King of Queens (album)

King of Queens is the debut studio album by Nigerian singer Yemi Alade. It was released by Effyzzie Music Group on 2 October 2014. The album was produced by Selebobo, Sizzle Pro, Shady Bizniz, and OJB Jezreel, among others. King of Queens was supported by the singles "Johnny", "Tangerine", "Kissing", "Taking Over Me", "Temperature" and "Duro Timi". The album features guest appearances and skits from Bovi, R2Bees, Phyno, Chidinma, DIL, Selebobo and Diamond Platnumz.

Alade promoted King of Queens by touring several African countries, including Ghana, Kenya and South Africa. The album's deluxe edition was released in November 2014 and contains French versions of songs originally performed in English. Its cover art was unveiled on 21 October 2014. According to the music platform A Nation of Billions, King of Queens sold over 100,000 copies.

Background and composition
Alade recorded King of Queens between 2013 and 2014. In May 2014, Effyzzie Music Group revealed the album's title and told Nigeria Entertainment Today that it would be released in July 2014. The Daily Times of Nigeria later reported that the album would be released in September 2014. Alade collaborated with producers such as Selebobo, Sizzle Pro, Shady Bizniz, Philkeyz, Young D, GospelOnDeBeatz, DIL, OJB Jezreel, Mr Chidoo, Fliptyce, EL Mcee and Beat Nation. The album features guest appearances and skits from Bovi, R2Bees, Phyno, Chidinma, DIL, Selebobo and Diamond Platnumz. Alade promoted the album by touring several African countries, including Ghana, Kenya and South Africa. The album's deluxe edition was released in November 2014 and contains French versions of songs originally performed in English. Its cover art was unveiled on 21 October 2014. According to the music platform A Nation of Billions, King of Queens sold over 100,000 copies.

King of Queens is a mixture of Afropop, reggae and R&B. In the slow-tempo reggae track "Why", Alade explores her versatility and infuses her personality on the record "Pose". "Duro Timi" is an R&B song with a pop undertone. In the slow cuddle song "Catch You", Alade creates sexual rhythm and raps towards the end. "Money" is a reincarnation of "Johnny". Hausa vibes are included on "I Like". "Sugar" is an electro pop song, while "Fall in Love" is a ballad that pays tribute to R&B of the 1980s.

Singles
The Selebobo-produced track "Johnny", which was released on 14 October 2013, serves as the album's lead single. The music video for the song was uploaded to Alade's Vevo channel on 3 March 2014. It was filmed in Ogun State by Clarence Peters and features cameo appearances from Bovi, Alexx Ekubo and Beverly Osu. Added as a bonus to the album, the French translation of "Johnny" debuted on May 20, 2014. Alade became the first performer from Nigeria to release a song that was performed fully in French when she released the song.

On 14 April 2014, Alade released the album's second single "Tangerine", which was also produced by Selebobo. The song's music video was also filmed by Peters and uploaded to Vevo on 8 July 2014. Prior to releasing the video, Effyzzie Music Group unveiled footage from the video shoot. The album's third single, "Kissing", was released on 10 September 2014. It was produced by Fliptyce and is considered a groovy mid-tempo love song. On 16 October 2014, Effyzzie Music Group released the music video for "Kissing", which was directed by Sesan in London.

"Taking Over Me" was released as the album's fourth single. Its music video was directed by Justin Campos and Taiye Aliyu. On 13 March 2015, Alade released the album's fifth single "Temperature", which features vocals by British-Nigerian singer DIL. The accompanying music video for the song was directed by Ovié Étseyatsé. "Duro Timi" was released as the album's sixth single, and its music video was recorded in London by Ova.

Critical reception
King of Queens received generally mixed reviews from music critics. Ayomide Tayo of Pulse Nigeria awarded the album 3.5 stars out of 5, praising Alade for "stamping her authority on so many genres" and commending her for "crafting local pop tracks and delivering slow love songs with a regal glow." Al Yhusuff and Jim Donnett granted the album 3 stars out of 5, calling it "decent" and saying "pressures and some careless choices might have swayed a couple of decisions" on it.

Accolades
King of Queens was nominated for Best R&B/Pop Album and Album of the Year at The Headies 2015. The album was also nominated for Album of the Year at the 2015 Nigeria Entertainment Awards.

Track listing

 * Notes
 * "—" denotes a skit

Personnel
Credits adapted from the back cover of King of Queens.


 * Yemi Alade – primary artist, writer, performer
 * Koribo Harrison – executive producer
 * Taiye Aliyu – executive producer
 * Tpiano – mixing, mastering
 * Clu Briz – mixing, mastering
 * Selebobo – featured artist, writer, production, mixing, mastering
 * Sizzle Pro – production, mixing, mastering
 * Shady Bizniz – production, mixing, mastering
 * Philkeyz – production, mixing, mastering
 * Young D – production, mixing, mastering
 * GospelOnDeBeatz – production, mixing, mastering
 * DIL – featured artist, writer, production, mixing, mastering
 * OJB Jezreel – production
 * Mr Chidoo – production
 * Fliptyce – production
 * EL Mcee – production
 * Beat Nation – production
 * Bovi Ugboma – skit
 * R2Bees – featured artist, writer
 * Azubuike Nelson – featured artist, writer
 * Chidinma Ekile – featured artist, writer
 * Nasibu Juma – featured artist, writer
 * August Udoh – photography
 * UnravelGfx – album art