The sonical surgeries that skeleton Afrobeats’ present image peaked during the early part of the millennium, with mavericks like Doctor Finesse rambunctiously innovating the western imports of RnB with indigenous music styles like highlife. The result was a very distinct melodic template that silhouettes native African melodies, with more catholic reception just like the patronage it enjoys today.
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Diving into the catalogues of Doctor Finesse, after stumbling upon a track by Nigerian rapper Modenine dubbed, “Take My Hand” which he produced circa 2016, I noticed the relaxing temperament of the sonata. Usually a risky road, especially as it exposes songwriting quality, Dr Finesse’s arrangement — sombre, simple and short — elevates the song’s overall feel. It’s mostly a trick of the trade, mastering the pacing, and Dr Finesse does with some almost medical accuracy.

Similarly, he explores this approach on other legacy records, such as Street Hop legend Mr Raw’s 2007 “Kpom Kwem”, where he bares the beauty of the ogene with rustic electronic percussion, like crochet stitches, to deliver the pop-standard among early Afrobeats. The song also counts as one of the era-defining records in Nigeria’s Hip Hop scene, especially in the highlife-dominated Eastern part of the country.

Another hallmark would be the Invasion album, a 17-tracker Christian Gospel album by the 13-member group, Creative Dynasty Academy, where he produced all but two songs. In the album, Dr Finesse hops on his versatile train, merging the highlife-leaning vocal compositions typical of Nigerian Christian Gospel pop, with diverse percussive styles like the disco-funk or boogie-funk of “Zoe”, Jazz drums on “See Me Through”, and “Bigger”, or the alt-rock of “Iheadiwoma” where he also wears a singing hat. The entire album sits largely on guitar riffs, piano chords and multi-genre percussion, giving it an operatic feel that propels its replay value. It’s a strongly thematic, moody and dramatic record that showcases Dr Finesse’s dogged musical amalgamations.
Contemporarily, his work with Charles Oneyabor, son of the late Nigerian funk legend William Onyeabor, titled “Like Father, Like Son”, also spotlights the strength of his sonatas. He champions a two-step percussion that’s vintage Nigerian Pop meets cheerful piano programming of today’s hyper-digital era. And on another track titled “Low”, he crosses borders again with Amapiano percussion on the mid-tempo club hit.

It’s important for music producers to be as dexterous and futuristic as can be. Yet, with Dr Finesse, it’s a bridge between the past and the future, where the old must be as important as the new. And that’s the groove one gets from his musical whiz, a swirl in nostalgia that also keeps you appreciating the moment. And it’s glaring in his catalogue, which also includes film scores like The People’s Lawyer, and UNO: The F in Family, that Dr Finesse’s legacy is stylized as a champion of culture, with every musical fusion he makes.

Dr Finesse, born Ifunanya Finesse Anaemena, is a Nigerian music producer, multi instrumentalist songwriter, sound engineer, and video Director. He began his music career in 2007 as an artiste, but switched to music production in 2009. Among his catalog includes entertainment celebrities such as Mr Raw, Skales, Faze Alone, Mode Nine, Mr M and the Revelation, Testimony Jaga, Charles Onyeabor, Mr Chichi, Nolly CIA, Nkiru Sylvanus, Sylvester Mmadu (known as Shina Rambo) and Kanayo O Kanayo, thanks to his unique and versatile production style that combines different genres such as afrobeats, Ogene, R&B, hip-hop, and pop.
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