The Endearing Thing About Fireboy’s Laughter, Tears, And Goosebumps
I remember months ago, when I first heard the song, Jealous, even before learning the actual lyrics, and it immediately struck me that this was a new artiste who sings in a way that captures the heart. But then in the music industry, it’s often proven to be a hurried decision to take first convictions so seriously. However, months later, the release of Fireboy DML’s Album, Laughter, Tears and Goosebumps is a testament that his imminent display of talent in his initial single is not just a flash in the pan.
The album, Laughter, Tears and Goosebumps by Fireboy DML was the rave of the moment on Twitter for weeks and is still being very much talked about. It is being pitched by most people talking about it as a beautiful album, a remarkable debut, and by some people as surprisingly good for a debut and solo album. And the thing with hype is that often, they raise the bar so high that the audience who have been pointed the way of the music by the hype are often disappointed. But I think that Laughter, Tears and Goosebumps really does live up to the hype, at least, to a reasonable extent. If for nothing, for the fact that for every single song on that album, there was no shortage of the delivery of the trinity of Melody, Lyrical depth and the perfect instrumental tempo. Every song parades a certain perfection in the measurement of the instrumentals against the lyrics.
When Fireboy sings about love he does so in a way that is heart-rendering and not materialistic; the lyrics are a soulfully worded Prose delivered in a way that often left me sinking into the music. This is particularly the case with the songs
· Need You, which I love for its uniqueness as a love song that draws on actual emotions of love and not the stereotypical lust ramblings on ass, boobs, and money. In this song, Fireboy brings love home like a love poet would do by exploring love and its emotions. Another favourite of mine is
· Jealous because of the beauty of its perspective and for introducing me to Fireboy’s genius.
· I also love the song, Feel, because it just has an intimate vibe with which I find it easy to connect and relate. Not to detract from the other songs, but these songs for me took me to climax, thanks to the producer, Pheelz, who has done a very pleasing production job here, as he did with Adekunle Gold some years back. A number of my friends swear by Like I Do, but then, it’s a song on a topic that I’ve heard a lot. Although this is not to take anything away from the uniqueness of the track.
It could be said that the highlight of Fireboy’s singing is his gift for beautiful choruses and, then, the excellent hooks. The album is partly an embodiment of what the Nigerian musical space has been starved of for some time now; popular songs that beyond the noise and jam are actually saying something worthwhile. I have heard songs from the same genre in which Fireboy sings that I thought were beautiful, but my opinion of the music deflated when I tried to study the lyrics. It’s a good thing to see this vacuum filled by a lovely singer like Fireboy who possess the lyrical skill to sing about love, emotions, partying, beyond the cliché topics of money, cars, and a woman’s body. As a love poet, I think I might not be overdoing it if I point out that the singer has the mind of a love poet too, mirrored in his ability to sing purely about love and not lust in a genre that has all the temptations.
Is the album Laughter, Tears and Goosebumps an Afro life classic? That depends on what your definition of a classic is. For me, there are very few Nigerian artists who have given us classic albums in the last 15 years. I will write about these albums some other time. Laughter, Tears and Goosebumps resembles them in so many ways; in the music, the melody, the production, the delivery, but it lacks philosophical depth. The topic range is a little bit narrow. It’s an album of love and partying, which by the way, is what many young people are most interested in. And for Fireboy at 23, it is understandable. This album will give him the fame, attention, and exposure he needs. As time goes on,he might get the needed mien to sing songs that touch on deeper aspects of the human endeavor and give us a classic album that is a product of a deeper perspective of his Laughter, Tears and Goosebumps, which would make us pause and think.
But for now, I think Fireboy DML deserves to be celebrated for this beautiful album, which inspires an awesome feeling of love.
