Roots (The Cavemen album)

Roots (stylized as ROOTS) is the debut studio album by Nigerian highlife band The Cavemen. It was written, vocalised and produced by the duo, with fellow Nigerian singer Lady Donli serving as the executive producer and released under Freeme Music, a Nigerian indigenous record label .[1] It was released on 21 August 2020.

ROOTS
Studio album by
The Cavemen
Released21 August 2020 (2020-08-21)
RecordedIn the Cavemen's living room
GenreHighlife
Length54:00
Language
LabelFreeme Music
Producer
  • The Cavemen.
  • Lady Donli (exec.)
The Cavemen chronology
ROOTS
(2020)		 Love and Highlife
(2021)

Background

The Cavemen worked on Roots for about 2 years before its eventual release in 2020. They album is described as being reverent to their Nigerian heritage and the music genre which reigned supreme In the country's trying times. The album art which was made with green tones is also said to represent "community". The album was recorded in their living room.[1]

It is a 16-track album. The opening song, "Welcome to the Cave" serves as an introduction to the album as a whole.[1]

Production and release

The album was produced by The Cavemen and Lady Donli served as the executive producer. It was recorded in the Cavemen's living room and released on 21 August 2020 under the FreeMe Music label following 2 years of work.[1][2] It was recorded in Pidgin English and Igbo Language.[3]

Reception

A review by Nativemag said "the Cavemen seem to have achieved what they set out for... the 54 minutes-long set is packed with bewitching, colourful and easy listening grooves, resulting in an album that flows immaculately from front to back and favours repeat listens.[1] In a review for Pulse Nigeria, Motolani Alake said "The sound of the album carries on the tradition of their musical ancestors, exploring the beauty that can be found in this pillar of Nigerian and African culture. This is an exploration of highlife in its full sense, with each track containing something new for listeners to take away."[2] Dami Ajayi of The Africa Report described the album as "the most accomplished resurgence that highlife has enjoyed since Flavour N'bania sampled Rex Lawson."[4]

Charts
Chart performance for ROOTS
Chart (2022) Peak
position
Nigeria Traditional Albums (TurnTable)[5] 1

Awards
Year Award Category Result Ref
2020 The Headies Best Alternative Album Won [6]

References
  1. "The Cavemen release their highly anticipated debut album, 'ROOTS'". The NATIVE. 21 August 2020. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  2. Alake, Motolani (21 August 2020). "The Cavemen release new album, 'ROOTS'". Pulse Nigeria. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  3. "The Cavemen's Roots is a Great Highlife Album - Dami Ajayi". The Lagos Review. 23 August 2020. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  4. "2020: A great year for Nigerian Afrobeats?". The Africa Report.com. 20 January 2021. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  5. Oriowo, Ayomide. "No. 1 on the Different Album Genre Charts This Week". www.turntablecharts.com. TurnTable. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
  6. "See di full list of winners for di 14th edition of Headies". BBC News Pidgin. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
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