What happens when you hustle through the downtown part of a city fondly called the trenches to scale your way to the top births the creation of a story, a sonic project fueled by stories welded by aspiration, passion, and audacity? This is what Momoh Oshiotseameh Luke, aka KvngVidarr, unveils with his self-titled EP, “Kvng Vidarr.”
Having built his artistry for a while under the flagship of Joeboy’s record label, Young Legend, with impeccable songwriting credits on songs like ‘Duffel Bag’ and ‘Adenuga’ and imprints on songs with notable artists like Tiwa Savage and Ric Hassani, the singer-songwriter continues his emergence into the Nigerian music industry. With the cover art displaying him as a boxer, the rising artiste seeks to make chest-thumping music, displaying his versatility.
I’mma one-man mopol, one-man army. Man, machine gun if you trigger me.
Hailing from Ikorodu, the Edo state native wastes no time opening the 4-tracked project with the intro track “Tomford.” On the Mann-produced street-pop song, the singer exalts himself using street lingua on the track with the melodic verses while offering lyrical themes of aspirations and resilience as he compares himself to the prominent fashion brand ‘Tom Ford,’ which can be likened to a proclamation of himself as a household amongst industry names. Emi na few jaiye ni Miami. Yet, he longs for the soft side of life. It’s a good opening for a sonic construction seeking to make a bold statement but not enough power to uphold it.
But on “Oshe,” KvngVidarr realizes that the party jam is where the fans’ hearts are, as he delivers a groovy Afrobeats song. Although known for his competent pen game, he doesn’t make much effort to offer this to the listeners with the repetitive chorus. But what do you say when he makes up for the catchy hook on an uptempo track and melodies set to take you on a party ride while he names-drops prominent names in the entertainment industry?
If the intro track was an ‘okay’ song, this second is a bop, signaling his hunger for mainstream success.
As the genre-blending artiste that he is, KvngVidarr knows his onions when it comes to delivery on Dancehall and Highlife, especially. Of course, he’s no novice to it, having listened to the likes of Oliver De Coque, Onyeka Owenu, and Yvonne Chaka while living with his grandma in his younger days. It’s no wonder the third track, “Yawa” sees him smoothly grace the highlife song with melodic verses and chorus through clever storytelling laced in pidgin language. This offers him to an audience sitting at a joint sipping beer on a Friday night while their mistresses dazzle them with romantic gestures. The rhythmic guitar riffs orchestrated by Fiokee compliments KvngVidarr’s vocal texture, highlighting his ardent artistry.
To end the EP, he closes with a fusion of Jazz and Funk track, “Want You Gone,” another testament to his genre-blending artistry and versatility. In the song, KvngVidarr’s pen game dominates while he shuts the door to his heart to bad love, bidding good riddance to his muse. KvngVidarr doesn’t just deliver admirable songwriting but displays vocal prowess assisted by a female backup.
On “Kvng Vidarr,” the artiste shows admirable versatility as a genre-blending artist and beyond as a songwriter. While this doesn’t offer substantial proof of breaking into the industry with strides, it does allow listeners to immerse themselves in refreshing sound amidst the myriads of others. As KvngVidarr seeks to make an audacious statement with his project, he shows he’s ready for the music industry.