Titilope Sonuga releases powerfully poetic album, ‘Sis’ 

Titilope Sonuga, a Nigerian poet and civil engineer currently residing in Edmonton, returns with her second studio album, Sis. The record features 10 songs, each having a powerful and passionate presence on the album. With the combination of spoken stories and singing, Sonuga captivates the audience and conveys a powerful message in each song. The album offers not only a sense of connection, but also a reflection about love and kinship.

The first track, “Amen,” sets a powerful tone for the album. The melodramatic music, with its gospel-like vocals, introduces the listener to Sonuga’s poetic and performative storytelling. The song explores sisterhood in a passionate way, describing the female body as sacred and powerful. The gospel-esque instrumentation further emphasizes sisterhood and womanhood as something holy. 

The melody and lyrics of “For Ifeoma” create a sweet-sounding song. The instrumentation is soft and overlaps with Sonuga’s voice, generating a sense of peace and belonging. It’s almost as if the listener is a part of the song as it unfolds. The song that follows, “They Gather Me,” has a faster pace and a jazz-like instrumentation. “They Gather Me” returns to the vibrant and energized sound that was present in the beginning of the album. 

Despite the different paces and instrumentations used in each song, Sonuga follows a pattern throughout the album. Most songs start with her narrating a story, which is followed by a chorus of women. Furthermore, all songs have a theme of sisterhood, which is explored similarly throughout the album. 

However, something changes in the song “Hey Sis.” The stronger and darker sound draws the audience in. Then Sonuga starts speaking and the sounds disappear, making her voice the center of the song. Her narration, combined with the lyrics, creates an emotional and grievous feeling to the music. Different from most of the other songs in this album, “Hey Sis,” speaks of loss and the changes that naturally occur over women’s lives. It talks about the broken connection between sisters and the difficulties of motherhood. She refers to the many ways in which womanhood changes and molds itself for different purposes, often causing the distance or loss of significant people. 

“I Will Remember” ends the album in a powerful and passionate tone. The shortest track on the record reflects on the unification of women and ties together the idea of sisterhood.

Following the pattern established throughout Sis, it feels as if Sonuga is saying goodbye to all the women impacted by the album. Emphasizing that those who have felt a powerful connection with the stories performed by the poet, will never be forgotten or alone in the world. 

Overall, Sis offers a unique and powerful combination of poetry and artistic performance that generates meaningful and heartfelt songs. While some songs sound the same, due to the overuse of similar instrumentation and structure, Sis engages the audience and evokes strong emotions. Not only that, but the way in which Sonuga plays with the spoken and sung parts of the song, connects the audience close to her and the story she is sharing.