Ten years is a long time. It’s long enough for seasons to change, for industries to be upended, and for a nation’s hopes to be tested.
It is with this sense of history that I look back on a transcript from April 2nd, 2015 – a date that remains, perhaps, the greatest night of my professional life. I was a young reporter then, and the occasion was the launch of Beautiful Nubia’s album, “SOUNDBENDER,” at the University of Lagos.
The air in the Creative Arts Department was thick with anticipation, but for me, it was something more profound. For years, family and friends had called my love for Segun Akinlolu’s music an obsession; they would say it was an understatement. That night, I finally met the man whose music was the soundtrack to my aspirations.
The conversation that followed was a rare glimpse into the mind of an artist who was already a veteran but whose influence would only deepen over the next decade. Looking back at his words now, they serve as a foundational text – a blueprint for the renaissance mind he would continue to inspire. They reveal a man whose path was forged not by chance, but by a resolute conviction in his purpose.
The Man Behind the Moniker
For many, he was simply Beautiful Nubia, the Owurolojo crooner, a name that had become a cultural identifier. But behind the beloved stage name was a story of clear-eyed intention.
When asked to pull back the curtain and share his background, his answer was direct and grounded. “My real name is Olusegun Akinlolu,” he began. “I was born in Ibadan, Nigeria in November 1968. I studied at the University of Ibadan, graduating with a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree in 1992. Thereafter I worked as a Vet Doctor for about 8 years before eventually becoming a full-time artist”.
His journey into folk and roots music wasn’t an accident or an attempt to fill a market niche; it was an act of profound self-expression. He explained that the motive behind his unique sound was simply to create an honest reflection of his entire being. “I play the kind of music that reflects who I am, the environment in which I grew up, the philosophies and traditional wisdom that I was exposed to as a child and all the knowledge I have picked up in my years of learning and travel”.
His influences were not famous idols, but the raw, unfiltered sounds of his youth. When I asked about his role models, he painted a vivid picture of a different kind of inspiration: “men and women who would pass through the neighbourhood with drums and shakers, singing without microphones and dancing with unbridled passion. I have always been entranced by music with beautiful melody and evocative rhythms”.
The Forge of a Resolute Artist
To be a pioneer is an often thankless task, and in the Nigerian music scene of the 90s, Beautiful Nubia’s path was fraught with challenges. The first, he recalled, was battling the disbelief of those closest to him. “Many of the people around me thought I was joking about recording and performing music,” he said.
“Even after some realised I was serious, they advised me to keep it as a hobby and face my Veterinary profession. One had to be totally focused and resolute”. Beyond skepticism, he also faced a systemic void: “the lack of essential music infrastructure in Nigeria which makes it really difficult for an artist to break out”. His solution was to build his own infrastructure.
After recording his first demo in 1993 and spending years shopping it around to no avail, he took a leap of faith. “In 1996 I decided to go my own way and set up my label EniObanke and my first album came out in 1997”.
This independent spirit was fueled by an unwavering self-belief. When I asked if he ever imagined he would achieve such success, his response was devoid of false modesty. “I always knew I would go far. I have always been a big thinker and a high aimer,” he asserted.
His commitment was absolute. “When I decided to start my music career, I put everything into it, I poured in all of me, all my energy, emotion and money. I basically ‘burnt my bridges’. You don’t do that if you don’t have belief and a strong conviction about your purpose and goal”.
That conviction was tested, of course. When asked if he ever felt like quitting, he admitted, “Yes of course, there have been several times. But you just shake yourself up, refocus your mind and get back on the path, on the forward motion”.
This resilience is perhaps the secret to his longevity, along with a disciplined personal regimen. On maintaining a voice that seems to defy age, he offered a simple key: “Exercise and moderation in everything I consume”.
A Critic’s Eye on a Changing Industry
With decades of experience, Beautiful Nubia’s perspective on the Nigerian music industry was both historical and critical. He contrasted the eras with sharp analysis, describing the “well-structured and flourishing music industry” of the 70s, dominated by foreign labels when times were good.
By the time he arrived, the landscape had changed drastically. “The structure was crumbling, the recording companies were gone and economic hardship had set in making it doubly hard to sell music or get people to come to concerts,” he recalled.
His assessment of the industry in 2015 was even more stark. “Now, the whole place is riddled with anyone and everyone, hustlers and gamblers, charlatans and fraudsters, everyone trying to make a living or a fortune from ‘music’.” As someone who remembered a more structured time, his sentiment was clear: “I am appalled by the messy state the industry is in”.
The Philosopher: Nationhood, Family, and Legacy
The conversation naturally drifted beyond music, revealing the philosopher behind the melodies. As a trained veterinarian, his thoughts on Nigeria’s agricultural sector were passionate and informed. He spoke with passion of his seven years with Animal Care Services Konsult – a company that lobbied for the industry’s revival, a plea that often fell on deaf ears.
“Often those in the corridors of power only pay lip service to the ideal of making the most of the massive potential in the Agric industry,” he lamented, echoing a sentiment from his own lyrics: “In one of my songs I say a nation that cannot feed itself will be subservient to others”.
This principle of self-reliance permeates his worldview. When asked how he gives back to the community, he rejected the conventional notion of charity, framing his music itself as the ultimate contribution. “Perhaps some will prefer to be given the fish, but we prefer to teach the people how to catch their own”.
His music, he argued, provides “joy, strength, encouragement and knowledge”. His philosophy on parenting was similarly profound and liberating. Asked whether he’d want his children to follow his path, he offered a lesson in parental duty: “A child doesn’t belong to you, he just comes to the world through you and your job as a parent is to guide him right… Eventually the child will grow up and find his own way”.
Reflecting on the 2015 election that had just concluded at the time, he was cautiously optimistic, commending the “relatively peaceful conduct of the process” but stating it was “too early to make any comment”. True to form, he preferred to let time reveal the truth. Ten years after, the jury has had everything to say about the government of Late President Buhari and his deputy, Professor Osinbajo.
Beautiful Nubia remains a man who enjoys the simple, contemplative things in life. When not making music, he said he loves to “play sports, especially soccer, read, write and think”.
As our time drew to a close, I asked for a final word for his fans and the youth. His answer was a perfect encapsulation of his life’s work, pointing them back to the source. “Everything I have to say is in my music. Get the albums, listen with an attentive and open mind, and use the tools there to improve your approach to life and your environment”.
And on his own future, there was no ambiguity, no talk of an end. When asked how long he hopes to sing, his reply was that of a true minstrel, bound to his calling: “I will keep doing this for as long as I have life”. A decade later, he is still on that path, his words from that night echoing not as memories, but as truths still unfolding.
