Music I - Jùjú, Àpàlà, Wéré and Fújì
Túndé King and the invention of jùjú, Ayìndé Bákàrè, I. K. Dàiró, Harúnà Iṣọ̀lá and àpàlà, Ebenezer Obey and King Sunny Adé, and the fújì line from Ṣikirú Ayìndé Barrister to K1.
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Túndé King and the invention of jùjú, Ayìndé Bákàrè, I. K. Dàiró, Harúnà Iṣọ̀lá and àpàlà, Ebenezer Obey and King Sunny Adé, and the fújì line from Ṣikirú Ayìndé Barrister to K1.
The Yorùbá wey dem quote, the proverbs, oríkì, ẹsẹ Ifá, word list headwords, Odù names and citations dey exactly as the corpus record dem, for every language.
Yoruba popular music na one of the tradition inside Africa wey dey produce pass without stopping, and people record how e take grow. Jùjú start for Lagos for the 1920s inside one particular neighbourhood among one particular group of people. Àpàlà and wéré come out from Muslim Yoruba practice, and wéré especially come from the music wey dem dey use wake people up for Ramadan. Fújì come out from wéré. Afrobeat come out from highlife and American funk, and na inside the file wey follow we talk about am. Almost every genre get person wey start am wey dem know by name, particular place and decade wey e start, wey be say e no common at all, and na because recording industry quickly reach Lagos early.
The thing wey dey common across all of dem na the talking drum and the practice of oríkì. Yoruba popular singer inside any of these genres dey perform one type of praise poetry, wey dem dey call the name of their patrons and their lineage as dem dey sing, and the money side of the music don always depend on the money wey people dey spray as dem dey praise dem. Na this line link everything from Túndé King for 1936 reach fújì performance for Lagos this year.
Jùjú start for Olówógbowó area for Lagos inside the 1920s, among the Sàró and Lagos Muslim working population, and na Túndé King dem give credit say e name am and record am first [S1].
Dem born am on 24 August 1910 [S1]. Dem give am credit say na him bring out the word jùjú, to describe the small drum wey resemble tambourine wey dey inside him group, one instrument wey come from Brazil wey enter Lagos through the Agùdà returnee community, and say na him make the first jùjú recording for 1936 [S1]. The group for that early time small: one singer with banjo or guitar, the jùjú tambourine, and one sẹ̀kẹ̀rẹ̀ gourd rattle.
The word no get anything to do with how English people dey use "juju" for African magic, and this confusion don make people write plenty nonsense about the genre. Na onomatopoeic name for drum.
Bákàrè learn work under Túndé King band and start to dey perform around 1935, and e record first with His Master's Voice for 1937 [S2]. Na him be the person wey bring electric guitar and amplified band enter jùjú, and wey move am from small acoustic group go big group wey musicians wey come later use. E die on 1 October 1972 [S2].
I. K. Dàiró na the most important jùjú musician for the time of independence and na him make the genre become national music [S3].
Dem born am for 1930 and e die on 7 February 1996 [S3]. For the years around independence for 1960, na him be the jùjú musician wey popular and get influence pass for the country [S3]. Two new things wey e bring na him own. E bring accordion enter jùjú, wey give the music that special melody wey define the sound of that period. And e bring complete set of Yoruba talking drum enter the band, wey bring back the drum language wey the early guitar-style don reduce.
Dem give am Member of the Order of the British Empire, wey no be normal thing for Nigerian popular musician, and for 1969 e join Harúnà Iṣọ̀lá start STAR Records, wey dem describe as the first African record label wey artists get by themselves [S4]. Na very important fact about the Nigerian industry be that: the two musicians wey dey sell pass for two different genres try solve the problem of who get the work by themselves for 1969.
Dem born Ọbẹ́y as Ebenezer Rẹ̀mílẹ́kún Arẹ̀mú Ọlásupọ Ọbẹ́y-Fábíyì on 3 April 1942 for Ìdògò inside Ògùn State, from Ẹ̀gbá Yoruba descent [S5]. E move go Lagos for the mid-1950s, learn work under Fatai Rolling-Dollar, and start the International Brothers for 1964, wey later turn to Inter-Reformers Band for early 1970s, wey record for West African Decca [S5].
