Safe to say that whether as Sade’s lover, Mr. Orente, AG Baby or as now Tio Tequila, Adekunle Gold takes his music as serious business and won’t stop living his best life even while at it.
A good part of society lives in a pattern.
Most people are born into very bright early years, begin to find it boring and gradually lose enthusiasm for a lot of things; especially popular thoughts and activities.
It is very similar to what happens with music artists. Many say that the most difficult part of being in show business is the phase called the “OG phase” in street lingua – the part of an entertainer’s career where they struggle to stay relevant in the scene even after years and decades of consistently topping the charts.
However, with Adekunle Gold, the opposite seems to be the case. In 2020 at the age of 33, the Nigerian musician experienced self-discovery like never before and created his most life-changing long-playing record yet, Afro Pop Vol. 1.
In the previous year, probably courtesy his love experience or mere fate, Adekunle realized how much he had been fighting the fact that he was becoming a different person, and decided to embrace the same fact in all fullness. And so he flipped from folk, highlife, locally coined “afro-adura” (which generally describes mid-tempo, inspirational, prayerful songs), to R&B, pop, indie, amapiano and dancehall; all with a flair of afrobeats.
In a minute but still carrying his fanbase along, Adekunle Gold morphed into AG Baby.
The incredible transition even earned his fanbase new members and saw a massive upgrade in his fashion and style. And yet again, there seems to be another evolution from the popstar that the world is about to experience.
In 2021 and with a splendid verse from global superstar Davido, Adekunle Gold made ‘High’. The upbeat, afro-amapiano record had afrobeats culture lovers see him in a new light – the AG Baby that could cook up party bangers and remarkable hit records. It marked the beginning of Tio Tequila (loosely translated as Tequila Uncle), like he prefers to now go by.
And it’s safe to say that since that record, Tio Tequila has not stopped feeding his people with like-records.
This year, his collaboration with Zinoleesky, Party No Dey Stop, is easily one of the biggest yet as no one song has held down party gatherings and clubs like it has this year so far in Nigeria.
The song led to the release of his Tio Tequila pack which also had Do You Mind and Omo Eko. This 3-track pack preceded his announcement of ‘Tequila Ever After’, his coming album set to be released on the 29th of July, 2023.
The album will usher the world and his fans to a global Adekunle Gold, “aging like fine wine” and growing in enthusiasm for life. To be released under Def Jam Recordings, Tequila Ever After will complete the full circle of Adekunle Gold, breaking free from the life cycle of regular men who grow sadder with time, into the even-more-hippy happy man that life and his evolution has crafted him to be.
One thing that needs to be noted in Adekunle Gold’s evolution is the deliberate nature of it all. While moving from Highlife fusing to a more mainstream Pop artist seems like a convenient and even a logical decision, Adekunle Gold is one that pays close attention to his artistry hence such decision comes after a thorough thought process.
After starting his Pop journey with ‘Afro-Pop Vol. 1’, Adekunle Gold extended his mainstream journey with ‘Catch Me If You Can’ which presents him as a Popstar with his eyes at the summit of the industry. And now that he sits comfortably at the top, Adekunle Gold is at his most artistic level yet with Tio Tequila.
For Adekunle Gold, everything has built up to this moment. Like Tequila which is a special brand of alcohol that takes time to make, his next album ‘Tequila Ever After’ is a journey. Just like renowned actor George Clooney made a classic Tequila with Casamigos Tequila, Adekunle Gold is delivering a classic album with ‘Tequila Ever After’.
So far, based on the lead songs off it, this project poses to be his most artistic one yet as it tells a complete story of his evolution as an artiste, musician and showman. Safe to say that whether as Sade’s lover, Mr. Orente, AG Baby or as now Tio Tequila, Adekunle Gold takes his music as serious business and won’t stop living his best life even while at it.
Itty can be caught studying African pop culture, writing about it or hosting a relationship podcast. When he's not doing any of these, then he's definitely at a bar, getting mocktail.
