Taves Samples Wizkid’s “Don’t Dull” for the First Time Ever on New Single “Uche Jumbo”

Ever wondered what “Don’t Dull” would sound like filtered through new ears, a decade later, with a whole different generation’s pain and joy stitched into it? Taves just answered that question for you.

The Ibadan-born singer-songwriter has released his latest single, “Uche Jumbo,” marking a major moment in contemporary Afrobeats history. For the first time, an artist has officially sampled Wizkid’s iconic 2011 hit “Don’t Dull”—a record that fundamentally reshaped Nigerian pop music over a decade ago. Produced by Arieenati and OG Sterling, “Uche Jumbo” doesn’t merely borrow a familiar melody; Taves completely reanimates it, stretching the classic rhythm across his own distinct vocal terrain.

This release finds Taves doing what he does best: refusing to sit inside one sonic box. The track plays like a literal handshake between two definitive eras of Afrobeats—the foundation laid by pioneers in the early 2010s, and the new vanguard currently rewriting what the genre is permitted to sound like. By referencing “Don’t Dull,” Taves isn’t just paying homage; he is consciously placing himself inside a grand musical lineage while establishing that he belongs there entirely on his own terms.

For listeners who have tracked Taves since his early days of viral acoustic covers, this level of ambition is no surprise. He has spent years fluidly moving between mainstream Afrobeats, trap-laced R&B, and experimental synth-pop. His early run of indie mixtapes proved his obsession with pushing past predictable song structures, a style he consolidated with his 2024 breakout project “Are You Listening?.”

With “Uche Jumbo,” released under the Mother Africa Reigns Supreme (MARS) imprint, Taves adds a defining new chapter to his journey, proving he is far less interested in simply fitting into Afrobeats history than he is in bending it to his will.

Listen below

Photo Credit: Taves

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