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A week after releasing his fifth career album Tequila Ever After, Nigerian star Adekunle Gold, aka AG Baby, was at the Osheaga festival. Shortly before going on stage, he sat down with PAN M 360 to discuss his recent signing to the prestigious Def Jam Recordings label, his new project and much more!
Over the past year, afrobeat has conquered the music world and become one of the most listened-to musical genres worldwide. Led by artists such as Wizkid, Burna Boy and, of course, Adekunle Gold, this Nigerian music has made its way to North America and continues to grow in popularity. Talk to AG Baby, who kicks off a 17-date North American tour in September. He’ll be back in Montreal at MTELUS on October 1, for those who missed him at Osheaga (you can read our review of his performance here).
As mentioned earlier, the 36-year-old artist recently unveiled his new opus, Tequila Ever After. In this 18-track project, Adekunle Gold pushes the boundaries of Afrobeat by incorporating pop, R&B and highlife elements into his art, while seamlessly alternating between English and Yoruba, his native language. For his first Def Jam Recordings release, the Lagos native is surrounded by renowned guests such as Pharrell William & Nile Rodgers on Falling Up and Khalid on the excellent Come Back To Me. Inspired by the feeling that comes from drinking tequila, this album makes us forget all our worries, which is precisely what we need to end the summer on a high!
PAN M 360: Welcome to Montreal! Is this your first visit here?
ADEKUNLE GOLD: Thank you! This is my second time in Quebec. I love the place and the people here love Afrobeat. I remember on my first visit, I wondered if there were really people who knew my music in Montreal. I quickly realized that the city is interested in all musical genres, and I love that.
PAN M 360: Last March, you signed with the Def Jam Recordings label. What tools does this association give you to help you reach the next level?
ADEKUNLE GOLD: It’s a huge honour to be signed to Def Jam. I’m really happy to be surrounded by people who understand how to push me and allow me to excel. On top of that, my new team is the best to promote my music. It’s exactly what I need.
PAN M 360: On July 28, you released your project Tequila Ever After. Tell me about what this project represents and how it came about.
ADEKUNLE GOLD: This project represents freedom and joy. When you listen to this album, you don’t have to worry about anything. As you might have guessed, this project is inspired by tequila. I consumed this type of alcohol for the first time in Los Angeles last April. I immediately appreciated the feeling that tequila gave me. From that moment on, I wanted to create an album in which I would transpose this feeling into music. Listening to this album, you feel that it comes from conversations with friends after a shot of tequila.
PAN M 360: Are we to understand that a lot of tequila was consumed during the creation of this opus?
ADEKUNLE GOLD: Oh yes, absolutely! However, what the tequila brought to the table was discussions between friends, and that’s really the basis of the project. For this album, I collaborated with several artists, including Pharrell Williams, Coco Jones, Ami Faku and Khalid. When I was in the studio with them, we spent most of our time talking about everything and anything before getting down to creating. So most of the songs we wrote were inspired by our conversations. For this album, it was really important for me to let my creativity do the talking and not force things. I had no reason to rush into creating. I think it’s much more fun to make music when you’re free and enjoying yourself. In short, we had some tequila, some good discussions and that’s how the album came about.
PAN M 360: Your latest project Catch Me If You Can and Tequila Ever After are quite different. What’s the biggest change in your creative approach between these two albums?
ADEKUNLE GOLD: When I created Catch Me If You Can, I felt like I was working, whereas with Tequila Ever After, I had a lot more fun. I firmly believe that you feel it when you listen to the songs on my latest opus. As I said earlier, I had nothing to worry about when creating this album, and I was more creative. Also, I wanted to take my sound to the next level. I made sure that Tequila Ever After was a happy blend of all the musical styles that had inspired me. I also worked on my writing and made sure that I never said before what I say in the album. Otherwise, I was also more confident when creating this project.
PAN M 360: On Tequila Ever After, your track Look What You Made Me Do is a collaboration with your wife Simi. I know you’ve sung together in the past, but what does it mean to you to have her by your side on this project?
ADEKUNLE GOLD: It’s definitely a special track for me. The last time she appeared on one of my songs was in 2016 on my Gold album. From the beginning of the creation of Tequila Ever After, I knew I wanted her to be involved. I wanted to create the best duet possible. I said to her, “If we have to create ten songs before we get to the right one, we’ll do it.” So we did four, and it was on the fifth that we came to this result. As for the subject of the song, it’s pretty simple. It’s about how our love for each other makes us feel.
PAN M 360: You open your project with the track Chasing Peace Of Mind, a collaboration with Habib Koité and Ami Faku that touches on this search for peace of mind. When you’re at a festival like Osheaga, making a living from your passion, do you get closer to that feeling?
ADEKUNLE GOLD: I work every day to achieve this peace of mind. Day by day, I’m learning more and more to put life on “off” and enjoy it to the full. I’m enormously happy and grateful to be at Osheaga. It’s one step closer to that state of mind, that’s for sure.
PAN M 360: You’ll be back in Montreal at MTELUS in October. What can we expect from your concert?
ADEKUNLE GOLD: It’s going to be incredible; you absolutely have to be there. I’ve got five albums under my belt, and I’ll be performing tracks from all of them. I’m going to be joined by a lot of my friends, so it’s going to be a great show. Listen, if you haven’t got your tickets yet, you absolutely must go and buy them.
Come and see Africa’s biggest rockstar on stage!
Photo credit: Frédérique Ménard-Aubin
