Sikiru Ololade Ayinde Balogun,
MFR, (9 February 1948 – 16 December 2010) better known by his stage name Ayinde Barrister was a
Nigerian
Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jour ...
-born
Yoruba
The Yoruba people (, , ) are a West African ethnic group that mainly inhabit parts of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo. The areas of these countries primarily inhabited by Yoruba are often collectively referred to as Yorubaland. The Yoruba constitute ...
singer-songwriter, songproducer and music performer.
He is regarded as a pioneer of
Fuji Fuji may refer to:
Places China
* Fuji, Xiangcheng City (付集镇), town in Xiangcheng City, Henan
Japan
* Mount Fuji, the tallest mountain in Japan
* Fuji River
* Fuji, Saga, town in Saga Prefecture
* Fuji, Shizuoka, city in Shizuoka Prefectur ...
and
Wéré music.
After his first break into music in 1965, Ayinde Barrister went on to release over 70 studio albums.
Early life
Ayinde Barrister was born on 9 February 1948, to the family of Salawu Balogun who was a
trader from
Ibadan
Ibadan (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Oyo State, in Nigeria. It is the third-largest city by population in Nigeria after Lagos and Kano, with a total population of 3,649,000 as of 2021, and over 6 million people within its me ...
, and his father was a butcher.
Education
He had his early education at Muslim Mission School and the Model School,
Mushin, Lagos
Mushin is a Local Government Area in Lagos. It is located 10 km north of the city core, adjacent to the main road to Ikeja, and is largely a congested residential area with inadequate sanitation and low-quality housing. It had 633,009 inhab ...
. He later studied typing and other commercial related classes at
Yaba Polytechnic.
Career
Ayinde Barrister started playing music at a young age as an ''ajiwere'' singer during the period of
Ramadan
, type = islam
, longtype = Religious
, image = Ramadan montage.jpg
, caption=From top, left to right: A crescent moon over Sarıçam, Turkey, marking the beginning of the Islamic month of Ramadan. Ramadan Quran reading in Bandar Torkaman, Iran. ...
; he continued playing music in between various jobs. He worked as a typist, also known today as a secretary for
Nigerian Breweries
Nigerian Breweries Plc, is the largest brewing company in Nigeria. It serves the Nigerian market and West Africa.
History Early years
The idea to establish a brewery in Lagos was first promoted by Frank Samuel of UAC prior to World War II. Bu ...
and was later enlisted as a clerk in the
Nigerian Army
The Nigerian Army (NA) is the land force of the Nigerian Armed Forces. It is governed by the Nigerian Army Council (NAC). The Chief of Army Staff is the highest ranking military officer of the Nigerian Army.
History Formation
The Nigerian ...
during the
Nigeria Civil War
The Nigerian Civil War (6 July 1967 – 15 January 1970), also known as the Nigerian–Biafran War or the Biafran War, was a civil war fought between Nigeria and the Republic of Biafra, a secessionist state which had declared its independence f ...
.
He served in the 10th Brigade of the 2nd Division of the Nigerian Army under Col Adeniran and fought in
Awka
Awka () is the capital city of Anambra State, Nigeria. The city was declared capital on 21 August 1991, after the creation of Anambra and Enugu state, which moved the capital from Enugu to Awka (an administrative center since pre.-colonial times). ...
,
Abagana
Abagana is a town in Nigeria. It is the headquarters of Njikoka Local Government Area Anambra State and lies approximately 20 kilometers from Onitsha along the old Enugu-Onitsha Trunk A Road that divides the town into two halves.
Abagana town ha ...
and
Onitsha
Onitsha ( or just ''Ọ̀nị̀chà'') is a city located on the eastern bank of the Niger River, in Anambra State, Nigeria. A metropolitan city, Onitsha is known for its river port and as an economic hub for commerce, industry, and education. ...
