Proklaim – FOR YOU (2024)
A regular feature on The Other Side Reviews, Proklaim is the artist we turn to after a bad day, a weary week or a tough time. With his encouraging enthusiasm and heart-warming tenderness, the Namibia-based artist always brings a smile to our faces. Living on the phrase of “carpe diem”, Proklaim aims to seize the day with his music taking us along for the ride. He wants us to seize our days, take our moments and enjoy the sunshine because we live in a moment and that moment is ours. From ‘THIEVES’ and ‘REASON 2 BELIEVE’ to ‘STARFALL’ and ‘BAD TING’, Proklaim keeps our hearts soaring with each note. The latest addition to his discography is the single ‘FOR YOU’.
Following his well-received single ‘4 ME’, ‘FOR YOU’ retains Proklaim’s signature hip-hop style but delves further into an Afrobeat sound. Described as an “Afrobeat/pop crossover”, ‘FOR YOU’ layers 90s hip-hop and rap over a toe-tapping, laidback, chilled-out Afrobeat melody. Placing you on a kaleidoscopic sonic cloud, Proklaim holds your hand as you float along with groovy vibes.
As I mentioned, there is a grittier 90s hip-hop style, however, the African beats surge as a smooth caress lingering on your skin. As a South African, I find a slip of kwaito fluttering amid the West African beats giving it a continental African flavour. Interestingly, as calm and genial as the melody may be, Proklaim inserts profoundness into the track’s theme. Proklaim explains:
“Hip hop will always be about words uttered over drum kicks and when it’s done right it carries an electricity that connects with listeners… This song [‘FOR YOU’] is about letting love motivate one’s every move.”
Sincere, tender and sentimental with a dash of true love oozing from the single, Proklaim sticks a smile on my face with the simplistic but intricate ‘FOR YOU’. Using a style that is entirely his own and completely Proklaim, it’s difficult to ignore his uniqueness. With his signature lyric “yebo” (Zulu for yes), I have to emphatically scream yebo to his tunes! Yebo!
Find out more about Proklaim on his Facebook, Instagram and Spotify.
This artist was discovered via Musosoup #sustainablecurator
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