Cruel Santino is in an interesting place. The trailblazing singer and rapper seems to be at the tail-end of his immersive Subaru Boys: FINAL HEAVEN arc, looking to introduce fans to a whole new experience with the promise of new music and unofficial track lists and snippets already floating around the crevices of the internet. The 30-year-old’s aforementioned sophomore — which was replete with notably unique production choices and styles and also spurred endless conversations and a particularly churlish article that read like a takedown —- interestingly, is his most fascinating and divisive till date. 

Coming off the back of the hugely successful Mandy and The Jungle, one of the best debut albums we’ve seen in recent years, it was always going to be a tricky affair living up to the hype. Santi, as he is commonly known as, however, had no intentions of repeating or rehashing the same tricks he did on his debut. He reiterated on a number of occasions — most notably on the Late Morning Show with Cool Fm’s Taymi B — that he’d created an album that housed similar music to what his debut sounded like but ultimately it didn’t feel true to him anymore. He’s always been a musical chameleon who meshes a host of foreign and local influences to constantly evolve. So with Subaru Boys, he doubled down on the tenets that made him a star in the first place: innovation and courage. 

With his latest release, “showmetheway”, a fun loosie that features popular dancer and hype man Poco Lee, he’s once again shifting to a different hue, soft launching an incoming dance era that looks set to be defined by incredibly addictive bounce. The gag here is not to pay much attention to what’s been said — it’s just as chaotic and confusing as the album cover that features presidential candidate Tinubu, Poco Lee, a Visa card, Efe Sodje and other random stuff (?) —- but more to the bounce and the exciting flows he switches in and out of. That’s always been one of Santi’s core strengths, gliding on beats in a way most others can’t. 

Announcing the single on his social media accounts, Cruel Santino had one request: “fun drop. no overthinking”. This is precisely how to enjoy the song. Don’t overthink it, just let the bounce take you away as we prepare to enter a new era that promises to be fun and exciting.