African Poems

Oral Poetry from Africa

Olatubosun Records

Filed Under: Praise-Poems

Alade Oyo

Dàdàkúàdá is a form of poetry that originated in Ìlọrin, the capital city of Kwara State in Western Nigeria. There is a great deal of mystery as to its roots. 

It shares many similarities to the poetry performed as part of the Egúngún masquerade, the Yorùbá cult that some claim was born in this region. However, all Yorùbá religious practices including Egúngún worship were eliminated in Ìlọrin in 1823 when Islam became the officially institutionalised religion of the city. 

Regardless of its ancestry, it is a form of poetry that blends influences from Ìlọrin’s diverse ethnic and cultural identities, with the city being home to Yorùbá, Haúsá, Fúlàní, Núpé, Kànnìké, Kéńbérí, Bàrùbá, Malians and Arabs, among others. Odolayé Àrẹ̀mú was the first Dàdàkúàdá poet to produce a record in the mid-1940s.

Some tasks are not easy to bear
The task of becoming Alaafin is a deadly one…

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Filed Under: Praise-Poems

Ogbomosho

The city of Ògbómọ̀ṣọ́ is located within Oyo State, south-western Nigeria. It is close to a forest region that was an area of indigenous iron mining and smelting. The towns in this region are home to the largest concentration of Ògún festivals in Yorubaland, Ògún being the Yorùbá god of iron, blacksmithing, tool making, hunting and warfare.

One of the indigenous genres of music that originates in Ògbómọ̀ṣọ́ is Ìjálá Ọdẹ, a style of oral poetry mythically and ritually associated with the worship of Ògún. Ìjálá poetry was historically composed by hunters to describe the characteristics of the animals they hunt and to eulogise hunters and warriors at their funerals.

The poet Ògundáre Fóyánmu was born in Ògbómọ̀ṣọ́ in 1932 and died on the 13th October, 2012 at the age of 80. Introduced to oral poetry through his father, an Egúngún chanter, Fóyánmu became instrumental in the evolution of Ìjálá Ọdẹ in Ògbómọ̀ṣọ́.

Akano Oladunni,
always remember your progenitors in all your endeavours.
The king of Ogbomosho!…

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Filed Under: Modern Poetry in Oral Manner

Mr Wayogamist

Abraham Ọlátúbọ̀sún Oládàpọ̀ is a Yorùbá poet, playwright and music producer whose prowess as a performer has earned him the praise name of ‘Odídẹrẹ́ Ayékòótọ́’ (‘The Loquacious Parrot’). 

In 1977 Oládàpọ̀ founded Ọlátúbọ̀sún Records to seek out, produce and promote traditional poets from across the Yorùbá country. I am delighted to publish here a translation of a track from the Ọlátúbọ̀sún Records archives, a performance by Ọlátúbọ̀sún Oládàpọ̀ himself that illustrates the flair and proficiency of ‘The Loquacious Parrot’. 

Here the poet advises that the individual who aims to succeed in life must become ‘deaf and fortified’ so as to avoid petty distractions and the criticism of nay-sayers.

Odídẹrẹ́ Ayékòótọ́
You are very much welcome…

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