Pulse List: Top 7 Nigerian album covers of 2018

Here is a collection of the seven top Nigerian album covers that best capture the imagination of the artistes in the year 2018.

The internet age has introduced the need for increased creativity, not just with the music, but the entire album roll-out and overall packaging.

We now find artists sharing their cover art and tracklist weeks or even months ahead of the album release just to create a heightened awareness of what is to come.

The album cover has usually been very important to the entire music process as it often helps to give a direction to the creator’s thought process.

While the content of the album gives sound, the album cover brings vision and in this digital driven generation, what is seen is as powerful as what you are about to hear.

From daring covers, strange artworks to simple message bearing images, we have picked through the lot and arrived at the seven best album covers released this year.

Here are the 7 best Nigerian album covers for 2018

Adekunle Gold - ''About 30''

 

Adekunle Gold’s sophomore project, ‘About 30’ arrived with a defining roll-out and one of the major things that stuck was the album’s art cover.

The album art has Adekunle Gold sitting on a horse and while it is quite plain, the vivid attention to details is striking. From his outfit to the crisp scenery, he succeeded in finding a balance between keeping it simple and creating art on the edge.

Photography was done by August Udoh.

Seun Kuti - ''Black Times''

 

Unarguably one of the best covers that the music industry delivered this year.

On his fourth album, ''Black Times,'' Seun Kuti remains as militant as ever, not just in his music but also in his facial expressions and the art cover fully represented everything he stands for.

M.I Abaga - ''Yung Denzel''

 

With this album, there was a different and matured theme to it. The album, Yung Denzel, touches on sensitive and deep layered conversations like depression and self-worth and it was essential that the art cover carried this message and mood.

Themed in an all-black image, the butterfly perching on his shoulder adds a light and elegant touch to it.

Skales - ''Mr Love''

 

With an album titled, ‘Mr Love’, Skales is able to depict an individually beautiful art where he poses with his mother, who in a typical setting is every child's first introduction to love in its purest form, and portrays it in a way that embodies the dream-pop sounds that flow through the tape.

Burna Boy - ''Outside''

 

Burna Boy is as peculiar with his music as he is with his art covers. The ever eccentric artist goes with an illustration of himself with two ladies sitting on his head while he is also flying in the clouds depicting his world, ‘Outside’ the present realm.

Odunsi (the engine) - ''rare.''

 

With Odunsi, there is a given expectation and on his debut album, ''rare.'', he is able to incorporate his uniqueness into everything around his music.

Odunsi is pictured in a custom Orange Culture suit looking pretty gliterring, flanked by models dressed in white. The visuals, that were shot by Jesse Navarre Vos and styled by Daniel Obasi are eye-catching and unique. You just have to appreciate the creativity of the concept.

Prettyboy D-O - ''Everything Pretty''

 

Arguably one of the most energetic artists of his generation, D-O’s ‘’Everything Pretty’’ is his introductory statement on the scene and the art cover is a compelling image of himself with his hair dyed in multi colours, fingers blinged and a very stylish pose.

This is one of the most chilling yet captivating covers you will witness especially from a newbie in the game.