Producer opens up on Asake’s new album, ‘M$NEY’
Asake’s producer Magicsticks has been one of Afrobeats’ most definitive producers since the turn of the decade. With his percussive-driven records, he’s offered a vibrant soundscape for the continent’s artists to coast over, and none other has translated his skills in such spectacular style as the Nigerian artist Asake.
M$NEY, the new album from Asake, is sufficient proof. An assured showcase between the longtime collaborators, Magicsticks produced eight out of its thirteen tracks. “[Asake] is someone who knows what he wants, and he’s intentional about that on this project,” Magicsticks tells OkayAfrica. “He didn’t really want to do too much; he just wanted to express himself, not with too many words, though. It’s a reflection of where the artist is at.”
Magicsticks allowed Asake to test his ideas, and the project’s curation was a shared responsibility among the creative team. The songs on M$NEY crystallized across several cities in the world — Lagos, Dubai, Miami — anywhere the roving impulse of composition met them. This meant that Magicsticks was often around the consistently touring Asake, insisting on a Nigerian sound even though they were in faraway cities.
When OkayAfrica first interviewed Magicsticks three years ago, he introduced himself to a mesmerized audience with Mr Money With The Vibe and Work of Art.
Back then, he recounted how “[he] started producing by remixing people’s stuff, trying to add more percussion to the music I downloaded off the internet. That is how I got the name, Magicsticks. It came from me being a drummer because the major thing in my production is the drums.”
Before the final touches are added to a song, Magicsticks explores other tonal possibilities, as is evident on M$NEY. “I start with drums when I’m at the studio by myself,” he explains, “but talking about the direction of a project, we can’t base that on a drum level, because a project is more than that. Some songs came before the instrumental came to life, so there are different directions to this thing.”
