Zainab Elizabeth Donli, popularly known as Lady Donli, is a delight to watch on stage.
With her brilliance, she stunned hundreds of young music enthusiasts at her debut concert “The Wallflower Experience” in Abuja on Saturday.
To many, she is considered as the beacon of a new Nigerian Alternative Music movement.
Having released over three music projects in the last three years, the scintillating and creative artiste has not rested on her oars.
Lady Donli’s music weaves around neo-soul, RnB, bits of Hip Hop and a sprinkle of alternative jazz.
Her songs are embedded in a vivid fusion of idealism and abstract storytelling, with topics ranging from love, friendship, depression.
Her recent summer release “Kashe Ni” is an expression of youthful curiosity and eccentricity.
Being a massive fanatic of the eccentric Andre 3000, Erykah Badu and super talented Lauryn Hill, it’s no surprise that Lady Donli’s music boasts of a rich diversity rarely seen on the Nigerian scene.
Her voice has a rare mix of sultriness and a tingling resonance.
It is hoped that with proper exposure, it could establish her in the ever dynamic global mainstream market of alternative and pop music.
She’s certainly outdone the odds with the reach her music has made.
Her incredibly creative use of social media in the promotion of her music and the adoption of some popular online music platforms to sell her music has been truly fascinating.
For an independent Nigerian artiste, hitting over 5,000 streams on Spotify for her summer hit song “Ice Cream” and registering over 10,000 hits on Sound Cloud for her E.P, Wallflower, is absolutely no mean feat.
Not to forget also that she’s been featured on popular American music blogs Fader and Complex Music all in the last five months, which is incredible international exposure for an independent artiste who is still building a promising career.
Her relationship with her fans online has been a notable plus for both the growth of her music as well as its reach.
The singer is certainly not only a master of her lane in music but just also recently graduated from Surrey University, Guilford-London with a Bachelors in Law and is commencing her Masters studies later this Fall.
There are of course similarities with other music artistes who have contributed immensely to the Alternative Nigerian Music scene, with Paris based Asa coming to mind as well as German born Nneka to name a few.
But in brute honesty, despite having a strong following on the international scene, both Asa and Nneka as well as other notable Nigerian alternative music artistes have failed to stamp a lasting mark in the very rigid “AfroPop” dominated Nigerian music scene.
There are no specific distribution channels for Alternative Music in Nigeria, absolutely no hub for genres other than the usual Afrobeat, AfroPop, Dancehall and Hip Hop in Nigeria as well as too little of enthusiasts for the movement.
Although the cultural factor in Nigeria may bring to mind the various reasons why Alternative Music in Nigeria is still like an alien sound.
It is however important to note that there is an existing market yet to be properly maximized as regards the movement.
As seen and experienced in the recently concluded “The Wallflower Experience” held in Abuja, the followers of Alternative Music are ecstatic about its growth in the country and are definitely growing in ranks.
Whether you grew up listening to and adoring the music of the legendary Sade Adu and Lauryn Hill in the 90s or you’re a kid more inclined to American Hip Hop and Nigerian dominated “AfroPop”, Lady Donli’s music is sure to captivate you.
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