Tiwa Savage, Nigerian Afrobeats vocalist, has come through with ’49-99′, her much anticipated single.
’44-99′, released on Thursday, portrays Tiwa as an entrepreneur engrossed in a vibrant pursuit of wealth and quality living in a manner that transforms her into a person of lofty values among great men.
The song sees her speak against the common practice of bringing up one’s past successes as an excuse for inaction with regards to current financial woes.
At the beginning of the video, she appears in a dimly lit club dressed in a glamorous outfit befitting of a boss and comes to be flanked by heavily built men.
Shortly after, she takes the lead amid a deluge of professionally dressed female tailors whose deftness come to be portrayed through the synchrony of their movements.
’44-99′ is directed by Meji Alabi.
Watch below:
During the single’s listening party, which held on Wednesday in the United Kingdom, Tiwa had said ’44-99′ is titled on the basis of the country’s socio-economic norms.
She added that it was inspired by a phone conversation with Olamide, Nigerian rapper.
“It’s a phrase that was coined by the godfather of Afrobeats, Fela Kuti. It means, ‘49 sitting, 99 standing.’ Errm, suffering and smiling. For those who are not Nigerian, we have these transit buses which we call a ‘molue’ and it has 49 sits,” she said.
“So, instead of it to have 49 people to commute to work and back, you have 49 people sitting and double that standing, hanging. That’s just a reflection of the economy and the imbalance with the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer. So the song, even when you first listen to it, it’s a great record.
“But I wanted something; I wanted my first global single to have a message that we are suffering and smiling and music is a powerful tool. And I wanted a title which could be a conversation starter like 49 people sitting and 99 people standing… like we’re suffering and smiling.”
Tiwa’s career strides over the years, including her feature on Beyonce’s much-acclaimed 2019 album ‘Lion King’, have earned her numerous awards and accolades.
In May, she left exited Don Jazzy’s Mavin Records and signed a new deal with Universal Music Group (UMG), an American music company that boasts of artistes like Rihanna, Taylor Swift, and Lady Gaga.
She recently pulled out of the lineup for the 2019 DSTV Delicious International Food and Music Festival as a gesture of solidarity for the outcry against xenophobic attacks on Nigerians living in South Africa.
DOWNLOAD: ‘49-99’ by Tiwa Savage
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