STRETCH – EYIEDZI BUYANTANSHI
Stretch‘s debut album as a solo artist, Eyiedzi Buyantanshi, is a new type of genre that he is attempting to pioneer, ‘Neo-Afro’. The sound is based on Afro-pop, but with elements of Hip Hop, R&B, Kwaito, and World music thrown in for good measure.
The idea was to create a sonic atmosphere that feels like a new experience, but familiar to an African context. “Before I went into the studio, I had a kind of Afro-fusion hybrid sound in my head. I had a fairly successful single called Senti, and the sonic approach was what if the Fugees were to do Afro-pop?” Stretch explains.
As a result, with the album, he decided to build on the concept of fusing afro sounds with musical styles that wouldn’t usually blend with them. “I wanted something that you could groove to throughout, and african drums do that,” he further stated.
On it, he collaborated with a pan-african array of musicians, including heavy hitters like Veezo View, Jordan MoOzy, Ms Abbey, El Zintle, and late and great Sasa Klaas. Stretch was honored to co-produce one of the songs with legendary producers AmoBeatz and Flex The Ninja, despite handling the majority of the production himself. The album features 13 tracks and is a rare and inspiring musical experience.
The title of the album, Eyiedzi Buyantanshi, is made up of two words from two African languages: Ghanaian Fante and Zambian Kaonde. However, both words can be translated to mean the same thing: prosperity, which is the album’s over-arching theme. Stretch explains, “The fact that I selected those two languages is to highlight my heritage. My mother is from Zambia, and my father is from Ghana. So, I guess you could say that a secondary theme to the album is identity.”
Because the album is about prosperity, Stretch wanted to keep it upbeat and ‘good mood’. He believes in speaking things into existence, so he avoided sad topics and tempos on purpose. He wanted the project to have a triumphant feel to it. Everyone who hears it should feel like a winner.
The album essentially took 11 months to record, mix and master. Thankfully, Stretch was able to take advantage of the Corona virus prevention lock down of 2020 and work intensively on the project. It was the only thing that he worked on all day! Just wake up, record & mix, repeat. “The project was done by October 2020, and I’m so proud of the result. All I’d like to say to the readers right now is, find out what it is you’re meant to do on this planet. Find it out now! Whatever that thing is, you’re meant to excel in it. Get up and get out there, the world needs you.”
Maverick Kabelo is the founder and editorial director of Africa’s Very Own Magazine. Kabelo is a business student, digital media enthusiast/entrepreneur, creative, writer and content creator. He started writing when he was just 16 after founding the magazine on Facebook.
