Nigerian artist L.A.X has a vision that transcends borders

Published Jan 29, 2021

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Johannesburg - Nigerian independent artist L.A.X has a vision for his music that goes far beyond the borders of his country.

He recently released a music video for his single Go Low that sees him fuse amapiano with Afrobeats.

“When I was creating Go Low, I wanted to use Afrobeats and amapiano together and I wanted it to sound beautiful. My producer on the beat, Clemzy, focused on making it sweet and interesting for people to listen to.”

Go Low is the second single off the album Zaza Vibes.

“I want to tell memorable stories, Go Low is fun, catchy and we had a great time shooting the video. We got Perliks Defination to direct it and I’m proud of what we’ve produced.

“It’s a great time to be African, being able to fuse various influences to create a new African sound.”

Born Damilola Afolabi, L.A.X released Zaza Vibes, a full body of work for the first time as an independent artist under his label Rasaki Music in partnership with Empire, a top independent label, distributor and publisher.

“Being an independent artist has been an amazing journey and I have learnt a lot along the way and it has allowed me to express myself better.”

L.A.X’s journey into music came after he had to take some friends to the studio. He liked what he saw, watching them enjoy creating music.

“I think music chose me. I stuck around the studio and one day I tried creating some music myself and it sounded great. I started going with my friends to the studio and since then, back in 2009, I have been going back.”

His album stands out for him because it is intentional.

“From the first to the last track, everything we did was intentional. I used sweet sounds to tell the stories, the instruments used – guitar, saxophone, trumpet – made the album sound even more musical. I made sure that every song was about women, because I wanted to show respect to women and make the world know that women are as important as men, and most times even more important.”

He named the album Zaza Vibes because that is his alter ego. When people see him they see someone with “zaza”, which means an energetic, loveable person, and so he made the album around that impression.

While he is still pushing his music, he would love to collaborate with other artists, including Focalistic, who has taken over the amapiano scene with his innovative sound.

L.A.X describes himself as a peaceful person who always keeps his cool, no matter the situation.

“I preach peace, love and integrity with everything I do.”

His moniker stands for someone who wants to live and excel in life and L.A.X is doing just that.

The Star

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