Stemming off fresh off the momentum of her 2025 EP Surulere, the “Golden Voice of Africa,” Nkan, has announced February 27th release of her new single, “California Love.” The track marks a pivotal moment in her “reinvention era,” showcasing her “Kosmopolitan” sound, a fusion of Afrobeats, Jazz, and Highlife, perfectly timed for the Valentine’s season.
Alayande Stephen T. caught up with the US based Nigerian Afrobeats sensation, Oluwakemi Otekaiye-Colloraffi popularity known as Nkan, with a view to getting her perspectives on her coming single titled California Love. Enjoy.
(1) How would you describe your new single ” California Love” billed for a global release on February 27th, 2026?
Thank you so much for that question.
California Love is a soulful love letter that blends Afro-fusion rhythms with heartfelt storytelling, celebrating love found across distance, destiny, and cultures. Rooted in Oakland and enriched with Yoruba expressions, the song captures the magic of connection, longing, and the pull of love that knows no borders.
(2) Tell us about the idea and inspiration behind releasing it for this Valentine season.
California Love is a very personal and spiritual story for me. I’m deeply spiritually inclined, and one thing I’ve learned on my journey is to constantly have conversations with God for direction.
A few weeks before I relocated to the United States, I fell very ill. My father in the Lord jokingly said I was having “travel fever.” Around that same time, the song California Love by Tupac kept playing repeatedly in my head. I would wake up singing it, even though I hadn’t yet decided which state I was moving to.
Fast forward to my flight to the U.S. — I was asleep on the plane, and just before the arrival announcement, I heard California Love again in my spirit. I woke up smiling and said, “Daddy, you are so hilarious,” referring to God.
Two months after settling in Oakland, love found me — and that experience became the story behind California Love.
Releasing it during Valentine’s season feels natural because California Love is a love letter: to Oakland, to distance, to destiny, and to love that crosses cultures.
(3) As an Afro-fusion artist known for powerful stage presence, how did you balance your signature African rhythms with the tenderness required for a love song?
Love songs have always existed across cultures and languages, and as a versatile artist gifted in composition, I tell my stories honestly through music.
With California Love, I stayed true to my Afro-fusion roots while allowing the melody to be tender and expressive.
I infused Yoruba language and rhythm naturally into the song, blending them with softer melodic elements. This balance has worked for me throughout my musical journey, and it allowed the song to feel intimate without losing its cultural depth.
(4) You’ve spent significant time in both Nigeria and the United States. Does California Love reflect a personal cross-border love story, or is it a conceptual tribute to the “sunshine state of the heart”?
You absolutely nailed it — it’s both, but first and foremost, it’s personal.
California Love reflects my own life experience. When love finds you, distance becomes irrelevant. No one can tell your story better than you, and this song allowed me to tell mine honestly.
At the same time, it’s also a tribute to Oakland, California — the place where I found love and where this chapter of my life unfolded. ❤️
(5) Listeners often praise your “velvet voice.” During recording, were there any specific emotional spaces or vocal techniques you tapped into that made this different from Surulere?
Interestingly, California Love was composed in 2017, but the emotions tied to the story remain just as real today. There’s a particular line in the song that takes me to another realm emotionally — it often brings me to tears when I hear myself sing it.
That emotional space was very different from Surulere. While Surulere carries its own depth and message, California Love comes from a softer, more vulnerable place rooted in personal experience and intimacy.
(6) Following your 2025 EP Surulere, does California Love signal a shift toward more romantic, R&B-influenced sounds, or is this a special Valentine’s gift for fans?
California Love is quite different from Surulere. It’s a song that celebrates Oakland, Yoruba language, love across distance, and destiny.
This song is especially for people in genuine long-distance relationships — encouraging them to make it work with honesty and commitment. It’s also for those still believing in love: don’t give up. And for married couples, it’s a reminder to keep the fire burning and never dim that light.
In this love season — and beyond — come rain or sunshine 🌞, love deserves to be nurtured always and forever.
About Nkan:
Nkan is a Nigerian-born singer-songwriter, celebrated for her “Kosmopolitan” genre—a fusion of Afrobeat, Jazz, and Highlife. She is also a creative entrepreneur, actor and Thespian, She is one of the leading Partners of TheatreMania Africa Festival (TAF).
Discovered for her exceptional vocal range in the early 2000s and dubbed the “Golden Voice of Africa,” she has performed at prestigious venues across the U.S. and West Africa. After a hiatus, she returned to the music scene with a string of successful singles and the 2025 EP Surulere, continuing her mission to touch lives through soulful, message-driven art.
