Coming in hot from the cold streets of Toronto, the Afro-Swing Artist and Singer/Songwriter Bouff releases a stimulating single with the wittiest of bars, titled "Callin'."
Fueling his music through the inspiration of his Nigerian roots, Bouff's modern and exciting take on Afrobeat music is truly setting him apart from the competition through his catchy melodies, raw emotion, and confident lyrical creations.
You may recognize Bouff through his viral freestyle over the infamous "Tony Montana" instrumental, landing him a co-sign with Afro-Swing pioneer Mr. Eazi.
Through his latest single, "Callin'," listeners are able to entirely lose themselves amid the warm Afrobeat fusions that Bouff offers. While coming through with witty, confident, and conceptual bars, we truly love the sophistication and professionalism that Bouff delivers within this track, as he's familiarized himself with Afro fusions that make it look all too easy.
Listening to "Callin'," the song begins with warm R&B-style production through fading keys, a beautiful shamisen appearance, and a haunting ghost vocal. That being said, we can hear the fresh Afro-Swing/Afrobeat atmosphere touch down as the bright percussion kicks in, taking us to the warm lands of Bouff's roots. As Bouff beings singing, he stops us in our tracks and leaves us in awe of his brilliant vocal melodies and rhythmic delivery.
While moving from singing to rapping, Bouff tells a lyrical story of independence and working his way up to the top solo (with the exception of his tight circle). He puts a smile on our faces with confident and witty bars like, "-I'm lit in real life, you famous on Tiktok."
Reaching the end of the track, Bouff has outdone himself with the incredible vibes he's delivered within the single, "Callin'," and we're excited to see what the future has in store for the Toronto artist.
Hello Bouff, and welcome to BuzzMusic. What inspired you to create such a confident and witty single with "Callin'?" What did you want to get across with your bars and lyrics?
My everyday life inspired me, things I had witnessed and live through that I wanted to talk about and put out there in the form of music. I always love a groovy melodic beat so once I heard it from the producer, I knew exactly what I wanted to do with it! I wanted to show people how versatile I am with my flows, hooks, and beats as well. I left a few bars in there too you get me, but nothing too complicated. I usually like to give my supporters and audience a groovy and easy catchy line to remember innit. I try to make a lot of my bars sound like something I would write as a caption and that helps with making proper punchlines you get me!
We absolutely love the warm sonic journey you've provided with "Callin'." Did you produce the song yourself, or did you reach out to any fellow creators to help your sonic creative process?
The song was produced by Jaemally who is based in Australia! I reached out to him earlier to work together not too long ago, but came across the beat and really loved it immediately. To be honest, at first, I never thought I would put it out because the first version still had some work to do however with the help of my friend CJ, who was with me all throughout summer we were able to come up with a proper structure and foundation for the beat!
There's a certain shamisen sample within your single "Callin'." Why did you want to expand the sonics and add this beautiful traditional Japanese instrument?
The instrument you hear is actually the west African banjo! Very similar to the shamisen but slightly different as well. The banjo was first made initially in West Africa (where I am from). Nigeria in particular as studies would have it and I wanted to capitalize off this instrument because it is often overlooked and is a part of my culture and heritage. I am a Nigerian born, Yoruba and Edo to be precise, I want to bring afrobeats to the world. The way I look at it is, music is a very simple yet complex build. I call it simplex because it is very simple yet has many components to it that make this one big piece. That being said, the beat would not have been complete without this one little yet mighty instrument added to it. End of the day, it's all about the little things and I would say that for a fact, this one little thing was the icing on the cake for me! It brought this beat to life in my opinion and shout out to the producer as well.
Coming from a city as musically diverse as Toronto, how does your music stick out from the city's other talented creators? I am an afro-fusion artist. I choose that genre to describe my music because it is afro rooted but has many components to it. The city has a lot of Canadian hip-hop, trap, and gangster rap going on. However, I chose a different path with my music because I feel like it needs light to be shed on it. We have The Weeknd who represents east Africans, Tory Lanez who represents the Caribbean people, A lot of Somali rappers but we need someone who puts on for The West African people. I want to be one of the first people and greatest pioneers of the Toronto afrobeat scene. People will know that Bouff brought the new-modern age afrobeat to a mainstream level in the city and did it in his own unique way. I don't want to be classified as a Toronto rapper, I want to be an artist. A truly versatile artist with multi-genre capabilities who stays true to his roots. What goals do you have with your music going into 2021? 2020 was really all about testing the waters. With a lot that happened, it was hard on a lot of artists especially from a managing point of view. I have been able to reflect on past decisions musically, and look at what I did wrong and come up with a new plan going forward. 2021 is all about solidifying the structure and foundation which I am currently building. The end goal is to go all the way with this, so I want to be more consistent by releasing more music, more visuals, more behind the scenes for all my supporters to see what I am truly like behind the cameras and lights. I plan on being more strategic with what I put out.. its bangers only, versatile work and my production will be alot better. I have started vocal lessons, made links with certain engineers who can mix my songs properly to the exact way I would want it to sound, and moving forward I am coming for everything I have worked for and deserve.