Him style, wey e call mílíkì, dey slower and dey conversational pass him main rival own, and e build am around guitar and lyrics wey be like proverbs wey dem dey sing. Na that one be the main thing about him reputation: na him be the jùjú artist wey him lyrics na Yoruba moral instruction, and plenty proverbs wey people dey use everyday for Yoruba language don strong well-well through him records. E make the group bigger with more drum kits, guitars, and talking drums [S5].
From early 1990s e change go gospel music and evangelism, and e be ordained minister [S5]. E be Member of the Order of the Federal Republic and e still dey perform [S5].
Sunny Adé na the Yoruba musician wey carry jùjú go meet world audience, and na him band get technical ambition pass.
Dem born am Sunday Adéníyì Adégẹ̀yẹ on 22 September 1946 for Òṣogbo, into family wey get royal connection to Ondó and Àkúrẹ́, and e hold the title Ọmọba [S6]. E form the band wey later become African Beats for 1967 [S6].
E sign with Island Records for 1982, and Juju Music (1982) and Synchro System (1983) make him name popular internationally [S6]. Island don lose Bob Marley for 1981 and dem dey seriously look for person wey go replace am as global star from outside Anglo-American market; Sunny Adé na that attempt, and even though e no reach the level of Marley, the records make plenty Western audience know Yoruba music. Synchro System make am the first Nigerian wey dem nominate for Grammy [S6]. Dem nominate am again for 1998 for Odu.
For music side, wetin e contribute na how e expand the band reach twenty players or more with plenty guitars wey their parts dey lock together, complete talking drum section, and how e bring pedal steel guitar and synthesiser enter jùjú [S6]. The pedal steel, wey e borrow from American country music and play am for Yoruba way, na him signature and no other place get like am inside African music. Dem put am inside the Afropop Hall of Fame for 2009 [S6].
The drag between Ọbẹ́y and Sunny Adé through the 1970s and 1980s na the main commercial competition for Yoruba music and people still dey argue about am. How people normally talk am na say Ọbẹ́y na the philosopher and Sunny Adé na the musician, wey no fair to the two of dem but e capture how their focus different between lyric and arrangement.
Àpàlà, wéré and waka come out from Yoruba Muslim practice, and dem be di counterpart tradition to jùjú, wey get Christian and Lagos-elite origin. Àpàlà dey use agogo bell, talking drum and di agidigbo thumb piano, and e deliberately leave out Western instrument. Wéré, wey people still dey call ajísáàrì, na di music wey dem dey play to wake believers for di sahur food before dawn during Ramadan, and na im be di direct ancestor of fújì.
Iṣọ̀lá na di master of àpàlà, di artist wey dem dey usually call im father, and one of di African recording artist wey sell pass during im time.
Dem born am for 1919 and e die for 1983 [S4]. Different source talk different thing about where dem born am, as people still dey point to both Ìjẹ̀bú-Ìgbò and Ìbàdàn; im family na Ìjẹ̀bú. E start to record àpàlà around 1955 and e come turn di dominant artist for di genre [S4]. Ọ̀rókí Social Club (1971) sell pass five million copy under Decca, na number wey dey top anything wey dem achieve for African popular music dat time, and di title track dey praise one nightclub for Òṣogbo where e dey perform long set [S4]. E join hand with I. K. Dàiró take start STAR Records for 1969 [S4]. Im son Musiliu Harúnà Iṣọ̀lá still dey continue for di genre [S4].
Di other major àpàlà figure na Ayínlá Ọmọ́wúrà (around 1933 to 1980), one Abẹ́òkúta artist wey sing for and about poor pipo for town, wey im lyrics sharp and confrontational pass Iṣọ̀lá's, and wey im own band manager kill for 1980. Di respect wey e get among Yoruba listener after im death still high well-well, and dem don write big recent biography about am and make one 2021 film on top im matter.
Salawa Abẹ́ni na di leading figure for waka, one genre wey Muslim Yoruba women dey perform.
Dem born am as Salawa Abẹ́ni Alidu on 5 May 1961 for Epe inside Lagos State, as Ìjẹ̀bú Yoruba from Ìjẹ̀bú Waterside for Ògùn State [S7]. Im first album, wey Leader Records release for 1976 wen she dey fifteen years old, turn di first recording by female artist for Yoruba wey sell pass one million copy for Nigeria [S7]. Di Aláàfin of Ọ̀yọ́, Lámídì Adéyẹmí III, crown am Queen of Waka Music for 1992 [S7]. She marry di fújì musician Kollington Ayinla [S7].
