Ghana’s J.DEROBIE shares the afro-dancehall anthem “Back It,” the lead single from his upcoming debut album, A King is Born.
OKAYAFRICA premiered the video for “Back It,” shot by Babs Direction at The Gym in the Osikan district of Accra, Ghana. The clip conjures Ghana’s rich boxing culture while positioning the rising J.DEROBIE as a leader amongst men, delivering lyrics from a podium in military regalia.
“Back It” is the latest dancehall banger from J.DEROBIE, who was discovered through afropop superstar Mr Eazi’s emPawa Africa, an initiative to mentor and develop emerging African artists. Selected to participate in the inaugural #emPawa100, which provided 100 African artists with the funds to film their first music video, J.DEROBIE had an instant hit with his contribution, “Poverty,” scoring a remix from Jamaican dancehall star Popcaan.
He was one of two artists, along with Joeboy, to advance to the final stage of the emPawa Africa program, receiving an additional investment of US$50,000 which he used to fund the recording of A King Is Born and launch his own record label, J.Derobie Music.
Though heavily ensconced in afrobeats as well — see his previous single “Odo Bra” — J.DEROBIE is known for his Ghanaian spin on dancehall. The Jamaican genre is hugely popular in Ghana, with locally-raised artists like Stonebwoy and Shatta Wale attaining icon status through their distinctly take on the sound. J.DEROBIE is the latest artist in that lineage, and “Back It” is his announcement that he is ready to take that mantle.
“Jamaican culture is so embraced in Ghana,” J.DEROBIE says. “We feel we are one, we are connected. We don’t see any difference between us.”
A King Is Born, which is slated to feature production from GuiltyBeatz (Ghana), Chopstix (Nigeria), Teflon Zincfence (Jamaica) and “Back It” producer Uche B, will be released later this year via emPawa Africa/J.Derobie Music.