Well-skilled Nigerian artist Fireboy DML opens “ZUKO!” with a prayer on “DEAR FATHER,” a soulful plea for strength featuring Judah Earl.
The album starts quietly, with no party and no big hook. Fireboy calls on God in a hopeful voice and asks for help through life’s struggles. Reviews say the song is a fear of losing his position with a want for guidance. So it sets the album’s main theme right away: faith in hard moments. A short, direct title like “Dear Father” also reads like a letter, which gives the song a personal tone.
David Forlu produced the record, and it runs about three minutes. That keeps it tight. Apple Music’s album notes talk about expansive arrangements and choral backing vocals across the project, and this opener feels like the door into that world. Judah Earl joins as a second voice, and he also appears among the album’s credited producers. Fireboy then hands over to “BY FIRE!” at track two, where the mood turns from asking to fighting.
It also marks a shift for Fireboy. His earlier albums leaned on love songs and club records, but this one begins by looking upward. After a busy stretch that included “Peace by Piece” with Pheelz, he arrives with something quieter and braver. The opener reminds listeners that the “Afro-life” singer carries doubt along with the swagger.
For anyone who has ever prayed for direction and not known where it would lead, this is an honest way to start.
Begin the album with “DEAR FATHER” and tell us – does this prayer speak for you?
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