An apple does not fall far from the tree. This turn of phrase is at once true of fast-rising raga-dancehall star, Ogechukwu Onwubuya, better known as Oge Kimono, first child and daughter of legendary Nigerian reggae maestro, Ras Kimono. A chip off the old block, she is certainly flying the ‘family business’ flag high and doing her dad and a growing number of fans proud with her fantastic talent.
If you’re one of those who think reggae music as played by the greats is on its way out or completely phased, then, listening to Oge Kimono or watching her do her thing on stage might make you have a rethink. Of course, there’s that tinge, swathes even, of nostalgia that wells up inside when reggae aficionados reminisce on the thrilling musical experiences they had in the 60s, 70s, 80s, perhaps the 90s too, thanks to legends like Bob Nesta Marley, Peter Tosh, South Africa’s Lucky Dube, Maxi Priest, as well as our own Ras Kimono, Orits Wiliki and Majek Fashek. Those were the days – the golden age.
Now, the soulful and absorbing music genre is experiencing an unprecedented resurgence and finding its way back into the consciousness of Nigerians through Oge Kimono’s forceful and fresh dimension.
Hers was a natural and early baptism into the world of music even though much of her formative years were spent away from the spotlight with her grandmother in Aba, Abia State, South-East Nigeria, where she attended high school. A proud grandmother who had spotted her young granddaughter’s talent for melody-making, would often get her singing to entertain her friends whenever they dropped by the house. It was the beginning of something special.
Reggae Music? Pull the other one!
Like many music stars, Oge Kimono cut her teeth in music as a member of her high school church choir - St. Bridget’s College Church Choir, in Aba, where she was sort of a school star. What is astonishing is that she grew with an overwhelming love for music, just not reggae music: “I have always loved music. I have always loved everything about entertainment, from dancing to singing, at a very tender age but I was never into reggae music. I would rather listen to more of country music, R&B, and South African music by Yvonne Chaka Chaka and the rest. Reggae wasn’t really my thing because I felt that it was slow. Most of them sang in patois, I didn’t understand patois back then but of course now I am fluent in patois.”
At the age of 16, when she began to ponder music as her career path, she decided to give reggae a second try and so began an adventure and a love affair that’s now propelling her to the throne of Nigeria’s reggae empire. She said, “At the age of 16 I started to listen to reggae just so I could pick out one or two things from what the reggae artistes were singing. Of course I had begun to speak patois more and more with my dad at this point.”
“In the process, I connected with reggae music before deciding to become a reggae artiste. The message in the songs, the way they deliver their lyrics, the rhythm, the base, everything put together just thrilled me. I love the wordplay that they use. So I got quite interested and said, ‘I really want to do this.’ Reggae basically addresses social issues – religion, politics, and our everyday way of life – all that caught me.”
Oge Kimono has more than an ornamental connection to the legends. She plunged headlong into the pantheons and learnt at the feet of the legendary Bob Marley and every great : “My dad too, because after a while I started to listen to the lyrics of his song; then there was Tarrus Riley, Peter Tosh, Marcia Griffiths – who’s called the Queen of Reggae – I could go on and on. Lucky Dube too as well as Majek Fashek because he was a very spiritual person at that time, so he did it for me.”
Adegoke Oladunmade
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