Nigerian singer and songwriter, Adekunle Kosoko, popularly known as Adekunle Gold has revealed that a song once submitted to Beyoncé’s team and was rejected has found new life on his upcoming album Fuji.

The singer announced that Fuji, his sixth studio album, will be released on October 3. In a newsletter shared on social media, Gold described the project as a deeply personal body of work, capturing his experiences with loss, growth, fatherhood, and creative evolution over the last five years.

One track in particular, titled Simile, a Yoruba word meaning “rest on me” or “lean on me”, holds special significance. Gold revealed that the song was born during one of the most challenging periods of his life: the death of his father in 2019.

“I know it sounded crazy when I said I’ve been working on this album for over five years, but it’s true,” he wrote. “The oldest song on the album came out of one of the most life-changing moments of my life.”

Despite its raw vulnerability, Gold submitted the track to Beyoncé’s team, secretly hoping it wouldn’t be selected. “I knew it was far too personal to give away. Still, we sent it to Beyoncé’s team, and I secretly prayed it wouldn’t make the final cut,” he said. “It didn’t. And so Simile stayed hidden on a hard drive for years.”

Fast forward to 2024, and the song resurfaced during a studio session with his longtime friend and producer, Michael. The moment it played, Gold said the emotions came flooding back.

Source: The Cable