. On his return from the war, he was posted to the Army Signals Headquarters,
Apapa
Apapa is a Local Government Area in Lagos, located to the west of Lagos Island. Apapa contains a number of ports and terminals operated by the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), including the major port of Lagos State and Lagos Port Complex (LPC ...
and later to the Army Resettlement Centre,
Oshodi
Oshodi-Isolo (Yoruba: ''Oṣòdì-Ìsọlọ̀'') is a Local Government Area (LGA) within Lagos State. It was formed by the second republic Governor of Lagos State, Alhaji Lateef Kayode Jakande, also known as 'Baba Kekere' and the first Executiv ...
. He left the army to become a full-time musician and proceeded to start a full-fledged band of 34 percussionists and vocalists called the "Supreme Fuji Commanders".
[Olaseinde Lawson. Drum (Nigeria), September. P. 40]
Music career
In 1966, Ayinde Barrister released his first LP record. During the time, he usually played with his band at events around
Ebute Meta and Lagos mostly to Muslim clients. He released further records under the label African Songs Ltd before starting his own label Siky-Oluyole Records. Among the LP's released under African songs is ''Bisimilahi'' (1977) and ''Ile Aiye Dun Pupo/Love in Tokyo (India Sound)'' (1976). By the early 1980s, Ayinde Barrister and Fuji music had become accepted by all religions in the country. He went on to record various albums including ''Iwa'' (1982), ''Nigeria'' (1983), ''Fuji Garbage'' (1988) and ''New Fuji Garbage'' (1993) under his imprint. He had a popular record titled ''Reality'' (2004). He had a bitter feud with another Fuji singer, Kollington Ayinla in 1982.
Ayinde Barrister had a couple of successful shows in London in 1990 and 1993 performing what later became known as the Fuji Garbage sound.
Musical style
His Fuji Music is a blend of earlier traditional musical genres of
Apala
Apala (or akpala) is a music genre originally developed by the Yoruba people of Nigeria, during the country's history as a colony of the British Empire. It is a percussion-based style that originated in the late 1930s. The rhythms of apala grew ...
, Sakara, Awurebe and others. With Fuji Music, Barrister revolutionized traditional Yoruba music while still projecting traditional values of good behaviour, respect for elders and the struggles against life's forces. He often used his music as a tool of commentary on issues of national concern, especially, politics. He was blessed in the art of praising enigmatic..
Awards
Dr. Sikiru Ayinde Barrister earned so many notable awards during his lifetime and music career however the most significant is the conferment of the honor of Member of the Order of the Federal Republic (MFR) by the then President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in 2006, President Olusegun Aremu Obasanjo. The honour is believed to be based on his album Precaution released in 1995, the record that detailed the whole issues confronting Nigeria as a nation and possible solutions to the National problems.
