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Ric Hassani VibeZ

Ten tracks from a Nigerian singer who built a career on being unfashionably romantic in a scene that mostly rewarded swagger.

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Ric Hassani

Ric Hassani occupies an unusual position in Nigerian pop. While the mainstream of afrobeats was built on rhythm, party records and a certain kind of bravado, he built his on melody and courtship — his self-description as an artist has consistently emphasised the romantic, and his best-known album is called The African Gentleman.

The musical consequence is that his records sound different. Acoustic guitar is frequently at the centre, the tempos are gentler, and the arrangements owe as much to soft rock and soul balladry as to Lagos club production.

That has made him a specialist taste internationally and a considerable star at home, particularly for a certain kind of occasion — these are wedding records in the best sense.

What to listen for

"Gentleman" is the signature and the clearest statement of the whole project — a song that is, unfashionably and entirely sincerely, about being well-behaved.

"Marry You" is the one that gets played at actual weddings across West Africa, and it earns it.

"Beautiful to Me" opens the set and is the prettiest melody here.

"Joy" appears twice, which is the playlist telling you something — it is the most uplifting record in the catalogue.

"Believe" in the extended remix with Falz and Olamide is the collaboration that brings in two of the biggest names in Nigerian music and shows how his register changes alongside them.

"Love & Romance II" with Ne-Yo and Joeboy is the international crossover, and pairing him with Ne-Yo is an obvious good idea — both are melodists working in a tradition of unembarrassed sentiment.

"Oya Dance" and "Dance Dance Baby Dance" in the Cameroonian remix are the uptempo entries, and "Hello" is the deep cut.

Go deeper

The African Gentleman (2016) is the album to start with, and The Prince I Became is the follow-up.

For the songwriterly, melody-first strand of Nigerian music he belongs to: Adekunle Gold, Simi, Johnny Drille and Asa. Asa in particular is one of the finest songwriters the country has produced.

Why it sounds different: the arrangements start from acoustic guitar rather than from a drum pattern, which is close to heresy in a scene built on rhythm. It makes the records travel less well in a club and considerably better in a room, and it is the reason his catalogue functions as occasion music across West Africa rather than as chart music.

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