Benin City’s prodigiously talented Rema is undoubtedly an artist with a bright future. His latest offering ‘Alien’ is so wavy and woozy, it could’ve floated into the atmosphere and down to earth from a galaxy far, far away.

The track samples Jay-Z’s iconic ‘Dead Presidents II’ piano loop, while the drowsy vocals are reminiscent of Young Thug in full Trap mode. The combination is a genre-melding exercise, paying homage to two cornerstones of American Hip Hop.

Thematically, the track explores isolation and self-medication. Despite the love of his “bestie” and an abundance of money, Rema’s gripped by the conviction that he’s different and misunderstood, an “Alien” on a harsh planet. 

To cope with this, he stays “sipping the sprite” despite the risks. The repetitive helium haze of the closing bars remind us that he’s a young man simply seeking to ease his loneliness - “Don't leave (Don't leave) / Don’t leave me (Wait, wait, wait) / Don’t leave (Don't leave).”