Tāmaki Makaurau (Auckland) based AfroSoul artist Ch! Nonso is set to release his debut EP ‘Kola Nuts & Chardonnay’ on Friday, 31 March. The seven-track conceptual project seamlessly pulls together different sounds, music traditions and cultures, reflecting the symbolism of kola nuts and chardonnay as the meeting of diverse musical and cultural influences.
Traditionally, kola nuts are a symbol of hospitality and are the first thing offered to guests as a sign of welcome in Igbo culture. Paired with Chardonnay, Ch! Nonso welcomes listeners to sit in on an intimate conversation about straddling different cultures and the impact that has on the individual and nation’s identity.
The offering of kola nuts and chardonnay begins with ‘How Many Times’, a track peppered with a hand drum by Mavs Adegbite, a local drummer of Nigerian descent, and rifts of a Ghanaian Highlife style guitar, played by USA based Theophilus Akai.
From ‘How Many Times’ we journey into ‘Site Ta’, a declaration of the urgency to reclaim and embody all of who you are, featuring saxophonist Thabani Gapara. The EP then transitions into ‘Forever O’Clock’, a love letter of sorts to the physical places we might call home and the people there. The theme of home echoes through into ‘Liar’, a glimpse into why people might leave home and flows into ‘Ka Home’, Ch! Nonso’s reflection on the fluidity of home.
The project concludes with ‘But Do They Know (Remix)’, a track that opens with a blessing of kola nuts by the artist’s uncle. Although the blessing of the kola nuts is usually at the start of the occasion, the blessing concludes the EP signifying what the artist says is a welcome to the beginning of the end.
Produced by Unchained XL ‘Kola Nuts & Chardonnay’ is Ch! Nonso’s debut release and a homecoming for the artist.
Born in Enugu, Nigeria, Ch! Nonso is an AfroSoul artist of Igbo descent residing in Tāmaki Makaurau, Aotearoa (Auckland, New Zealand). In releasing his first project as Ch! Nonso, the artist invites us to witness his homecoming and reclamation of the philosophies and stories his name embodies.
Drawing inspiration from sounds that have deep roots in African music traditions, Ch! Nonso’s first foray into music was as a church choir member and later as a member of a boyband in university. Previously he performed under the alias Nuel Nonso as lead vocalist for Ijebu Pleasure Club and has worked with Phodiso, Mazbou Q, New Telepathics and Sola Rosa.
Sonically, Ch! Nonso’s sound is influenced by traditional Igbo rhythms such as Amawbia and Mbaise sounds, Highlife, RnB, Afrobeat, Jazz, Soul and artists such as Femi Kuti, Destiny’s Child, Celestine Ukwu, Plantashun Boiz and Stevie Wonder.
His reflective lyricism provides commentary on straddling multiple cultural influences and making sense of the awkward space between the jarring union of traditional African and Indigenous cultures, colonial influences and Western culture.