Blaqbonez navigates his 'Super Saiyan era' on No Excuses

It opens with the clang of ambition. On 'Everlasting Taker', Blaqbonez strides into frame like a king returning to a throne he never vacated. The camera holds him as if he’s already won, an undeniable light reflecting off Lagos to London ambition. The red carpet of fashion, the runway of style, those moments at Vivienne Westwood and other houses are not asides. They are part of the shot. Here, the rapper is no longer simply present; he’s positioned. The video for the opener, self directed and early to one million views, frames him not as an artist waiting to be defined, but as one already defining.

Listening through the new album feels like walking into a packed London venue. The lights dim, the bass clicks on, and you’re aware of the murmur that stops when the first bar hits. He features heavyweights, AJ Tracey, Pa Salieu, Olamide, Bella Shmurda, but the project never becomes a host list. It stays his. Across 17 tracks, the cadence is confident; his seat has been reserved long enough that no track pleads for attention.

Take 'Consistency' with AJ Tracey. Under the sleek production of Telz and Kofo Sound, Blaqbonez moves with ease. He’s less showing off and more reminding you that the work is done. AJ’s London groove sits beside his Lagos torque, not a clash, a handshake. It’s the first tone setter for the record. He drops the mic at the start; the room knows he’s speaking.

And then there’s 'Aura 4 Aura' with Pa Salieu, dark, experimental, swirling. The production, credited to AOD, leans brooding, circuit board synths buzzing like incomplete code. You sense drill’s grit, alté’s wanderlust, Afrobeats’ bounce, but none dictate. The mix says we belong to all of this and yet to none of it. Blaqbonez stands at the doorway of genre, ushering it in on his terms.

This album is a curated labyrinth of maps. 'Nati' with Olamide will have Nigerian streets nodding. 'Bizzy Body' with Valiant, The Kazez, and Major AJ will hit dance floors, his engine still revs. Woven between are edges of vulnerability and industry honed strategy. Because here’s a man who studied Computer Engineering in Lagos, began as a battle rapper, declared himself BRIA, Best Rapper in Africa, and now, amid the runways and awards and lists, still feels the scrape of ambition.

He opens the record with 'Everlasting Taker' because he doesn’t just want to win; he wants to endure. He wants lapsed mythologies of Nigerian rap, the grind, the files, the under docs, to say, here’s someone who did it on his terms. And the album’s title says it plainly, there will be No Excuses.

Stand outs

• 'Everlasting Taker' - swagger, cameo cinematography, assertion rather than argument.

• 'Consistency' - UK link, slick interplay, where Lagos and London talk to each other.

• 'Aura 4 Aura' - darkness, experimentalism, crossing the frontier into art rap territory.

• 'Mary Mary' with Leostaytrill - UK and Nigeria handshake, rising talent, international orbit.

• The full feature list, from Bella Shmurda to Zinoleesky to The Kazez, tells you he isn’t hoarding options; he’s deploying them.

Production depth

With heavy hitters like Jae5, Magicsticks, Blaisebeatz, and Black Culture behind the boards, Blaqbonez moves through a sonic universe that’s high definition. The album switches textures so you’re in club mode one moment, introspective the next. It never lags. The message I pick, you can be versatile and still coherent.

What’s at stake

Four albums in. Many debutes fade. Some plateau. Blaqbonez is amplifying. Emeka Must Shine won a Headies Award for Best Rap Album. The new one isn’t comfortable with resting; it’s restless. When the album launches today, Friday 17 Oct 2025, it isn’t simply a drop. It’s an appointment. It demands you show up.

Where this sits culturally

African hip hop is no longer the footnote in a global rap geography. It’s a continent asserting growth, complexity, and conversation. Blaqbonez is among a new cadre doing more than purpose driven singles. He’s building catalogs. Shaping stylistic dialogues. Integrating music and fashion and identity without apology. That runway moment mattered. Not because it was flashy, but because it underscored intention.

Closing reflection

When I listen to No Excuses, I hear a man who has measured past wins and losses, peer corridors and fan forums, and determined, I’ll not apologise. I’ll exert myself. I’ll experiment. I’ll engage. There may be no excuses but there’s nuance, there’s craft, there’s hunger.

In the end, the album feels like a frame where Blaqbonez stands, fully seen. No cloak. No back up mask. Just the man and his myriad voices, Lagos youth, Lagos engineer, Lagos rebel, global aspirant. For brands, for labels, for culture watchers, what he offers is more than music. It’s a presence.