Adekunle Gold - Sade

What this video is

Released at the inflection point of the modern Nigerian Afrobeats global expansion, 'Sade' represents a counter-current to the dominant hard-edged street rap style prevalent in Lagos circa 2014–2015. As a highlife cover of One Direction's 'Story of My Life' with Yoruba and Nigerian Pidgin lyrics, it demonstrated that emotionally vulnerable, folk-inflected songwriting could break through in a market rewarding…

Why it matters

A landmark document of the Highlife Revival within Nigeria's Afro-fusion movement, 'Sade' established a commercially viable lane for soulful, narrative-driven Afropop counter to the dominant trap-influenced sound. Its success helped legitimize the singer-songwriter archetype within the YBNL /…

The director

Adasa Rawlinson Cookeygam (b. October 21, 1981, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria) is a Nigerian music video director, cinematographer, commercial director, colourist, and filmmaker. He holds a B.Tech in Architecture from Rivers State University of…