Over the past two years, the Nigerian music scene has experienced a notable shift. While albums still debut with major buzz and high streaming numbers, very few sustain a prolonged presence on the singles charts. This evolving pattern raises important questions about the longevity, replay value, and cultural stickiness of today’s album tracks. The last album to truly dominate the charts across multiple tracks was Asake’s Work of Art. Upon release, the 14-track project saw 10 songs enter the top 20  including “Amapiano” (No. 2), “Basquiat” (No. 3), and “Sunshine” (No. 5). Four additional tracks landed within the top 40. This level of chart saturation showcased more than hype and translates to lasting audience interest and cultural impact. Since then, no full-length project has come close to that performance.

2025 Albums: Big Debuts, Fast Declines

Davido - 5IVE

Davido’s 5IVE opened strong with 33.9 million first-week streams and five songs in the top 20, including “With You” (No. 1) and “Offa Me” (No. 3). However, by week two, only two tracks remained. In week three and four, just “With You” lingered in the top 10 and streams dropped to 12.1M and 9.7M respectively. Despite high anticipation, the project failed to maintain momentum beyond the opening week.

BNXN - CAPTAIN

BNXN’s CAPTAIN had a slower start, with 6.4M first-week streams and only one top 20 entry (“Very Soon” at No. 6). This is owing to the release of the album on the final day of tracking week June 27 – July 3, 2025.  Expectedly, the album gained traction in week two which was its first full week of release, with streams jumping to 16.9M and “Laye Mi” soaring from No. 25 to No. 7. The jury is still out for CAPTAIN as it has only had four complete weeks of release and with the arrival of Burna Boy’s No Sign of Weakness, the competition for attention in an already-saturated market becomes even stronger. As of now, the album continues to have two tracks in the top ten with “Very Soon” and “Laye Mi. – a positive sign that it might just be the one to buck the trend. 

Joeboy - Viva Lavida

Joeboy’s return with Viva Lavida underwhelmed. It recorded just 2.5 million streams in its debut week, with two songs (“Taxi Driver” at No. 17 and “Free Of Charge” at No. 20) making into the top 20 of the official singles chart. The album fell out of the top 20 completely by week two.

Olamide and Burna Boy: Big Names, Modest Staying Power

Olamide - Olamide

Despite being the third-biggest full-day of 2025 and first-week streamed album all-time, Olamide’s self-titled project didn’t dominate the singles chart. “99” debuted at No. 1 and “Kai” (a pre-released single featuring Wizkid) at No. 10, but only “Billionaires Club” at No. 2 joined them in its first week of release. By week four, just three songs remained in the top 20  which indicates a steep drop for such a high-profile release.

Burna Boy - No Sign of Weakness

Burna Boy’s latest project No Sign of Weakness marked a rare moment with no No. 1 debut/single in its first week for a major album by an A-lister. Six songs entered the top 20, led by “Love” (No. 4) and “Dem Dey” (No. 5). It has hard to call what No Sign of Weakness yet as it early days but there are both positive and worrying signs; “Love” made a rare surge to No. 1 by charting higher in its second week than in its first week but only three songs remain in the top 20 (despite the album being supported by five singles). 

2024 Albums Weren’t Much Different

Wizkid - Morayo

On the singles chart, Morayo stood out briefly, with an impressive outcome of 14 songs entering the top 20 in its debut week. However, soon enough just six songs charted in week two, two in week three, and three in week four. This mirrors the same chart fatigue seen in 2025. However, it is important to note that the album led the official albums chart for 11 weeks. 

Ayra Starr - The Year I Turned 21

Ayra Starr’s sophomore effort had a modest impact. “Bad Vibes” (No. 6), “Goodbye (Warm Up)” (No. 9), and “Commas” (No. 14) made the top 20 in week one. By week four, only the first two remained and both outside the top 10.

Tems - Born In The Wild

Tems opened with 4.8 million streams, with only two tracks — “Get It Right” (No. 13) and “Love Me JeJe” (No. 18) — cracking the top 20. “Get It Right” was the only one to chart in the following weeks, and the album dropped out of the top 20 entirely by week four.

Rema’s HEIS: A Rare Exception?

Rema’s HEIS challenged listener expectations with its experimental sound, a factor that, despite controversy, helped it gain traction in week three. Only two songs debuted in the top 20, but by w  hi eek three, momentum surged: “HEHEHE” rose to No. 3, “BENIN BOYS” held at No. 4, “YAYO” climbed to No. 6, and “OZEBA” entered at No. 11. By week four, four tracks remained in the top 10. It’s one of the few recent projects to grow in chart power post-release

Short-Form Wins: The Case of Kizz Daniel’s TZA

Notably, the last project to have every track enter the top 20 was Kizz Daniel’s TZA, a 4-track EP. In week one, “Twe Twe” (No. 2) and “Too Busy To Be Bae” (No. 17) entered – “Twe Twe” had already topped the chart for ten weeks before the release of the project. By week two, “Showa” (No. 4) and “Sooner” (No. 18) joined. Over four weeks, the EP maintained 2–3 songs on the chart consistently. This remains an impressive accomplishment for a short project that places a focus on whether or not shorter-focused releases are more impactful and replayable than full-length albums. “Showa” eventually peaked at No. 1 on the Official Nigeria Top 100. 

His 2025 EP Uncle K: Lemon Chase fared well too; two songs “Al-Jannah” with ODUMODUBLVCK & Bella Shmurda and “Titi” featuring Fola debuted at No. 3 and No. 6 respectively. Two other tracks appeared in the top 20 that week. By week two, “Al-Jannah” rose to a new peak of No. 2 and “Titi” remained in the top 10 by dropping one spot plus one other track “Police” in the top 20. By week seven, the project had no song in the top ten with the highest being “Titi” at No. 15. However, it is important to note that several high-profile albums had dropped within that period. 

Despite strong debut-week performances, albums are not sticking around on the singles charts like they once did. Even when streaming is high, few tracks show the staying power of past hits like “Amapiano” or “Lonely at the Top.” What we’re witnessing is a redefinition of what success looks like for albums in Nigeria. Is Asake’s Work Of Art the last of its kind? Or are the audience better served with short-length projects like ‘TZA - EP’ and experimental ones like ‘HEIS.’ Or is the market too saturated for anything to truly stand out?