Fans have come to know him as one of the most successful male artists in the country and once he got that first opportunity to cross borders, The Dogg made sure to give the rest of Africa a taste of Namibian music.
Those who were old enough to be introduced to The Dogg in the days of ‘Perfectro Tromendos’ have had the unique opportunity to witness his musical journey.
About 15 years later and the multi-award winner says he owes everything he has, everything he has learnt and everything he is hoping for to music.
Many have been wondering whether this will be the muso’s final album.
The former Namibia Music Awards Artist of the Year cannot give a definite yes or no when probed. He says once the music bug has bitten you, it’s not easy to let go.
Reflecting on his time in the industry, The Dogg is living proof that music as a business is possible.
Despite struggling to make a profit in the first few years of his career, the ‘Deception’ singer says the last few have been years of reaping what he has sown so faithfully.
“I only started seeing the results of a successful music career in the last five years, when I really felt what a musician should feel like,” The Dogg told .
He added that the growth of his music career was accompanied by personal growth and maturity.
“I can confidently say that my musical maturity is on par with my own maturity. I have a responsibility to my family and other responsibilities to my different businesses.”
So what is the album ‘Concrete Jungle’ all about?
When the musician first conceptualised the album, he did it as having come full circle as a recording artist. The title describes life in a city.
“This is me comparing life in the capital city to that in a real jungle. You have to survive. You cannot sit back and expect all things to come together for you. With this album, I am saying I am here in this concrete jungle and I can survive in it.”
Listening to the entire album, one can hear that there is certainly truth to his statement, and that his music cannot be considered merely as club music.
“It is still The Dogg’s original sound, still with an overall message and at the same feel-good beat,” he said, adding that the album is The Dogg with “some spice”.
He further describes his album as being versatile as it caters for the hip-hop ear as well as those who like the Afro pop sound, and the kwaito die-hards can also relate.
On track two of the album, The Dogg expresses how he should not compromise himself – as a person and also as a businessman.
He used this project to really dig into his skills, producing a majority of the tracks, as well as being the executive producer. Here he was assisted by Sam-E Lee Jones, Glow and Morgan The Syndicate.
The Dogg says the last time he wrote a song was five years ago. Everything we listen to now is born in studio the minute he gets into a creative vibe.
He surprises the listener with a number of interesting collaborations such as one with KP Illest, vocalist Salvador, Jericho and Patrick from PDK.
“I always wanted to work with KP Illest and this finally happened after he signed with Mshasho,” The Dogg said.
Some of the songs, the singer says, are five years old. These are the tracks that did not make it onto the previous album.
“Track five ‘Slow Down’ was done five years ago. Track six was done three years ago, but I felt then that it was not ready for release.”
Track 12, ‘Poka’ featuring Davido, was also recorded four years ago, but again the musician felt it was not ready for his listeners yet.
On track eight ‘Guantanamera’, The Dogg features Jericho to pay homage to and celebrate women. It tells of how women uplift men and how they are a great source of motivation.
On the next track ‘Going Home’, The Dogg takes the listener back to the sound and feel of his first four albums. The melody of the song is a perfect soundtrack to the story of his musical journey, which he pens lyrically.
“I really feel this is a great album. It reminds me of ‘You Can’t Ignore’ and ‘This Is My Time’.”
Expressing endless gratitude towards his fans, The Dogg promises to shoot a music video for each song and hopes to be done with all 13 by the end of September.
He also promises to give Namibia one of the biggest music concerts ever seen, with our own version of ‘fill up the stadium’ in the second half of the year.
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