Joe Mettle has released The River, a 13-track gospel album featuring collaborations with musicians from Ghana, Nigeria and South Africa.
Promoted as The River (Live) Vol. 1, the project brings together South African singers Hle and Oncemore Six, Nigeria’s Rhema Onuoha, and Ghanaian guests Naa Mercy, Kweku Teye and Prophet Edem Julius-Cudjoe.
Apple Music lists the album with a running time of one hour and 40 minutes, under Reverb Studios and an exclusive licence to Mad Solutions.
The tracklist opens with “Sermonette”, featuring Prophet Edem Julius-Cudjoe. He also joins Hle on “Jehovah”, while Naa Mercy appears on “I Stand in Awe”.
Oncemore Six features on “Yahweh” and “Yahweh 2.0”. Other collaborations include “Mercy” with Rhema Onuoha and two versions of “Okokroko” with Kweku Teye.
The release combines contemporary gospel and worship with highlife and reggae influences. According to The Spectator’s release report, the songs use English, Twi, Fante, Ga, Yoruba and Zulu.
The project draws its theme from the biblical imagery of living water, with Psalm 46:4 and John 7:37–39 cited among its inspirations.
Its rollout follows the “The River” edition of Mettle’s Praise Reloaded event at the Accra Sports Stadium in June. “Faithful”, released ahead of that gathering, also appears on the album.
A video for “Yahweh”, featuring Oncemore Six, accompanied the album’s rollout on November 13. The album is available on Apple Music.
