“Ambition wan wound me,” Blaqbonez spits on “CA$H EVERYDAY”, the second track of his fifth studio album, NOMADINHO: 4TH PRIME. The track sets the tone for a project primarily focused on the demands and intrigues of levelling up. Eight years after the MC announced himself to the mainstream with the freewheeling Bad Boy Blaq, he steps into a well-earned position as a Nigerian hip-hop OG. Led by the Asake-assisted one-two punch of “IKEBE 3000” and “Chanel”, NOMADINHO: 4TH PRIME sees Blaqbonez lean heavily on colourful, suggestive references of Nigerian pop culture alongside his Igbo heritage. On the P.Priime-produced “CA$H OUT”, he code-switches between languages to express incredulity at a relationship moving faster than he can process. As one of the earliest mainstream figures to embrace Nigeria’s newest underground class, Blaqbonez embodies the experimentalist edge of the community, continually showing love to its leading lights. There is reference to incantation music singer-songwriter Egertton on “SAMPLE EKWE”, a guest appearance from rising MC Igwe Aka on “I LOVE THIS”, and then Abuja-based up-and-comer Monochrome makes the most of a Blaqbonez-yielded spotlight on “FYP”. Across NOMADINHO: 4TH PRIME, there are moments of melodic rumination affirming just how much Blaq and his music have evolved since he first encountered fame. “LIKE 2021” dissects some of the disappointments he’s faced and how they have prepared him for where he is today, while “MAZZA” elevates escapism to high art. The project lands sturdily on Tml Vibez-assisted closer “FINESSE YOU”, where each extols the drive and gratitude that comes from making it out of the trenches.