British-born Mormon Alex Boyé calls upon his Nigerian roots to make what he calls “African hipster” covers of popular songs. I know it sounds bizarre, but they’re truly exceptional. Boyé’s liberal use of African rhythms and harmonies is tremendously effective and makes songs we’ve heard played to death new again. He also occasionally, strategically, incorporates classical strings to great effect.

Boyé is an interesting guy. He was a backup dancer for George Michael, he was the lead singer in a European boy band called “Awesome,” and he gave it all up when he decided to ditch the boy band (and the contract) in favor of moving to Salt Lake City to pursue a career in Christian rock. It’s not clear how he got from that to this, but I’ll bet it’s been one helluva ride!

I like his cover of Royals so much more than the original. Listen to this!

And his version of Coldplay’s Paradise with The Piano Guys is remarkable.

And do you remember when I said you didn’t need to hear any more versions of Frozen once you’d heard Carrie Hope Fletcher’s cover? That might have been a little premature. The production value alone makes this one worthwhile, and the African influence is really not to be missed. Indulge me. Just one more time. Puh-lease?

By the way, the beautiful young singer is 11-year-old Lexi Walker, interviewed here talking about her experience with Boyé and the video.