Album Review: Ajebo Hustlers Embody Port Harcourt on Kpos Lifestyle, Vol. 1
On their debut album, the duo brings both their understandings and the influences of their hometown to the fore.
In 2010, Precious Isaiah and George Dandeson met for the first time in a restaurant in Port Harcourt and discovered they were budding artistes. Isaiah, a singer, had the stage name Piego, and Dandeson, a rapper, claimed the moniker Knowledge. They struck up a friendship fueled by a love for music. Both artistes would feature each other on songs, inadvertently strengthening their chemistry and racking up plays on local airwaves.
Now, under the stage name Ajebo Hustlers, Piego and Knowledge’s debut album Kpos Lifestyle, Vol. 1 is a product of tough days and long nights. In a promotional video for the album, the duo revealed that the album is a movement “about motivating the younger generation with the right energy to stay focused on their goals.” At a tight-knit runtime of 30 minutes, the 10-track project, backed by Avante Entertainment, is the duo’s first step towards stardom.
Ajebo Hustlers got their big break with the single “Barawo’” in 2020. The song hits at societal ills like jungle justice and police brutality. Released nearly five months before the #EndSARS protests, the song was a perfect soundtrack for a defining period in Nigeria’s history. Their popularity rose when they featured Davido on the remix of “Barawo” and fellow Port Harcourt-born artiste Omah Lay on “Pronto,” a risqué and addictive number.
The name “Ajebo Hustlers” is an oxymoron. Ajebo, in Nigerian lingo, means a silver-spooned person and only Nigerians born to lower class families deserve to be hustlers, jostling against tough circumstances for their daily bread. Everything begins to make sense, though, when Piego and Knowledge reveal, through interviews, that they grew up in Old GRA, an upscale neighborhood in Port Harcourt, but decided to jump into the rough arms of street life.
Ajebo Hustlers’ music, which they christened Katakata music, is a fusion of Afrobeat, Highlife and different genres of music. It is a meeting point for both the privileged and underprivileged Nigerians, for the Ajebos and the Hustlers.
Ajebo Hustlers’ concerns on Kpos Lifestyle, Vol. 1 do not stray from the pressures of being young Nigerians and their experiences with women - most especially their sexual encounters with women. On “Solace,” Piego sings of a woman that finds comfort in his arms and Knowledge enters, rapping, “As I gave her the gbola/She say make I dey choke her/Say my thing is bitter like kola.”
The theme of romantic affection spiced by phallic wins seeps through the record, only avoiding songs like “Oh My Home,” “Zamo,” and “Barawo.” On opener “Bus Stop,” a delightful tune about finding love and sticking to one’s partner, Piego sings, “Body so soft/Like e puff puff/Take your clothes off/Why you acting so tough?” and Knowledge tells his love interest, “I’m here to give you the D/No be glucose.”
Nissi, sister to Burna Boy, interacts with Ajebo Hustlers on “Symbiosis,” a laid-back jam about two lovers engaged in lovemaking, giving and receiving in equal measures.
“Oh My Home” draws inspiration from a nursery rhyme that Nigerians born in the ’80s and ’90s will recognize. It is a lamentation on the harsh realities bedeviling plenty of Nigerians. “Everybody looking for something to believe in/Oil price rise even with their BP,” Piego sings. He then asks, “When shall I see my home I dey dream of?” That home—a better Nigeria—is what every Nigerian, whom bad governance oppresses, hopes to see before their death.
“Zamo” offers a religious panacea to Ajebo Hustlers. The country is bad but God is good. They acknowledge they aren’t sinless but still call on God to bless them with favour. “Zamo/Bless the works of my hand o/Them dey drag me like small gen/But I be Mikano,” Knowledge raps.
There are some oldies on the album. “Kpos,” “Symbiosis,” and “Sophisticated Iyawo” had previously been on Ideas in my Voice Note, a 2018 LP Ajebo Hustlers released as independent artistes. On the album, these songs do not sound dated, perhaps because they never got to the consciousness of a mainstream audience.
From a healthy list of artistes who have journeyed from Port Harcourt into Lagos—Duncan Mighty, M-Trill, Burna Boy, Mr 2Kay, Mercy Chinwo, Idahams, Omah Lay— Ajebo Hustlers have strived to stand out. They unapologetically infuse their lyrics with lingos known to Port Harcourt streets. Examples are “On a Manchi wey doings dey ooze” on “Yafun Yafun” and “All the kpalas and chenkes for here don cast” on “Kpos.” These lingos paint the album in vibrant colours, offering listeners slices of Port Harcourt vocabulary.
Kpos Lifestyle, Vol. 1 accomplishes its aim. It highlights Ajebo Hustlers’ musical talents and elevates Piego and Knowledge into budding stars.
Go HERE to stream Kpos Lifestyle, Vol. 1.
I enjoyed reading this Charles. I enjoyed reading it. Ajebo Hustlers have been on a good run of form. Their new album is solid! Expecting more content from you, bro!