{"id":41617,"date":"2019-07-02T11:48:12","date_gmt":"2019-07-02T10:48:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pan-african-music.com\/santis-mandy-the-jungle-embodies-the-new-standard-of-alte-scene\/"},"modified":"2020-11-18T11:09:41","modified_gmt":"2020-11-18T10:09:41","slug":"santis-mandy-the-jungle-embodies-the-new-standard-of-alte-scene","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pan-african-music.com\/en\/santis-mandy-the-jungle-embodies-the-new-standard-of-alte-scene\/","title":{"rendered":"Santi\u2019s Mandy & The Jungle embodies the new standard of alt\u00e9 scene"},"content":{"rendered":"

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As an artistic effort, the extent of its reach is applaudable. As the latest offering from the alt\u00e9 movement, it presents the most total and almost flawless execution of its general idea.<\/span><\/h4>\n

The alt\u00e9 scene is fast gaining ground: last year,\u00a0Odunsi, The Engine<\/a><\/span>\u00a0released\u00a0rare.,<\/em>\u00a0an album which, although hailed as one of the best albums of last year, was subconsciously a political move. For there was the prince on the cover, all shiny and daring, looking into the eye of the beholder.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In a\u00a0<\/span><\/span>piece<\/span><\/a><\/span>, th<\/span>e Native Mag writer Toye Sokunbi explained that \u201cthe term \u2018alt\u00e9\u2019, was contentiously coined for Nigeria\u2019s DIY musicians in reference to what many traditionalists view as an \u2018out of the norm\u2019 lifestyle.\u201d He however ended by saying it was simply a part of the narrative, not the sum of it. Coming into the game with limited resources and a sound surely different from what is commercially acceptable, they had to strive for their space and, with DIY videos and low budget music, (made by collaborating with themselves) the quality of their music struck a chord across the younger audiences who, all at once, have become enamored by that and the mysticism of the \u201cmovement\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

2019 has seen two albums delivered by some of the promising acts making music under the alt\u00e9 banner.\u00a0Tay Iwar<\/a><\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0Santi<\/a><\/span>: the former with his stripped Frank Ocean-esque level of emotional bareness, and relativity and everything in-between that showed why he snagged several spots on\u00a0MI Abaga<\/a><\/span>\u2019s\u00a0Yung Denzl<\/em>\u00a0album; the latter with his fourth studio project\u00a0Mandy and the Jungle<\/em>\u00a0which follows a loose thread of conceptualism, songs with the basic characteristic of being curated by a creator with laser-sharp attention to detail.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Santi, it should be said, is considered by many to be the leader of the Nigerian alt\u00e9 movement. Odunsi, The Engine got some of his earliest production credits on Santi (who was then Ozzy B) songs; the dreadlocked afro dancehall \/ pop act has this gentle demeanour which betrays his keen sense of observation \u2013 usually displayed in the music videos he directs; Santi\u2013organised collective Monster Boys are like the finest alt\u00e9 minds in one place, creating and pushing their art individually, yet all to the glory of the art.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

So,\u00a0<\/span>Mandy<\/span><\/i>. He had indicated that an album was on the way back in mid-2018 when his single \u201cSparky\u201d premiered on OVO Sound Radio Episode 63. That song, alongside “Rapid Fire” best display what it means to be Santi: over light drums-sequenced production which takes on a soul as convincing as the artiste himself, a vibe is delivered in Santinese, the succinctly named style of singing (in an enchanted patois) which Santi employs to good effect.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The album opener \u201cRaining Outside\u201d is produced by Higo. Mid-tempo, the song quickly takes on the gentle allure of Santi\u2019s expressiveness as he sings of friendship. Surely a good way to suck in the listener, a stretched hand. \u201cDemon Hearts\u201d is an emo rap song which features Dram and still following in the theme of the first, do the lyrics (\u201cYou should be my friend\u201d) blend into the Genio Bambino\u2019s keys-driven production. \u201cMonte Claire\u201d is classic appreciation of a woman, but Santi\u2019s trap tendencies slowed down by the lull-like cadence of his delivery infuses some depth into an otherwise clich\u00e9 topic.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cRX-64 (The Jungle)\u201d presents the first feature. Kris Irie\u2019s input is sensationalist, her sharp vocals jutting out in contrast to Santi\u2019s measured singing. Balance, the screams.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cBeat\u2019s that funky,\u201d is preceded by sparsely audible words in \u201cDSM\u201d, a song which, no doubt, earns the tag. Instead of typical funk production, however, the Genio production expertly relegates it to second-place while Santi sings of nostalgia, but letting it all out in its closing seconds. \u201cFreaky\u201d instantly sounds like something you\u2019ve heard before: there\u2019s a grandness of sound which plays into the sex-inspired storytelling at the heart of the song. Produced by GMK, \u201cMorocco\u201d is halfway through the album. Continuing in the trend of quality-heavy production, it slides effortlessly beside Santi\u2019s vocals, amplifying it in a way only the best beats can.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Tay Iwar-assisted \u201cMurvlana\u201d is the perfect song for the Abuja based act. Santi kicks things off, expressing bitter emotions (\u201csometimes I think about you and I cry\u201d) and Tay\u2019s signature lucid vocals only cement the song\u2019s \u2018favorite\u2019 status.\u00a0Kida Kudz<\/a><\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0Goldlink<\/a><\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/a>make up the next set of features (both on different tracks). Connected, they\u2019re both artistes largely based outside Africa but retains an interest in its music and artistes. Recently, Goldlink featured\u00a0Maleek Berry<\/a><\/span>\u00a0in a song, \u201cZulu screams\u201d. Admittedly, \u201cRaw Dinner\u201d plays into an interlude-esque role, with the machismo of Mr Kudz playing expertly into the overt theme of sexual innuendos. \u201cMaria\u201d is a head swirling single which employs Santinese alongside 80s Nigerian-type disco. Goldlink, as many have conjectured, finds excellent pockets in the beat, delivering a similarly upbeat verse.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Santi goes solo on \u201cDime In The Winter\u201d and \u201cTurn Down Mami\u201d. The former is head-targeted: similar to the other songs on Mandy that engage a nostalgic past, cast into a new light in the vibrancy of Santi\u2019s artistry. “Mami” is not so different, Santi just cruises through, making the title obvious as an irony \u2013 he really means turn up.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cDiamonds\/ Where You Been\u201d is a double song. On\u00a0<\/span>Diamonds<\/span><\/i>, Santi employs repetition to drive home his point (you have to listen really intently for it) and “<\/span>Where You Been”<\/span>\u00a0is the child of “<\/span>Demon Hearts”\u00a0<\/span>and surely the subsection of songs that employ a cherry fast paced song. At this point, the album seems to be stretching into uninteresting. \u201cSettle Down\u201d quickly refills some punch back into the album. Terrific closer, really. The emo rap influence is heavy throughout the album, via the themes and singing pattern. \u201cI don\u2019t like when you talk about my ex, free the dead\u201d gives an in-your-face quality to the punch, as Santi delivers a hook on either side on Tay and Amaarae\u2019s contribution.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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