Nigerian Rapper Cruel Santino Previews New Collab With Koffee — Listen Here

Nigerian multi-hyphenate rapper, singer, visual artist Cruel Santino has not-so-subtly hinted at an upcoming collaboration with Grammy Award-winning Jamaican artist Koffee. The track will likely be featured on Santino’s upcoming major label sophomore project.

The single was introduced by Santino during a recent Instagram Live in which he was previewing unreleased new music. The familiar cadence of Koffee could be heard near the end of a one-minute and fourteen-second clip of a yet-to-be-released track.

The infectious snippet whetted the appetites of fans of both artists, whom were eager to hear the full recording. The unnamed track showcased distinct Reggae, Dancehall and Hip-Hop influences.

Cruel Santino is largely recognized as one of the African continent’s rising stars, with a nouveau musical style that is easily distinguishable from many of his peers. One noteworthy feature of the rapper’s music is that he merges pigin and patois with English into his own unique hybrid sound that falls within a genre called Nigerian alté. The alté (which stands for alternative) genre borrows elements of several musical forms including Dancehall, Rap, R&B, Hip-hop and Afropop.

The Nigerian artist is currently signed to major label Interscope, which is also parent to his Monster Boy imprint. He is now gearing up for the release of the follow-up to his 2019 Mandy & the Jungle studio debut that was released with a comic of the same name. The Dubai-educated singer is multifaceted and is also a visual artist who immerses himself into the art of film-making, a skill that has led to him developing story arcs for as well as directing his own videos.

Meanwhile, Koffee’s most recent collaborations are the Pressure (remix) with Buju Banton and a feature on Protoje’s Switch It Up.

The young Jamaican Columbia Records-signed artist, much like her African counterpart, has been exploring non-musical pursuits. She has managed to secure ambassadorships with Malta, Mastercard, H&M, and yesterday with American fashion house Calvin Klein.