- Words Notion Staff
It’s game on for Cheque as he drops his latest afrobeats offering, EP ‘Chequemate’, out now.
After weeks of teasing new music across his social media, Cheque has finally released his genre-melding new EP, ‘ChequeMate’. A sonic tapestry of sounds including R&B, hip-hop, dancehall, and afrobeats, the project is held together by his smooth flow, relatable songwriting, and vibrant character. It sees Cheque reuniting with his childhood friend Fireboy DML on “Hustler”, following their chart-topping work together on “History” from his debut album, ‘Bravo’. The second and final feature is Mavin Records’ prodigy Crayon, who joins Cheque on “Sunflawa”.
The musician’s been making his name known for the past few years, since signing with Phyno via his Penthauze imprint in 2019. Fusing pop and R&B with afrobeats, he’s distinguished himself as a breakout star, especially after the success of single “Zoom” on his 2020 EP ‘Razor’. The hit spawned an even bigger remix with afrobeats star Davido and Grammy-nominated Wave.
Speaking on how ‘Chequemate’ came to be, and what it stands for, Cheque shares, “This EP is born out of my life’s journey in recent years – the relentless hustle and cycle of striving to achieve something bigger and more impactful. I just want to help and inspire others through my music, and if you listen to ‘Shine’, which opens the EP, you’ll hear how I’m intent on motivating people to overcome tough times, because I myself was going through similar adversities. There’s a lot of hate in this world, but some love and motivation might just be what we need to make things better.”