, the acclaimed “Alte Bank of Africa,” joined a few guests at East Legon’s Bamboo House on Tuesday night, where he held an exclusive fun listening party for his album “GBAGADA EXPRESS.”
The intimate crowd of journalists, fans, music professionals, and a few musicians, including King Promise, Small God, Darko Vibes, Kofi Jamar, Killer Beatz, Kenyan Comedian Majimbo, Joey B and more spent the night enjoying the well-produced afrobeats album while being taken through the creation process and inspiration behind it. The event was hosted in partnership with leading alcoholic brand, Jameson.
The album (named after the area’s main highway) serves not only as a dispatch from his hometown, but also as a vehicle for a genuine connection to it—a difficult concept for an artist born in London and raised in Lagos, who has spent much of his adult life moving between the two.
“I grew up in the Lagos suburb of Gbagada,” BOJ said during the listening session. “I was just there during lockdown and soaked in the entire environment.” “‘Home,’ for me, is where you feel most comfortable, most yourself. While in lockdown, I really tapped into myself and discovered a new way to express myself,” he explains.
Written and recorded during the most restricted periods of 2020’s lockdown, BOJ’s third solo album sees the DRB Lasgidi alum and alté pioneer at his most collaborative yet most introspective.
Assisted by a similarly multi-faceted group of collaborators he brought together during a lockdown songwriting camp, BOJ’s journey of greater self-expression mimics what he sees as the evolution of the alté scene—the term he and fellow DRB alum and longtime collaborator Teezee coined in their 2014 track, “Paper”, describing a sound and a lifestyle that can’t be pinpointed.
Hosted by radio personality, Rev. Erskine, BOJ (real name: Bolaji Ojudokan) was hailed for his growth in the music industry as well as his ability to always produce timeless songs.
See official stills from the event below;
