Cheque, Nigeria’s sleeping giant, is on the verge of becoming Africa’s next megastar. Naturally, Cheque’s Afrobeats-tinged vocals are both infectious and instinctive, or as he states, “When I make music, I don’t premeditate, I don’t think about it — I like organic music, I hear the beat and I just go in.” At the core of his tonal palette, Cheque’s artistic panache favors the power of his rhythmic inclination: he can manipulate beats with tactical precision, at the drop of a dime.
“Coming up and starting from the bottom, that’s one of my biggest inspirations,” Cheque reveals to me over the phone in reference to what drives his creative stimuli. Most recently, Cheque’s breakout single “Zoom” received a fitting guest feature from Davido – who offered to hop on the song’s remix via Twitter – and Wale. The original version of the record garnered a New Artist Spotlight nod from Apple Music Nigeria and charted #2 on Nigeria’s all-genre charts (Apple Music and Audiomack). In a year that was blemished with disease and desolation, the Nigerian melodist managed to release a debut project that amplified his mellifluous vocals and trap-inspired rhetoric.
With Razor, a five-track blend of Afrobeat earworms and uptempo strains, Cheque’s artistic range is on full display: he creates without borders. Despite the acclaim and digital notoriety received for his debut project, the genre-bending troubadour is merely scratching the surface of his talent. “I don’t feel like people have really heard me yet,” Cheque admits.
A man who’s ready to assume his rightful position as Nigeria’s next all-genre force within music, Cheque is primed for greatness — and he’s just getting started.
How did you initially get introduced to music?
I started music when I was in university. I used to go to my friend’s house who was into music, and I got interested from there. He used to go on chat rooms where they had “rap battles” and I had a lot of free time when school wasn’t in session. It started as a challenge to me , because I’m used to being good at anything I get into. I found myself working on my writing skills and then my flow.
When you think of the word “home”, what’s the first thing that comes to mind?
When I think about home, my family comes to mind. Family is very important.
Would you rather be loved or respected?
Loved. Love is like the ultimate delight. If your people love you, they gon’ hold it down for you, they gon’ have your back all the time — but if they only respect you, they will turn on you eventually. Respect is good, but one day they will change on you. Both of them kind of go hand-in-hand.
Musically, how do you connect the dots – what inspires your creativity as an artist?
Definitely the way I was coming up. Coming up and starting from the bottom, that’s one of my biggest inspirations. When I make music, I don’t premeditate, I don’t think about it — I like organic music, I hear the beat and I just go in. I feel like I was made for this because I don’t have to keep thinking about what to say, it just flows.
Your music seems very in the moment – does your mood ever influence your creative flow?
Ahh yeah, 100% percent. It’s not even 99%, how I feel at that point is it. I don’t feel like people really heard me yet. Razor was more like a direct project for me. It doesn’t show too much. I just wanted to put something out there.
Talk to me about the title of your EP: does “Razor” carry a double meaning?
Because of the way I was coming up with music, I have to learn a lot, so growing up with music, I was always here and there. Afromusic, R&B, Hip-hop, I think I’ve even tried Rock before. So, when I wanted to drop this EP, I didn’t want it [the project] to have a face.
Was there any apprehension behind releasing your debut EP during a pandemic?
I planned to drop a project before the pandemic, so when the pandemic hit, the plan was already going. And when the pandemic hit, it slowed us down a bit: no one was really sure about what was going to happen. You know when something hits everybody first, it’s really surprising, no one knows what’s going on, and then people start getting used to it, people start adjusting to the new life.
In my country, here in Nigeria, it’s not as heavy as everywhere else. A lot of people are pretty much doing the things that they do normally. Some people don’t believe it’s a pandemic here, maybe 50% of the people don’t. So, pretty much here, people are living their normal lives.
What do you feel like is a common misconception about Nigerian culture?
Everything. There was a time that J.Cole came to Nigeria to perform. I think everyone is surprised when they come to Nigeria and see how civilized we are. There’s this perception that we are very low, very down, and that’s not it. When J.Cole came, he was very surprised that everyone knew his songs word-for-word. People have iPhone’s here, lights or whatever, but I feel like the nation here has become invisible: the world only shows the bad side of Nigeria. There are places here with lights 24/7, great roads and terrible roads, it’s as civilized as a lot of places.
Personally, what is your stance on the #EndSARS movement – is there a plausible solution to the problem?
I hope so. In Nigeria, I feel like the government doesn’t really care about the people. They do whatever they feel like needs to be done, that’s the problem that we have. I see the U.S president, he talks all the time, but the president here (Nigeria) talks only once throughout this entire thing. He came out and spoke once, and now nobody knows where he is. I think this is the first time I think people have really stood up to the government.
The kind of change that Nigeria needs, do you think it’s looming ahead in the near future?
A place where a Nigeria kids can have assurance of a good future and ground in a thriving environment.
Who does Superboy Cheque make music for?
I wanna make music for everyone, that’s number one. But I know that everyone is going through different phases, different problems, because people have different lives to live. I just wanna make music. I like the way that Drake does things. The people that I look up to in life, that’s what they’re doing, making music for everyone.
