5th Dimension: Is Stonebwoy ‘underselling’ Ghana’s future sound?

Released on a major label and boasting an Angélique Kidjo feature, Stonebwoy’s latest album 5th Dimension

(link is external) – a saporous 17-tracker rooted in his signature Afro-dancehall style but also up to speed with today’s mainstream flavours – may well be his closest bid for direct Grammy nomination, which he has actively hunted for some time.

Stonebwoy.

This goal aside, or owing to its pursuit, the singer has consistently shouldered the weight of producing some of Ghana’s biggest albums. Traditionally, his method has involved conjuring up watertight hooks, scoring eminent collaborations, and submitting to rigorous promo runs around a project’s release.

This approach, a working code, defines the new LP, which immediately refocuses the spotlight on the artist as a central figure in music discussions from these parts.

By and large, 5th Dimension, Stonewboy’s first studio collection in three years after 2020’s Anloga Junction, profits from prolific production, particularly in the submission of stoic, solid rhythms, and a commanding curiosity for modish melody.

Somehow, because it leans too heavily toward pop and pop-related talking points, it may be underselling Ghana’s musical future, even if Stonebwoy is the country’s leading astrologer. If a Stonebwoy album barely reflects the country’s broad interests and extensive talent base, suggesting only a narrow palette of subjects and sonic takes, it is a missed opportunity to push the frontiers of Ghanaian pop. If what exists within the fifth dimension comprises mainly love and party anthems, one wonders how it differs from all the other realms beneath.

Judging by how long the project plays, and the general paucity in thematic range, one can’t help but wonder if this is strictly a collection of singles or that no specific insight actuated the project’s conception, offering legs to the hypothesis that as a practising musician, Stonebwoy is routinely forced to drop an album every few years, and that 5th Dimension is merely the artist’s latest submission to appease his brand.

Of course, Stonebwoy wins the numbers argument, with all major streaming services reporting record breaking, first-day streams. But, perhaps, carving out a slender 10- or 12-track opus from the bunch would have enriched it with extra clinical gleam.

The potential is there – if you listen long enough. There are moments when you spot the harvesting of mellifluous magic, starting with the heartfelt desire on ‘Life & Money’ featuring British-Ghanaian rapper Stormzy.

There is the subtle charm on ‘Non Stop’, the riveting social observation of ‘African System’, the thumping resonance of ‘My Sound’, the amapiano-powered ‘Apotheke’, and the ancestral conscientiousness on the Kidjo-assisted ‘Manodzi’, arguably the album’s main highlight, and concluding statement.

He who comes to Kidjo, possessor of a golden African voice and among the continent’s most accomplished artists, must bear worthwhile gifts. In 2019, on the Grammy-nominated African Giant album, Burna Boy offered an innovative marriage of folk and danceh Drall. On his recently released offering Timeless, Davido presents indigenous percussive configurations that capture a sort of neo-highlife.

‘Manodzi’, which celebrates internal drive, promptly occupies the first rank of Angélique Kidjo collaborations with new-gen Afropop voices. Part of Stonebwoy’s advantage on this track is that he speaks Ewe, like the song’s other star. He exploits this benefit judiciously, resulting in the telling majesty of their exchange. If for nothing at all, it also puts to rest the notion that young Ghanaian consumers don’t appreciate music unless it addresses vain subjects.