The Cry for Oneness: Adeniyi Olusola Morolahun’s “Unity” Advocacy

By Emmanuel Daraloye

The shout of the marketplace is a cluster of tongues, and souls with differences, longings, and tales. It depicts life, and the lived experiences of people. Adeniyi Olusola Morolahun, an avid folk singer, drummer and multi-talented African artist, created this world at the beginning of his song, “Unity.” Being a stellar storyteller, in this masterpiece, apart from weaving history, rhythms, and spirituality, he embeds the African language and the English to tell a germane part of our stories.

The song, “Unity,” after the creation of the marketplace, started with a towncrier who announces the storyteller. The sounding agogo, followed by the shaking sekere got hugged from the back with the bata, iya ilu, and other sonic siblings. The harmony of the drums, and voices as “Unity! Unity!” and a similar Yoruba maxim is chanted, thumps the heart and swirls the soul of any listener. Here, The Abuletic King, who plays over 35 African drums blends tradition with Innovation.

Jariogbe village, in the song, “Unity” by EyinjuOlodumare is a symbolic representation of a typical pre-colonial African village where peace, joy and harmony dwell. Using storytelling as a tool and the call-and-response as his technique, on this song, “Unity” released on the 11th of January, 2023, The Abuletic King  dazzles not only the ears, but mesmerizes the souls.

With its flowing milk and honey, violence and detest have no syllables in the village. However, while three friends find essence in their friendship and meaning in their chosen works of their hands, the enemy comes to sow tares. He comes as a crude oil tycoon, and wealth, and lures them to accept him; then, the discord!

The three stands of the pot find it hard to hold the soup when money finally comes from their deeds. Adeniyi Olusola Morolahun in the song, “Unity” later infuses the continuation of the voice performance which incorporates the Igbo, the Yoruba, and the Hausa, fighting which fades slowly with a call to pray for our land. From the famous fountain of Achebe, and myriads of other pan-African writers and artists, The Abuletic King draws again the African discourse of the genesis of solitude, and all good, till the exodus.

At the 4:55 mark of the song, the second stanza of the old national anthem, “O God of creation…” is being sung by a skylark-like feminine voice. With a legato-dominated and staccato that depicts scattered people, the song comes to an end. However, EyinjuOlodumare wishes that unity settles like dew on the land in the morning after this long night.

“Oyaya” would have no English vocabulary to replace it, as it has no adjective to describe this that is felt in The Abuletic King’s voice in “Unity.” His energy compliments the hearty tale of the Jariogbe village at the earlier part of the song. Even on the other part of the song, this energy signifies hope and light at the end of the tunnel. His sigh at the end, and his “prayers,” and contempt, actually still show his sadness.

The song, “Unity” by EyinjuOlodumare doesn’t follow a clear pattern or structure. It infuses storytelling, voice performance, repetition, to pass its message. The beginning starts with a voice performance, showing diversity, a town crier, a Yoruba chant, then the chorus. The call-and-response technique embellishes the song which also enhances the song’s style. The use of English, Yoruba, Igbo, Hausa, all together in this song makes it more thought-provoking. He shows that while he converses with modern-day realities, he embodies the richness of African heritage.

It has a clear and distinct production which gulps creativity and swallows hardly the effort of the producer. From the agogo, sekere, the African percussion to the electronic sounds, all carry the message and deliver it to the minds. From the use of the languages, and the blend of sounds, EyinjuOlodumare clearly shows that nothing beats unity. Among many reasons, his energy made listening to it on Apple music for many music reviewers and folk enthusiasts very enchanting.

Even if the context of The Abuletic King’s song, “Unity” doesn’t talk about post colonialism, it talks about infiltration, the threats that come with external influence, and the cracks that appear in the pot of friendship when greed enters. At its core, it is a plea for oneness, for remembering that beyond the noise of differences, unity is still the strongest song we can sing.