When it comes to conversations about rap in Nigeria, the name Vector will always be mentioned, because the self-acclaimed King Kong always drops his tracks with such fierceness and ingenuity that you cannot help but applaud and admire.
If you’re a keen follower and listener of Vector’s music, you’ll understand that there has been a growth in the last one to two years from what he used to be, to what he is now. His rap now has a more matured tone to it. His lyrics are now tilted in a sense towards the philosophy of what surround him. His bars and punchlines are now aimed at searching and dissecting, than to just make you fawn over them, and snap your fingers together. His last project, V.I.B.E.S Before T.E.S.L.I.M is all the proof you need.
So, when  on May 22, 2020, Vector released a collaborative EP with his friend and long-term producer and friend, Masterkraft, we knew we were in for something surreal.
In a nutshell, Crossroads EP finally shows how Vector is now more of an adult artiste, a matured one, who understands his place in the industry and is claiming it. Just like MI did in his last project, bring adult contemporary rap to play, Vector understands that he is not a new school rapper, but a legend in the industry, and this project shows it.
He carefully picks his words, selects his bars and punchlines to align with the image of himself he has in mind. He is slowly telling us with this project, as he did in his last one, that he is not a newbie in the industry and he comprehends the position.
In Crossroads EP, Vector does not seem to be making music for everybody. It is as though he is taking an introspection of himself and singing about the things that are of unequivocal importance to him. He is gradually pulling away from the crowd of rappers, who make music because they want to go mainstream or “blow”. His music these days come across like a “been there, don’t that” shoe and it is commendable.
The 5-track EP opens with ‘No Peace’ where Vector talks about society, the lack and need for peace. Vector’s voice as he sings on this track will guide you beautifully through the moment it lasts. It has that drive that would make you want to take an inward look at yourself, especially when he says”You own the peace, but there’s no peace.”
If We Must, begins with a choral melody that you’ll appreciate, and when Vector starts talking like a philosophizing Spoken Words artist, you’ll be moved to listen closer. Vector talks about truth, money, life before coronavirus, and the aftermath.
No worries is an Afrobeats rap, and as you know Mastaa never disappoints with his instrumentals. Vector’s romance with the Yoruba language is quite seductive. The song will make you want to move your body. In Vector’s previous project, some of the tracks like the one with Slimcase, have the same vibe with this track.
Read more:Â Music Review: Wurld’s AfroSoul EP Is A Beautiful Work Of Experimentation
The next track, Eyan Colgate which has DJ Neptune continues the Afrobeats vibe. It has quite an interesting feel.
The last track on the EP is titled Blessed. It is simply Vector being thankful for all he has gotten in life, despite the challenges and hindrances he has faced. He raps about how those he called friends were really not friends. As he raps “I’m blessed. Blessed oo. Babe God…,” it is in this writer’s opinion a beautiful way to end a project.
Conclusively, for listeners and music enthusiasts like this writer who pick lyrics and melody over every yardstick to measure good music, this project is an intellectual one. There is so little, so much and artiste can do on a 5-track EP and Vector does what he has been known to gracefully.
The EP is a matured stamp from a man fast realizing his place in the industry, and understanding the position that puts him. It is an EP I’ll listen to again when the birds come home to roost.
I rate it a 7/10.
Photo Credit: Instagram
