Babatunmida (or, simply, Baba) Kuboye’s new album, Afroverse, is a headlong plunge into an eclectic musical world pulsing with rhythm and brimming with imagination.
Afroverse, out now, is the latest addition to the larger legacy of Kuboye’s family. His parents, Fran and Tunde, are renowned Afrojazz musicians who cofounded the landmark Jazz 38 club in Lagos, and his grand-uncle, Fela Kuti, is perhaps the world’s most widely recognized Afrobeat artist.
Additionally, Afroverse helps Kuboye further forge his own path, released via his Down 4 Whateva Entertainment, the first minority-owned, independent Afrobeat label in the United States.
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Kuboye’s first album in two years and his fifth studio album overall, following 2023’s Cultural Canvas, is remarkably fluid — the 12 tracks flow almost as one, continuous piece of music, each song spilling into the next without a break.
“I always want to work on new music,” Kuboye told KXT earlier this year. “My goal is to have music out on a very frequent interval, because it keeps the juices flowing. It keeps me being creative and in the world of performing. … I’m always bursting with ideas, and sometimes I get to pin them down on the road or going to a studio or working on my laptop to produce or working with band. There’s always stuff, and I want to get it out.”
That sense of restless creative momentum is evident in every single moment of Afroverse’s 39 minutes, as electric guitar percolates beneath Kuboye’s supple vocals on “Aiye” or the album-opening “Alive,” which, per press materials, “shifts mid-song from contemporary Afrobeat into traditional Afrobeat instrumentation, mirroring the layered evolution of the genre itself.”
“Alive” also features a chanted refrain — “Good vibes and energy” — which reflect Kuboye’s stated goals with his art.
“I think good vibes makes the world go around,” Kuboye told KXT earlier this year. “Music helps with that. Everybody’s always, usually, has some type of challenges, frustrations, things going on in their world. Music helps to navigate that. My music is always uplifting. It’s fun, it’s colorful, it’s bright — like the clothes I wear.”
Preston Jones is a North Texas freelance writer and regular contributor to KXT. Email him at [email protected] or find him on Bluesky (@prestonjones.bsky.social).Our work is made possible by our generous, music-loving members. If you like how we lift up local music, consider becoming a KXT sustaining member right here.
