Omoba Oba means ″ruler″ in the Yoruba and Bini languages of West Africa. Kings in Yorubaland, a region which is in the modern republics of Benin, Nigeria and Togo, make use of it as a pre-nominal honorific. Examples of Yoruba bearers include Oba ...

Segun Adewale (born 1949) is a Nigerian musician. He is considered the pioneer of

Yo-pop Yo-pop is a style of Nigerian popular music, popularized in the 1980s by Segun Adewale. The style did not remain popular for long as it was quickly replaced by afro towards the end of the 1980s. It was a style influenced by juju music ''Juj ...

, a mix of funk,

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

, juju,

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

, and

Afro-beat Afrobeat is a Nigerian music genre that involves the combination of West African musical styles (such as traditional Yoruba music and highlife) and American funk, jazz, and soul influences, with a focus on chanted vocals, complex intersecting ...

Biography

Omoba Segun Adewale was born into a royal family in

Osogbo Osogbo (also ''Oṣogbo'', rarely ''Oshogbo'') is a city in Nigeria. It became the capital city of Osun State in 1991. Osogbo city seats the Headquarters of both Osogbo Local Government Area (situated at Oke Baale Area of the city) and Olorund ...

Nigeria. Because his father objected to his career in music Adewale left home and moved to

Lagos, Nigeria Lagos (Nigerian English: ; ) is the largest city in Nigeria and the List of cities in Africa by population, second most populous city in Africa, with a population of 15.4 million as of 2015 within the city proper. Lagos was the national ca ...

, where he met Juju musicians S. L. Atolagbe and

I. K. Dairo Isaiah Kehinde Dairo MBE (1930 – 7 February 1996) was a Nigerian Jùjú musician. Early life I.K. Dairo was born in the town of Offa, located in present-day Kwara State; his family was originally from Ijebu-Jesa before migrating to Offa ...

. In the 1970s, Adewale and

Shina Peters Sir Shina Peters (born 30 May 1958) is a Nigerian Jùjú musician. Life Born Oluwashina Akanbi Peters in Ogun State, Peters' career in music began at a young age when he played with friends under the handle Olushina and His Twelve Fantastic Bro ...

both played with Prince Adekunle, a pioneer of

Afrobeat Afrobeat is a Nigerian music genre that involves the combination of West African musical styles (such as traditional Yoruba music and highlife) and American funk, jazz, and soul influences, with a focus on chanted vocals, complex intersectin ...

Jùjú music Jùjú is a style of Yoruba popular music, derived from traditional Yoruba percussion. The name juju from the Yoruba word "juju" or "jiju" meaning "throwing" or "something being thrown". Juju music did not derive its name from juju, which is a ...

Musical career

In 1977 Adewale, along with Shina Peters, formed a new group called ''Shina Adewale and the Superstars International''. They released nine recordings but split in 1980 to form their own separate groups. By 1984 the music of Adewale had evolved into what is now described as Yo-Pop.

References

Nigerian male musicians 1955 births Living people Yoruba musicians Musicians from Osogbo Yoruba royalty 20th-century Nigerian musicians 20th-century male musicians {{Nigeria-musician-stub