Particula reflects the importance of collaborations

28 Nov 2017 - 17:41

Published under the Creative Commons Licence

You might have come across the expression, “to make it in the music industry, it’s all about who you know”. This is true in most cases – the more musicians work with their colleagues from other regions, the bigger their network of professionals, which leads to an increase in opportunities.

Particula is a fusion of dancehall, Afrobeats and electronic dance music.

When artists from different countries work together on one project, they come up with a product which allows fans to relate and present an opportunity to debate on a similar subject. Such projects no doubt benefit artists involved in this cause by way of adding knowledge and skills. ‘Particula’, a song by South African artist DJ Maphorisa and US electronic music trio Major Lazer, is one such song that reflects the power of collaborations.

Initially produced by Maphorisa and finessed by Major Lazer, the song is proof enough that music collaborations, if effectively used, enable artists to upsurge their fan base and increase their status in different regions. Its public knowledge that the success behind ‘Particula’ and its music video is credited to artists that are involved in its making.

‘Particula’, a fusion of dancehall, Afrobeats and electronic dance music, is a love song that features Nasty C (South Africa), Ice Prince (Nigeria), Patoranking (Nigeria) and Jidenna (US). Shot in Johannesburg and produced by South African producer Allison Swank, the music video begins with three men sitting on the rooftop of a tall building with music playing in the background. Clad in brown boot cut trousers, clingy shirts and Afro-textured hair, they start dancing to music playing from an old radio thus portraying a hoary vibe. The opening scene of the video depicts a dance crew on set in Africa in the early 1980s.

The producers chose to shoot some scenes during sunset so as to include twilight filters in the video. It worked well, the dusk moment takes you back to old times when pictures and videos were made using such filters. Filmed in different parts of Johannesburg, the video shows a momentous dance party by three dancers in more than four unique dance sequences — each one targeted to a historic period and dance style. Incorporating all these different elements gets one thinking about great moments in the history of visual effects (VFX) for music videos.

‘Particula’ is no doubt an expensive video. Giving videos a slightly used vintage and older look requires expensive lighting and human expertise. In the video, director Adriaan Louw makes it to look natural which usually requires expensive equipment.

Enter Nasty C

With his commanding rap lyrics accompanied by a decent and groovy beats by Major Lazer and Maphorisa, Nasty C is the first to blow the microphone. Seated in an old nice car, the young rapper oozes his lyrics with much confidence and this complements the sound that comes with the video let alone the love message he is sending to a lady who can’t hide her excitement.

No wonder why Nigeria is always on top when it comes to music. Hip hop artist Ice Prince adds some flavour with his mesmerising stanzas which appear in the entire song three times thus affirming his position as one of Nigeria’s talented and sought after artists. In the chorus, Prince employs his powerful expressions to describe how well-built the woman in the video is.

I like you, girl, in particula

You in particula

Said I like your waist in particula, ah ha, eh

The above lyrics, if allowed to sink into one’s memory, can evoke pure romantic nostalgia. One will be reminded of a moment(s) they have told a woman how good looking she is.

Jidenna, a long time affiliate of the R&B futurist Janelle Monáe, displays the hoarsest and strongest part of his voice. In the video, his voice sounds brilliant and merges well with the tempo to create a massive fullness in the song. Dressed in a grey jacket, bottom open olive pants and shiny brown shoes, his regalia reflects the varying development of civilisations and technologies. With a lovely brownie haircut, ‘The Chief’ singer uses a cane to command authority and control in the video.

Give me love one of these days (Yeah)

In what seems to be a dance party, reggae-dancehall singer Patoranking’s voice sounds like the echo of voices one hears from the other side of the valley. The ‘Alubarika’ singer has the shortest verses with only four lines, but he significantly reinforces the main idea of the song by repeating the same pattern throughout.

Come Come

Give me the love gal

Published on 12 October 2017, the ‘Particula’ music video was sitting at more than 11 million YouTube views at the time of writting. 'Particula' is available on Spotify, Apple Music, Google Play, SoundCloud and Deezer.

Artist: Major Lazer & DJ Maphorisa - Particula (ft. Nasty C, Ice Prince, Patoranking & Jidenna)
Song: Particula
Year: 2017