Beautiful Nubia
Beautiful Nubia is the performing name for Segun Akinlolu (born 11 November 1968), a Nigerian born singer and lead for the Roots Renaissance Band. Beautiful Nubia and the Roots Renaissance Band is Nigeria's foremost contemporary folk and roots music group. Formed and fronted by songwriter and poet Segun Akinlolu (aka Beautiful Nubia), the group's songs and albums have achieved cult status among their loyal and growing fans spread across the world.
Theme
Beautiful Nubia's songs are built on rich folkloric traditions and native wisdom but his message is universal in thrust and theme: value life, respect nature and learn to live in peace with others. The music speaks for the voiceless and champions the dream of a balanced society where individuals are truly free and equal. It preaches love and tolerance but also urges people to stand and defend their rights when trampled upon anywhere in the world.
Early Days
Born in Ibadan in 1968, Segun started writing songs at a very young age. He drew his early influence from the traditional culture which was prevalent in the form of oral poetry, theatre, music and folklore. In 1994, with enough resources to produce a demo, his timing coincided with the final departure of major record labels from Nigeria. In response, he established EniObanke, a music production and marketing company under which his first album was released in 1997. All subsequent recordings have been released on this label and the company recently commenced the first ever folk and roots music festival in Nigeria, the EniObanke Music Festival (EMUfest). In 1998, the artist invited several young musicians in Lagos to form a backing band to which he gave the name The Roots Renaissance Band. Throughout the years, Beautiful Nubia has remained the songwriter, arranger and bandleader contributing acoustic/rhythm guitar, lead vocals and percussion. The band is still mostly made up of the original members.
Breakthrough
A reward came in 2002 with the release of the ground-breaking third album Jangbalajugbu. It is estimated that more than 50 million Nigerians wake up each day to "Owuro L'Ojo (How D'You Do?)", one of the hit tracks in the album. To date, Jangbalajugbu has sold in excess of a million copies (not including the large numbers sold in the open market by pirates). Since then, the band has released five more albums, all of which, except the most recent, were recorded with vintage analogue equipment at the historic Afrodisia (Decca) Studios in Lagos. Awilele (2004) is a no-holds-barred celebration of the artist's political views, Fere (2006) earned BN the sobriquet "Nigeria's King of Melody" and Kilòkilò (2007) and Irinajo (2009) both confirm what can be described as the Beautiful Nubia style and his stubborn refusal to be pigeon-holed. The albums, deeply political, have cemented his reputation in Nigeria and beyond as an advocate for social justice. It is the combination of enjoyable entertainment and provocative thoughtfulness that has come to define BN's style. Sun No Dey Sleep, Oriojori-Eternal Spirits and Keere, the latest albums, continue that tradition. The music has garnered excellent reviews in leading African/world music publications. It has been nominated for music awards and topped international/world charts on community, grassroots and campus radio stations.
Education
Segun Akinlolu graduated from the University of Ibadan with a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) degree in 1992 and worked as a Vet Doctor for about 8 years. He also holds a Post-Graduate Diploma from the Nigeria Institute of Journalism.
Discography
- Iwa (2016)
- Taabaku (2016)
- Odds and Ends (2016)
- Live in Concert Series I (2016)
- Soundbender (2015)
- Keere (2014)
- Live in Concert Series I (2013)
- Oriojori-Eternal Spirits (2012)
- Sun No Dey Sleep (2011)
- Irinajo (2009)
- KilòKilò (2007)
- Fèrè (2006)
- Awilele (2004)
- Jangbalajùgbú (2002)
- Voice From Heaven (1999)
- Seven Lives (1997)
Publications
- Waiting For The Bones (poetry, 1997)
- Thinking Big (poetry, 2000)
- On A Cold Evening (poetry cd, 2000)
- The King's Messenger (2004)
- Where Rivers Sing A Song (poetry cd, 2004)
- Citadel Blues (Fiction, 2004)
- Like A Tale At Night (poetry cd, 2006)
Filmography
- Oga (Directed by T. Aleja. Written by Aisha Kafidipe, 2005). Beautiful Nubia made a cameo appearance in the movie.
Soundtrack
- Ikoko Akufo - Lamentation For A Broken Pot (Written 2006 for "The Narrow Path", a movie by Mainframe Productions, directed by Tunde Kelani)
References
- "Outdooring Irinajo" – The Guardian (Nigeria) January 30, 2010
- "Jangbalajugbu" review – Jazz-Not-Jazz
- Review of Beautiful Nubia's "Awilele" – Jazz-Not-Jazz, February 22, 2005
- "An Interview with Beautiful Nubia" – Jazz-Not-Jazz, June 2004
- Beautiful Nubia Live at the Africa Centre
- Beautiful Nubia performs with a Nigerian music legend – CBC, All In A Day
- "The Beauty of Beautiful Nubia" – The New Black Magazine
- "The Secret Behind My Name – Beautiful Nubia" – The Nation, November 11, 2012
- Keere CD release – Beautiful Nubia
- Beautiful Nubia at His Best – Sentinel, May 2010
- “I started writing songs at the age of 9 – Beautiful Nubia" – The Street Journal, Oct 15, 2011
- Ikuko Akufo (Beautiful Nubia), The theme track of The Narrow Path
- "I Swore An Oath Of Poverty In 2000 – Beautiful Nubia" – National Weekender, April 4, 2014
- Beautiful Nubia's polemics on child rights and the leadership challenge in Nigeria
- Sun No Dey Sleep – Beautiful Nubia concert
- The Beautiful Nubia in the Buj
- "A Curiosity Abroad" – Nigerian Tribune, September 21, 2012
- CMJ "New World" Top 40, April 12 2004
- Poems by Segun Akinlolu
- Segun Akinlolu's poetry
- Author bio, essays and stories
- folk-music-ontario/awards/songs-from-the-heart-past-winners
- Of Traditional Musings and Modern Nonsense
- Poet's bio
- Writer's Archives
- Nubia’s lyrical ballads – Dec 7, 2008
- = Stand up for your rights, and demand truth, honest service and accountability from leaders-Beautiful Nubia http://sankofamag.com/as-in-many-of-our-songs-we-are-just-trying-to-embolden-the-people-to-stand-up-for-their-rights-when-trampled-upon-and-to-demand-truth-honest-service-and-accountability-from-their-so-called-leaders/ =
External links
- Official site
- Beautiful Nubia promo and live performance videos
- Beautiful Nubia's Amazon page
- Beautiful Nubia on iTunes
- Beautiful Nubia on Musicbrainz
- Beautiful Nubia on Facebook
- Beautiful Nubia on Twitter
- Beautiful Nubia on MySpace
- Beautiful Nubia on Soundcloud
- Beautiful Nubia on Sonicbids