Coinciding with ’10 Years of NSG’ as the undisputed pioneers of the vibrant Afroswing genre which has dominated charts and speakers over the past few years, the 19-track visual album offers 16 previously unheard songs, some of which feature collaborations with some of the most exciting acts from across the world such as Cameroonian-American breakout star Libianca and long-time collaborator JAE5 on the album’s new single ‘Tonight’, Nigerian music sensations Seyi Vibez and Odumodublvck, Ghanaian Hip-Hop act Sarkodie, French rapper MHD and UK homegrown acts Aitch and Tion Wayne. Made-up of mini music videos for each track, the cinematic Kevin Hudson-directed visualiser chronologically tells the story of the album.
With Executive Production from 4Play and further production from the likes of BGRZ, Rise N Shine, Diztortion, Legendury Beatz and Steel Banglez, the album is set to showcase the group’s one-of-a-kind artistry and sound which blends their signature fusion of laidback Afrobeats, UK and US Hip-Hop, tropical Caribbean inflections and Amapiano and has helped them to garner a staggering amount of streams across their releases and earned them a UK Top 10 and a slew of Top 40 hits and will no doubt catapult them to an international scale.
Speaking on the debut album AREA BOYZ, NSG said:
“Ten whole years in the making! Greatness in the making! An album which we’ve poured a lot of emotion and sacrifice into. Touring across the world and experiencing so much has lead us to this point now.”
To celebrate the release of the album, NSG are set to play three special live shows in starting in Leeds at Belgrave Music Hall on Saturday 21st October, then London’s Pryzm on Tuesday 24TH October and Canvas in Manchester on Thursday 26th October, along with a pop up tour across the UK. This follows their recent sold-out ‘Make Afroswing Great Again Show’ at Here At Outernetwhich saw NSG teaming-up with JAE5, Steel Banglez and Dankie Sounds to bring together some of the scene’s hottest and most influential acts such as Tion Wayne, Kojo Funds, Young T & Bugsey, Darkoo and more. Their recent tours saw them taking their one-of-a-kind live performances to sold-out venues across Europe, Africa and most recently Canada and this summer they teamed up with La Fam to host an Area Boyz merch pop-up in Paris.
Best described as a brotherhood, members Kruddz, Mxjib, Mojo, OGD, Dopeand Papii Abz dominated 2021 with the release of their Headliner EP which featured stellar collaborations with Mist, Patoranking and long-time collaborator JAE5 and showstopping performances of their summer smash hit ‘Petite’ - including that year’s MOBO Awards.
Already consistently bringing major heat to the UK underground scene before bursting into the mainstream with their 2019 summer hit ‘Options’, which peaked at #7 on the Official UK Charts and the #1 spot on Spotify’s UK Viral Chart, and a subsequent string of infectious releases including ‘OT Bop’, ‘Lupita’ and ‘Kate Winslet’. Building on their runaway 2020 successes – including the pinnacle release of the mixtape ‘Roots’ which NME described as a project that ‘lives up to their chart-topping reputation’, making history as the first act to hit the #1 spot on the Official Afrobeats Chart, winning ‘Visual of the Year’ at the return of the MOBOs, as well as the impactful launch of staple The Area Bar in Accra, Ghana – NSG continue to strive to shine in their own lane, while pushing forward the Afro-inspired cultural scene they have passionately helped to pioneer.
Confirming their plans for global domination, NSG say ‘we’re not looking at a United Kingdom thing, we’re looking at a global thing.’ – and with over 730 million streams under their belts, sold-out tours across the world and now the release of their hotly-anticipated debut album, they are already well on their way!