Rela is a few steps from finding his sound

The Nigerian Afropop soundscape is a circular affair such that the creative underground feeds the mainstream which in turn, popularises the sound, and hands it back to the crop of emerging artists aiming to climb the ladder to stardom.

Rising sensation Rela is one of the artists at the fringes of the industry from where he longingly stares at the mainstream where he aims to someday operate.

His intention to craft records that move the mass market is reflected in his new single 'Let Them Know' on which he deploys easy melodies and familiar Afropop production.

Like other emerging stars influenced by different generations of era-defining superstars, Rela takes from the mainstream, adds his touch, and offers it to listeners.

In typical Afropop fashion, he sings about love but rather than coin poetry with flowery rhyme schemes, he draws loose references to tech billionaires and popular social media platforms as he offers a love that comes with a good time while still managing to find space to gloat at his haters.

Rela's lyricism is typical of Afrobeats paperweight writing, his blend of Yoruba, Pidgin, and English is original to the Nigerian soundscape, and his Afropop melodies are synonymous with the soundscape.

These elements combine to make the song easily digestible and even enjoyable.

However, while Rela took from the mainstream to create a record that doesn't demand much from listeners, he struggled to add sufficient originality.

A major drawback is his speech-like delivery which is unmissably similar to the style of street hop serial hitmaker Naira Marley.

Overall, while 'Let Them Know' reflects Rela's mainstream ambitions, he's still a few steps from finding his sound.