K1 THE ULTIMATE DID NOT RESPECT HIS MASTER, BARRISTER - SAHEED OSUPA

An interview session with the famed fuji singer, Saheed Osupa,

W hat is your real name?
My real name is Akorede Babatunde
Okunola. However , I am popularly
known as Saheed Osupa , the creator of
Saridon P fuji music. I was born in
Lagos but I was brought to Ibadan as a
boy. I stayed with my mother at
Mosafejo and later, Ajegunle area of
Lagos and I will say that those
environments triggered my career in
fuji music.
Who was your fuji hero at that time ?
I listened to the music of the late
Sikiru Ayinde Barrister and Kollington
Ayinla. Wasiu Ayinde was just coming
up then. As a youth, I associated
myself with lower- class people, so I felt
their pulse. A guy named Razak led a
group of five boys to play fuji music.
When I joined them , people preferred
my voice and as a result, I started
leading the chorus . Razak ’ s parents
discouraged him from singing, so he
pulled out while I continued as the
group leader .
What do you consider to be the origin of
fuji music ?
When I began singing fuji music, I was
not aware of the fact that my father
was once a musician because I did not
stay with him . When I began to record
albums , I met my father who asked me
if I was really interested in the music.
I answered yes, so he sat me down to
tell me the story behind what is today
called fuji music.
He told me about himself, Epo Akara ,
Gani Kuti and Wasiu Anifowose (not
Wasiu Ayinde ). My father told me that
the origin of fuji music is kiriboto,
which were the songs of the
masquerade in Yoruba traditional
system . He also told me that the
occultic part of the kiriboto lyrics was
removed so that it would appeal to
other religious faithful .
The music extracted from kiriboto was
called etiyeri. Part of it was also called
seli. After etiyeri and seli were
extracted from kiriboto, they thought
of how to make the new types of music
appeal to the Muslims and that led to
the creation of were music which is
used to wake Muslims during the
month of Ramadan.
Were music became popular in
Yorubaland over the years but the
were music in Ibadan changed at a
time to awurebe through the creative
ability of Gani Kuti. He did this so that
the song could be rendered at social
functions since were had its own
season.
My father and his peers created the
etiyeri genre but they did not join Kuti
in singing awurebe. My father said
while he was working on how to adapt
the etiyeri kind of were to another type
of music, awurebe gained prominence
in Ibadan.
The late Dauda Epo Akara later
modernised awurebe and made it
more popular. That is why people
think Epo Akara was the creator of
awurebe music.
What was the role of Barrister in all
these ?
The late Ayinde Barrister was an
Ibadan man who lived in Ibadan and
Lagos at the time of all the creations .
In Lagos , part of were music was
adapted to sakara music. Because he
was familiar with awurebe i n Ibadan
and sakara in Lagos , Barrister then
thought of a way to modernise
awurebe and sakara . It was from there
that he created fuji music.
Barrister is the progenitor of fuji
music. After he started fuji music,
Lagos and Yoruba people accepted it
and it became the most popular music.
You must have heard the statement of
Wasiu Ayinde , K 1 d Ultimate, that
Barrister did not create fuji. What is
your opinion ?
When I heard about the statement
credited to Wasiu Ayinde , I contacted
him and told him that after watching
the interview , I was not happy with
his utterances about Barrister. I told
him that he (Ultimate ) once told me
that he was a servant of the fuji
creator . I asked him why he would be
profaning the personality of his
master. I also told him that what he
had done amounted to sacrilege.
If you are debasing your oracle, that is
sacrilege. Barrister is still too
important to be disrespected in fuji
music. I made attempt to tell him the
real history of fuji music as told by my
father. I also told him how important
Barrister was in the creation of fuji
music. The people he was quoting as
the creators of fuji only sang were.
But when it got to a level where the
conversation was degenerating to an
argument , I backed off because he is
an elderly person that I respect . I had
to be mature about it but I was able to
express my mind .
If Wasiu Ayinde is saying that
Barrister did not start fuji , he is
probably saying so because fuji is an
adaptation of several kinds of music
genres that began a long time ago . But
the name fuji and the combination of
series of music adapted from several
types of music were the initiative of
Barrister. If anyone says he did not
create fuji , that person is wrong .
From the story you have told, Barrister
created fuji from some music genres and
others did the same from other music ,
starting from kiriboto . Why has no one
created a new music from fuji instead of
singing same old fuji?
That is what has been causing the
controversy in the fuji music industry .
Kuti started awurebe while Epo Akara
modernised it. People have forgotten
that Kuti was the creator but they gave
Epo Akara the credit.
Wasiu Ayinde (Ultimate ) tried to do
the same by introducing classical
system into it but people still prefer to
call his music fuji . He even tried to call
it Talazo but people called it Talazo
fuji, meaning that whatever name you
give it, it remains fuji music.
My music is Saridon P fuji , Alabi
Pasuma calls his own Pasuma fuji,
Shina Akanni calls his own Skopido
fuji while Adewale Ayuba’ s own is
called Bubble fuji. Abass Akande
Obesere says his own music is
Omorapala fuji but we are all singing
fuji music.
Wasiu Ayinde (Ultimate ) did a lot of
alteration to fuji but the name has not
changed. He modernised it in such a
way that anyone can wake up and sing
his own kind of fuji music but I
brought back the original flavour of
fuji music.
Despite the fact that I am not using the
old voice , I brought back the old
content which includes moral
messages. Fuji must preach moral and
good messages . This is what is causing
problems among fuji musicians.
What are you doing to immortalise
Barrister ?
Everybody has his own plan and
concept of immortalising the man . But
this can only be achieved when there
is unity . Someone said Ayinde
Barrister’s successors are not being
vibrant after his death . But this is not
true . I have done exceptional things in
fuji. I have released four albums at
once which no one has ever done . The
maximum I have seen is a three - in -
one album . Obesere was first to
release a two- in - one album . I have a
pile of 10 albums that can be released
at once. This was what prompted
Ayinde Barrister to name me King of
Fuji .
Is there unity among fuji artistes?
All these superiority fight will take us
nowhere. There is no unity in the fuji
industry . Success is not all about how
far but how well . If you began to do
something many years ago and
someone starts after you and possesses
the intellectual ability to do better, he
will surely be recognised. But our
people have refused to give honour to
whom honour is due. The late Ayinde
Barrister will always deserve honour.
What are you doing to protect the future
of fuji?
Because of poverty , many people see
fuji as a way out to make income.
People also see fuji as a weapon to
douse anger so they attend fuji shows
to dance away their sorrow and anger .
Fuji music is grass- roots music that
cannot be taken away from the people.
Fuji has a big future .
We have an association called Fuji
Musician Association of Nigeria but it
has been politicised by some actors .
People are trying to create false
history for themselves . They are trying
to call themselves what they are not , so
they use all avenues like FUMAN to
achieve their selfish aims . I am not a
controversial artiste but I like to be
blunt and that is the problem I am
having with some people.