In 1983, he was awarded an honorary PhD in music at the
City University of Los Angeles
Selected discography
* ''Ejeka Gbo T’Olorun (7″; Niger Songs ??)'' (1966)
* ''Vol.1: Waya Rabi''
* ''Vol.2: Alayinde Ma De O''
* ''Vol.3: Mecca Special''
* ''Vol.4: Itan Anobi Rasao''
* ''Vol.5: E Sa Ma Mi Lengbe''
* ''Vol.6: Ori Mi Ewo Ninse / Majority Boy'' (1975)
* ''Vol.7: Ile Aiye Dun Pupo / Love in Tokyo (India Sound)'' (1975)
* ''Vol.8: Fuji Exponent'' (1976)
* ''Vol.9''
*''Vol. 10'' (African Songs, 1977)
* ''Bisimilai'' (African Songs, 1977)
* ''Omo Nigeria'' (African Songs, 1977)
* ''Olojo Eni Mojuba'' (Siky Oluyole, 1978)
* ''Our Late Artistes'' (Siky Oluyole, 1978)
* ''London Special'' (Siky Oluyole, 1979)
* ''Fuji Reggae Series 2'' (Siky Oluyole, 1979)
* ''Eyo Nbo Anobi'' (Siky Oluyole, 1979)
* ''Awa O Ja'' (Siky Oluyole, 1979)
* ''Fuji Disco'' (Siky Oluyole, 1980)
* ''Oke Agba'' (Siky Oluyole, 1980)
* ''Aiye'' (Siky Oluyole, 1980)
* ''Family Planning'' (Siky Oluyole, 1981)
* ''Suru Baba Iwa'' (Siky Oluyole, 1981)
* ''Ore Lope'' (Siky Oluyole, 1981)
* ''E Sinmi Rascality'' (Siky Oluyole, 1982)
* ''Iwa'' (Siky Oluyole, 1982)
* ''Ise Logun Ise (No More War)'' (Siky Oluyole, 1982)
* ''Eku Odun'' (Siky Oluyole, 1982)
* ''Ijo Olomo'' (Siky Oluyole, 1983)
* ''Nigeria'' (Siky Oluyole, 1983)
* ''Love'' (Siky Oluyole, 1983)
* ''Barry Special'' (Siky Oluyole, 1983)
* ''Military'' (Siky Oluyole, 1984)
* ''Appreciation'' (Siky Oluyole, 1984)
* ''Fuji Vibration 84/85'' (Siky Oluyole, 1984)
* ''Destiny'' (Siky Oluyole, 1985)
* ''Superiority'' (Siky Oluyole, 1985)
* ''Fertiliser'' (Siky Oluyole, 1985)
* ''Okiki'' (Siky Oluyole, 1986)
* ''Inferno''(Siky Oluyole, 1996)
* ''America Special'' (Siky Oluyole, 1986)
* ''Ile Aye Ogun'' (Siky Oluyole, 1987)
* ''Maturity'' (Siky Oluyole, 1987)
* ''Barry Wonder'' (Siky Oluyole, 1987)
* ''Wonders at 40'' (Siky Oluyole, 1987)
* ''Fuji Garbage'' (Siky Oluyole, 1988)
* ''Fuji Garbage Series II'' (Siky Oluyole, 1988)
* ''Current Affairs'' (Siky Oluyole, 1989)
* ''Fuji Garbage Series III'' (Siky Oluyole, 1989)
* ''Music Extravaganza'' (Siky Oluyole, 1990)
* ''Fuji Waves'' (Siky Oluyole, 1991)
* ''Fantasia Fuji'' (Siky Oluyole, 1991)
* ''Fuji Explosion'' (Siky Oluyole, 1992)
* ''Dimensional Fuji'' (Siky Oluyole, 1993)
* ''New Fuji Garbage'' (Siky Oluyole, 1993)
* ''The Truth'' (Siky Oluyole, 1994)
* ''Precaution'' (Siky Oluyole, 1995)
* ''Olympics Atlanta ’96'' cassette (Siky Oluyole, 1996)
* ''Olympics ’96'' London Version cassette (Zmirage Productions, 1997)
* ''with Queen Salawa Abeni Evening Of Sound'' cassette (Zmirage Productions, 1997)
* ''Barry On Stage'' cassette (Siky Oluyole, 1997)
* ''Mr. Fuji'' (Barry Black, 1998)
* "Millennium Stanza" (Fuji Chambers, 2000)
* "Controversy" (2005)
* ' Reality and Questionnaire ' ( 2008).
* Superiority
* Fuji Booster
* Fuji Missile
*Wisdom and correction
*Image and Gratitude
References
Bibliography
*
*
External links
*
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Barrister, Ayinde
1948 births
2010 deaths
Yoruba musicians
People from Oyo State
20th-century Nigerian male singers
21st-century Nigerian male singers
Yoruba-language singers
Musicians from Ibadan
Yoruba military personnel
Military personnel of the Nigerian Civil War
Nigerian military personnel
English-language singers from Nigeria