Tiwa Savage, Omah Lay, Davido and More On New Music Friday

New Music Friday is doing a little bit of everything this week. Tiwa Savage is reminding us that hard life is not part of the baddie package, Omah Lay is having another moment of introspection, and Davido has found himself in the company of gospel royalty.

Kashcoming and Mavo are in a spending mood, while Skales wants everybody to get their legs involved. We have confidence anthems, a proper gospel-Afrobeats crossover, some luxury talk and a dance record that is very interested in your lower body.

Which ones are worth keeping on repeat? Let’s get into it.

Tiwa Savage – “African Baddie”

Tiwa Savage has never been particularly interested in asking permission to feel herself, and “African Baddie” is another reminder. The timing is almost too perfect. After an online critic questioned whether she was too old to call herself an African baddie, Tiwa responded with the sort of confidence that makes you wonder why anybody thought that was a conversation worth starting in the first place. She is 46, fine, paid and apparently has a new song to drop. Case closed.

Produced by Willis, “African Baddie” is an upbeat Afrobeats record built around lively percussion, playful vocal repetitions and a hook that feels designed to get people moving. The production is bright and energetic, with enough rhythmic bounce to keep the song in party territory. It does not ask Tiwa to do too much vocally; instead, the arrangement gives her room to play with her delivery and let her personality carry the record.

There is also something satisfying about Tiwa making a song that celebrates the pleasures of being a successful woman without softening the message to make it more palatable. She is allowed to like expensive things. She is allowed to have standards. She is allowed to be the baddie at 46, 56 or 76. The world will survive.

Kirk Franklin & Davido – “Hope In You”

Now, this is an interesting pairing. Kirk Franklin, one of contemporary gospel music’s most recognisable figures, and Davido, a man whose catalogue has spent years providing the soundtrack to parties, weddings and questionable late-night decisions, have joined forces on “Hope In You.” It is the third track on Franklin’s I Am What I Am album, released on October 30.

The song opens with a confession. The narrator admits to struggling with his own choices, feeling confused, falling short and wondering whether God can still hear him when he prays. It is an honest starting point, particularly because the lyrics do not present faith as a life without difficulty. There is guilt, frustration and the feeling of carrying things alone. The central plea is simple: see us, free us, love us, and do not judge us.

Davido’s contribution gives the song a distinctly Nigerian flavour. His verse moves between English and Pidgin, with Yoruba expressions and familiar references to prayer, blessings and the hope that one’s people will prosper. His delivery is recognisable, but he adjusts himself to the song’s spiritual direction rather than trying to turn it into another Afrobeats feature.

The production is where the collaboration becomes particularly interesting. Rather than forcing the song into a conventional Afrobeats arrangement, it sits in a gospel-pop space, with a steady, restrained groove, clean guitar work and choir-led textures supporting the message. The instrumental gives the vocals room to carry the emotion, and the repeated “hope is in You” refrain feels designed for a congregation to pick up quickly.

This is one for the reflective moments, the long drives and the days when you need a little reassurance that things can still work out. A rather unexpected collaboration, but a welcome one.

Omah Lay ft. Gunna – “Back To Lagos”

Omah Lay has money, designer clothes, hotel suites and a thousand acres, yet somehow, he is still thinking about Lagos. If that sounds familiar, it is because the singer has always had a complicated relationship with success, and “Back To Lagos” finds him sitting right in the middle of that tension.

The track arrives as part of Clarity of Mind (Extended), the expanded edition of Omah Lay’s sophomore album. The October 30 release adds four songs to the original 12-track project, including this collaboration with American rapper Gunna. It is a meeting of two artists who have built very different careers but understand the language of luxury, ambition and the work it takes to get there.

Omah Lay’s opening verse is full of expensive references: baguettes, designer fashion, drinks and hotel life. But there is a strange restlessness underneath all the flexing. He has the things that suggest he has made it, yet he is already talking about going back to Lagos. Even a thousand acres feel too close to the neighbours. At this point, what exactly does a man need to feel comfortable? An entire country?

Gunna enters with a verse that leans further into the luxury side of things. He talks about the discipline behind his success, the work he puts into himself and the designer goods he can now afford. His delivery is smooth and measured, sitting comfortably against the instrumental rather than competing with it.

Production-wise, the track is one of the more atmospheric releases in this selection. Larance Dopson and Louie Rubio handle the production, building the song around ominous bass, atmospheric guitar and haunting choral textures. The instrumental does not rush. It gives both artists space, allowing the song to feel more like a late-night conversation with yourself than a conventional boast-heavy collaboration.

“Back To Lagos” is a good addition to the extended album because it expands the project’s conversation about success and identity without abandoning Omah Lay’s introspective sound. It is moody, understated and a little restless.

Kashcoming ft. Mavo – “Spend Spend”

Kashcoming and Mavo are not here to discuss saving plans, emergency funds or whether that designer bag is a sensible purchase. The title is “Spend Spend,” and the assignment is clear.

The collaboration brings together Kashcoming’s street-facing approach and Mavo’s less raspy style. The production sits between Afrobeats and modern trap, with a polished, mid-tempo feel that gives both artists room to settle into the groove. It is not an especially adventurous instrumental, but it does what it needs to do: keep the record moving without distracting from the performances.

Mavo has a recognisable way of leaning into melodic phrasing and a relaxed delivery that makes the song feel easy to consume. That is both the strength and the limitation of “Spend Spend.” His contribution helps the track sound polished, but it also means the collaboration stays within a musical lane we have heard him explore before.

Kashcoming and Mavo work comfortably together, and the song’s money-and-enjoyment theme gives them an obvious meeting point. There is no complicated story to unpack here. This is music for enjoying the rewards of a good run, showing off a little and not thinking too hard about the bill.

Skales – “Leg In Leg Out (LILO)”

Skales has decided that sitting still is no longer an option. “Leg In Leg Out (LILO)” is built around dance instructions, rhythmic repetition and the familiar Nigerian party instinct that says if the DJ gives you a beat, you must find something to do with it.

The song draws directly from street-dance culture, using a simple movement-based hook to give listeners something they can follow. Its rhythmic percussion provides the foundation, while the repeated instructions to move one leg in and the other out make the record’s purpose obvious. There is no mystery here. Skales wants you dancing.

The idea is not a bad one. Nigerian music has a long relationship with dance records, from songs that introduce new steps to those that simply give people an excuse to show off what they already know. A good dance record does not always need complicated lyrics or an elaborate story. Sometimes, all it needs is a beat that catches the body before the brain has time to object.

The challenge with “LILO” is that the concept feels stronger than the song itself. The rhythmic foundation does its job, but the repeated dance instructions begin to carry more of the record than the melody or songwriting. It feels like an attempt to create a dance moment rather than a fully developed song, and that becomes noticeable as it progresses.

So… did this New Music Friday deliver?

This week’s lineup has range, even if the records do not all land with the same force. Tiwa Savage gives us a confident, feel-good baddie anthem, Kirk Franklin and Davido make an unexpectedly convincing case for faith and hope, while Omah Lay and Gunna explore the complicated relationship between success and home.

Enjoy the music, spend within your means, and please do not attempt any new dance steps in public without warming up first.

‘African Baddie’ and ‘Back To Lagos’ make the strongest impressions, while ‘Hope In You’ is the collaboration we didn’t know we needed.

Queue them up, turn it up, and let the weekend begin: