Desire (Iyanya album)

Desire (often stylized as Iyanya vs. Desire) is the second studio album by Nigerian singer Iyanya. It was released on 6 February 2013, by Made Men Music Group. The album features guest appearances from M.I, Wizkid, D'banj, Emma Nyra, Tiwa Savage, Flavour N'abania, May D, Vector, Tekno, and Yung L. Its production was handled by Tee-Y Mix, D'Tunes, Mr. Chidoo, GospelOnDeBeatz and Young D. Desire was supported by the singles "Kukere", "Kukere" (Remix), "Flavour", "Jombolo", "Ur Waist", and "Sexy Mama".

Background and recording
The meaning behind Desire stems from the concept of one having an alter ego. In a nutshell, Iyanya compares and contrasts his dualistic personalities, saying, "Desire was just an R&B guy with a great voice who took time to write music and talk about his feelings but just a few people appreciate Desire. Desire always begged for shows, hustles for everything but Iyanya is global. Iyanya is accepted by all." Iyanya started working on the album after recording his debut album, My Story, and was inspired to record the hit single "Kukere" during a visit to his hometown of Calabar. Iyanya realized that the Etighi dance didn't have a unique song. In order to popularize the dance, he teamed up with producer D'Tunes to record "Kukere".

Promotion and release
Iyanya and his management team celebrated the album's completion by launching a two-concert series called "Iyanya vs. Desire". The first concert was held at the Abuja International Conference Centre on 24 February 2013, and featured additional performances from D'banj, M.I, Wizkid, Tiwa Savage, Flavour N'abania, May D, Vector, Kcee, Slo-Flo, Addiction, I-Sick and Tekno Miles. The second concert was held at the Eko Hotel and Suites on 2 March 2013; it featured additional performances from D'banj, M.I, Wizkid, Tiwa Savage, Timaya, Flavour N'abania, Davido, Seyi Shay, May D, Bracket, Vector, Iceberg Slim and Lola Rae.

Iyanya promoted the album in the United Kingdom by performing at the Indigo02 Arena in London and HMV Ritz in Manchester. The Indigo02 concert was held on 9 June 2013, while the gig at HMV Ritz was held on 14 June 2013.

Singles
The D'Tunes-produced track "Kukere" was released on 4 December 2011, as the album's lead single. Its music video was directed by Patrick Elis. The album's second single "Ur Waist", which features vocals by Emma Nyra, was released on 8 July 2012. The song's music video was directed by Clarence Peters. The D'banj-assisted remix of "Kukere" was released on 20 August 2012, as the album's third single. "Flavour", which D'Tunes also produced, was released as the album's fourth single on 10 November 2012. The music video for the song was directed by Moe Musa. "Sexy Mama" and "Jombolo" were released on 6 February and 12 June 2013, as the album's fifth and sixth singles, respectively. The former features vocals by Wizkid and the latter features vocals by Flavour N'abania.

Critical reception
Desire received generally mixed reviews from music critics. A writer for TayoTV assigned a rating of 7 out of 10, saying some of the album's tracks were "awesome and some were below par." In a less enthusiastic review, Ayomide Tayo of Nigerian Entertainment Today said the album is "nothing more than a product of the times we live in" and characterized it as a "pop driven LP aimed at pleasing a demography that loves beats and dance, at the expense of lyrics".

A writer for the music blog Jaguda gave the album 2.5 stars out of 5, criticizing it for being a "jam-packed project with very shallow and monotonous club and radio friendly cuts which will hold grounds individually but as a body of work, it falls flat on its face." Wilfred Okiche, whose review was posted on the YNaija website, called the album "mediocre" and said majority of the artists on the project "cannot see past their hunger for fame and today’s club banger".

Accolades
Desire was nominated for Album of the Year and Best R&B/Pop Album at The Headies 2013.

Personnel

 * Iyanya – primary artist
 * Emma Nyra – featured artist
 * M.I – featured artist
 * D'banj – featured artist
 * Wizkid – featured artist
 * Tiwa Savage – featured artist
 * Flavour N'abania – featured artist
 * May D – featured artist
 * Tekno – featured artist
 * Yung L – featured artist
 * Tee-Y Mix – producer
 * D'Tunes – producer
 * Mr. Chidoo – producer
 * GospelOnDeBeatz – producer
 * Young D – producer
 * Patrick Elis – video director
 * Mr. Moe Musa – video director
 * Clarence Peters – video director
 * Sesan – video director