| Legalize | |
| Cover: | Legalize (Mr Eazi song).jpeg |
| Caption: | Painting by Patricorel |
| Type: | single |
| Artist: | Mr Eazi |
| Label: | emPawa Africa |
| Chronology: | Mr Eazi |
| Prev Title: | I Wanna Run Away |
| Prev Year: | 2021 |
| Legalize | |
| Year: | 2022 |
"Legalize" is a song by Nigerian singer Mr Eazi, released on 10 June 2022, through emPawa Africa.[1] "Legalize" was written by Mr Eazi and produced by emPawa head of music, and record producer E-Kelly, Michael Brun, and Nonso Amadi. The music video, was shot by Federico Mazzarisi in Venice and released the same day, with a cameo appearance from the Nigerian actress Temi Otedola.[2]
On 10 April, Temi Otedola got engaged to Mr Eazi.[3] In a press release, he said “I started the song in Michael Brun’s house on some edibles, freestyling, and later went to London and listened to what I’d recorded, and realized what the song was about. I’ve been thinking of asking Temi to marry me for a long time, so I guess it was in my subconscious”[4] During the press, he said: “It’s more like this song is for me, after arranging to shoot the song video in Venice and purchasing an engagement ring, I felt the set would be the ideal location to propose.” and added, “No one on set knew what was going to happen.”
Behind-the-scenes photos were released through BellaNaija on 8 June 2022.[5] The cover image, is an artwork painted by the Beninese artist Patricorel, which also features in "Legalize: The Art Experience" a short film, starring Mr Eazi, Patricorel, Liya, Joey Akan, Wadude, Rukky Ojukoko, Tochi Louis, Minz, Zuwa, and Fidel. The documentary was produced by A Family Picture in Cotonou and released on 9 June.
On 19 June 2022, "Legalize" debuted at number 13 on the UK Official Afrobeats Single Top 20 Chart.[6] On 20 June 2022, "Legalize" debuted at number 31, on Nigeria TurnTable Top 50 chart.[7] On 22 June 2022, "Legalize" debuted on at number 30 on TurnTable Top 50 Airplay,[8] and number 38 on TurnTable Top 50 Streaming Songs.[9]
On 10 June 2022, Mr Eazi released the music video for "Legalize", through emPawa Africa. The visual features a cameo appearance from his finance Temi Otedola. The visual was directed by Federico Mazzarisi in Venice.
| Peak position | ||
| Nigeria (TurnTable Top 50) | 31 | |
|---|---|---|
| Nigeria Top 50 Streaming Songs (TurnTable) | 38 | |
| Nigeria Top 50 Airplay (TurnTable) | 30 | |
| UK Afrobeats Singles (OCC) | 13 |
| Date | Format | Label | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Various | 10 June 2022 | emPawa Africa | [10] |