The Producers Building Bridges: svndaypack and the Rise of Cross Continental African Sound

By Tosin Clegg

Music Producers over the years have come to be an integral part of the success stories of many artists globally. Their complemented collaboration with the vocal genius of artistes have helped produce records that have become global anthems in genres such as Hip Hop, Rap, Afrobeats, Pop and many others.

While the artistes take the front lines for their impactful works the true architect still remains the producers whose structural musical engineering gives a definition to music. But redefining the production on today’s music is svndaypack, the Nigerian-born, London and US-based music production duo of Don Ozi and Enjahn long-time collaborators who first met in secondary school and now operate between the UK, US, and Nigeria.

Comprised of Enosabor Omontuemhen (Enjahn) and Oziren Zedomi (Don Ozi), the duo have
worked together since 2017. And in July 2023, the producers officially formed the duo ‘svndaypack’,a production entity that they collaborate under. In a year, svndaypack has amassed over 400,000 digital streams as primary artistes, and gained traction for their visually captivating rollouts. Their sound draws from cultural experiences across Nigeria, Kenya, the UK, and the US, resulting in genre-fluid, hybrid productions that resist easy classification. Their collaborations with standout alté artists such as Tim Lyre, Ayüü, Kida Kudz, Fasina, SGaWD, Smada, and WANI place them firmly within the vanguard of creatives shaping a new wave of alt-African music that feels both familiar and forward-looking.

So far they have played an active role in the careers of multiple artists. Most notable are Ayüü, SGaWD, and Ibi Han. With these artists they developed their sonic identities by helping them explore new pockets and new worlds through sound.

In 2024, svndaypack released I Surrender, a collaboration with Nigerian-Canadian neo-soul vocalist Zenesoul and Afro-fusion artist Tim Lyre, that captures the essence of their creative approach. Much like Sarz and P2J, svndaypack excel in building bridges between continents, but their hybrid palette gives their sound a distinct transnational identity. On I Surrender, the duo draw from the essence of Lagos clubs and the energy of Chicago’s dance scene to create a synth heavy dance track laced with all too familiar melodic patterns from Zenesoul and Tim Lyre. It is a refined example of how their impressive song writing and cross-cultural sensibilities work in tandem to shape music that resonates far beyond geographical boundaries.

These testimonials have shown how distance isn’t a barrier and with the world evolving technology and a whole lot more have helped bridge the gap making life easier and work swift. Seeing that they are spread across Nigeria, UK and the US they have been able to manage their collaborative process taking place online. Deploying different platforms in getting their works done they have maintained a united front in executing their ideas which have helped shaped their careers. The non-physical collaboration has forced them to find creative ways of communicating creative ideas as they also have a strong connection of producers in their network that they consistently collaborate with.

With their production style heavily projected in a new defined style they wish to maintain that their body of work focuses on the fact that music is made through collaboration as no man is an island. Being a dual separated by geography has been challenging in its ways but has also been a blessing. Those around them have been inspired by their creative approach to collaborating not just with themselves but with their wider community as they do not keep opportunities from those within their community which has in return given them more opportunities. This selfless approach to things is what has exemplified them from just being music producers but more of pace makers with hope that the industry moving forward embraces more collaborative works and less hierarchical spirit.

Beyond productions their influence extends to shaping entire projects which have been evident in their artistic direction to arrangements, sound design and patterns while creating a listening experience for listeners. Together they have projected the possibility of a cross continental musical production taking the perceptions from the unseen architects to game changers. They have also seamlessly bridged the African heritage and global palettes as their works journey through their alté collaborations and diasporic identities. These impacts on the scene has further expressed the role they play in shaping a pan-African pop future and they are yet to show the world all they have yet to offer.