Ajayi Olufemi Olaoluwa, popularly known as AJ Sequential, has brought a new breathe of air into Highlife music.
Since the death of the early highlife practitioners who reigned supreme in the 60’s/ 70’s, the highlife social scene has been left in a semi-comatose state with remnant highlife bands and few musicians trying their hand here and there to bring back its lost glory.
I have been hearing about AJ Sequential in the past few years and so decided to go and watch his weekly gig in Ibadan.
The show, tagged “ORIJINAL HIGHLIFE”, takes place at Tunde Odunlade’s art gallery around popular Bodija environs where highlife apostles often gather for a fresh breathe of original highlife and gresh palmwine.
I won’t deny the fact that I was already towing the footsteps of my old man, Babafemi Esho, who is often variously called Baba Musician, Oracle of Highlife music and Prof (lol).
When I was writing my final year thesis on Highlife Music, my father often reminsced on how he left secondary school to watch big highlife bands in Lagos and Ibadan.
According to him Ibadan, has been a force to reckon with when it comes to highlife music since the 60’s/70’s. He said there was Independence Hotel where Orlando Julius played; Central Hotel where Roy Chicago played! and Paradise Hotel where Eddy Okonta was a resident band.
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Highlife music, which had its root from Ghana in the early 1920’s and spread round many West African countries, paraded heavy big weights in the 60’s like ET Mensah, CK Mann, Stan Plange, Dr Victor Abimbola Olaiya, Sir Victor Uwaifo, Celestine Ukwu, Joe Nez, Iyang Henshaw, Baby Face Paul, Adeolu Akisanya, Rex Lawson, King Kenny Tone, Zeal Onyia, Osita Osadebe, Oliver De Coque, etc. These highlife bigwigs were force to reckon with as people came from all over the world to watch them play.
The Nigerian Civil war of the late 60’s, death of many of the highlife practitioners and the advent of Juju Music, among other factors led to the gradual decline of Highlife Music in Nigeria.
Watching Olufemi in Ibadan, few weeks back, has given a renewed hope to the original highlife sensation of the 60’s/70’s.
Little wonder one of Nigeria’s grandfather of Folk Music, Blackman Akeeb Kareem, attested to Olufemi’s ground-breaking touch in his revival of good old days of highlife music of yore.
Olufemi’s effortless presentation of some popular highlife songs will no doubt leave an indelible mark in the mind of any attendee.
•Esho is the MD, Evergreen Music Company, Lagos.