Di person wey dey before am for di genre, Batile Alake of Ìjẹ̀bú, na di artist wey bring waka out from just religious performance enter commercial recording for di 1950s and 1960s, and wey introduce drum ensemble join am.
Fújì na di dominant popular music for Yoruba Muslim life, and na di genre wey get di biggest live audience for Yorubaland.
Barrister create fújì and give am name.
Dem born am as Sikiru Ọlọ́ládé Ayìndé Balógun on 9 February 1948 for Ìbàdàn and e die on 16 December 2010 for St Mary's Hospital, London [S8]. E start to dey perform for 1965 [S8]. Im own innovation na to carry wéré, di Ramadan wake-up music, build am make e turn full-year commercial genre wey get complete percussion ensemble, without guitar, and vocals wey mix Islamic praise, Yoruba oríkì and social commentary together. E pick di name fújì after e see one poster wey dey advertise Mount Fuji for Japan, na detail wey e confirm several times and e no get any deeper meaning pass say e just like how di word sound [S8].
E release pass seventy studio album, tour Britain from 1978 and later di United States, and na im everybody acknowledge as di source for every fújì artist wey come after am [S8]. Di rivalry between am and Kollington Ayinla long, dey open for public, and e bring commercial profit for di two of dem.
Kollington na di co-founder of di genre and na Barrister main rival. Different source give im birth date as 20 August 1949, while 1952 and 1953 still appear, and e come from Ilota near Ìlọrin for wetin be Kwara State today, one Yoruba-speaking area inside northern administrative region [S9]. E enter fújì from army, and di military style plus di bàtá-heavy sound na im signature. E marry Salawa Abẹ́ni [S9].
Wasiu Ọmọgbọ́lahàn Olásunkànmi Adéwálé Ayìndé Marshal, wey people know as King Wasiu Ayìndé Marshal and now as K1 De Ultimate, dem born am on 3 March 1957 [S10]. E be member of Barrister Supreme Fuji Commanders from 1975 to 1978 and e take di name Ayìndé with permission from im mentor [S10]. E develop di style wey dem dey call Talazo fújì, wey smooth pass, get better melodic arrangement, and dey take keyboard and studio production well-well pass Barrister own, and na dis version of fújì carry di genre reach middle-class and non-Muslim audience [S10].
Na im be di fújì artist wey make commercial success pass for di last three decades and wey get political connection pass, something wey people still dey talk about well-well for Nigeria.
Wasiu Alabi Pasuma and Saheed Osupa na di leading figures for di generation after K1, and di rivalry between dem, plus di drag-drag over di title of King of Fuji, don shape di genre since di 1990s. Fújì still remain di music of Yoruba social ceremony, di owanbe party, and im economy dey run on top live performance and money spraying instead of recording, and na why im size no dey show for streaming figures but e dey very clear for Lagos any Saturday.
Fẹlá Aníkúlápó-Kuti in full, his sons Fẹmi and Ṣeun, Lágbájá and Aṣa, and the global Afrobeats generation from Wizkid and Davido to Tems and Ayra Starr, with ethnicity verified for each.
Hubert Ògúndé and the Yoruba travelling theatre, Dúró Ládipọ̀, Kọ́lá Ògúnmọ́lá and Baba Sala, the film line from Ọlá Balógun to Túndé Kèlání and Kúnlé Afọláyan, and the visual artists from Lámídì Fákẹ́yẹ and the Òṣogbo school to Yinka Shonibare.
How the hourglass pressure drum is built and why it can speak, how bàtá encodes speech differently and why scholars disagree about it, the Àyàn drumming lineages, and worked examples of drummed Yoruba with the acoustic measurements behind them.
How Yoruba traditional music fed sakara, apala, waka, juju, fuji, highlife, Afrobeat and contemporary Afrobeats, traced through named musicians and specific musical mechanisms rather than gestures at influence.
A historical and organological clarification of the five major modern Yorùbá popular and neo-traditional musical genres, tracing their distinct religious roots, instrumental configurations, and social trajectories.
A method note explaining what kind of evidence exists for Yoruba figures from the earliest traditions to 1900, why the oldest names cannot be treated as documented biography, and how this section marks the difference.