Oyedele Alokan is a creative who has tried his hand at various forms of art for about 11 years. In this piece, he shares his story with Ayo Oladiran on how he got this far and what to expect from him in the coming months.
Who is Oyedele, THI would like to know?
I am a creative, I write, I make music, I edit, do creative directing, branding and all for different platforms.The thing about Deelokz is that; it was my first nickname and I used it as a music moniker for the longest. Around that time I had not started writing so over time, I started to evolve, to write, edit and do other things. Then Instagram, and other social media platforms came along, and I created an account to push my music. But over time, I started to use this account for my writings as well, then I realized that people did not know me as a musician but as a writer. Shocking yeah? And I did not think it was supposed to be so. Clashing brands, you know? I retired the name Deelokz and now the digital footprint for Deelokz is not really alive anymore. Now I go by Oyedele. @Oyedelemusic for Music, and @omoalokan for writing and others.
What inspires you to make music?
Communication inspires me a lot. That’s why we do everything we do; we are trying to tell the world something. I started making music in 2011. I released my first mixtape in 2015 and as then, it was a lot of rap music. In 2017, I started taking music seriously and experimenting with sounds.
How do you describe the kind of music that you make?
First of all I like to describe it as ‘different’… because you know, I make music across a couple of genres. One of the constant things, not so constant but a recurring part of my music is that it is “Rap inclined and it is Hiphop inclined” but it takes different forms. Sometimes, it might be Afro folk, Afrobeats or even Alté sounds, l make music that is jazz inspired too. It goes across a palette of sounds. Depending on what I’m trying to communicate and what I’m feeling at the moment to be honest with you. But right now I’m feeling Jazz a lot, Jazz and Afrofolk.
What is your creative process, what step do you go through in making this music?
Making music for me is a very tentative process, I don’t think I’m a very spontaneous person when it comes to my process. I can be spontaneous with my ideas but most of the time the ideas sit for a long time. You know some songs I write for a month, some songs I can write in thirty minutes, some songs can take me up to one year to write. But when it feels right, it is right. I am very very particular about the lyrics that go into my music.
What was the inspiration behind your new single, Felt?
It’s an Ode to true love. The writing process to “Felt” was very weird– I got the beat around the end of 2015 or 2016 . I got it with some other beats but I didn’t look in that direction until 2018. 2018, I started shuffling Lagos and I happened to have so much work I couldn’t travel to be with family for that Christmas, so I was home alone, all my brothers had gone home. I was feeling blue and I decided to write a chorus to the beat, I recorded a reference track and left it on the hard drive. Fast forward, ending of 2019 around Christmas, this time, I travelled home to Akure, and like clockwork, I found the words to the verses and completed it. I sent it to Amire, who built a more robust sonic foundation, reached out to Kido, who is an amazing vocalist and everybody came through.
Listen to Felt By Oyedele
Do you have any upcoming song or project we should be looking out for?
I do have an upcoming project that should be anticipated. So “Felt” is a single off a project titled “Night of a Billion Stars”. It’s an extended playlist, EP, about the human experience. I’ve finished the project. It’s been ready for a while now. And it is going to be Afro Fusion or Afro Folk, depending on your preference for what human beings like to label things. This genre is something that myself and Amire, ‘Tosin Amire create most times we come together. He is an amazing musician by the way, there’s a way he makes his music, the way he makes his beats that tells a story. So I feel like it’s my own job to embody and channel the story. There was a song we made in 2017 called ” African Night”. It kind of established the foundation for this kind of sound. You know, bringing back the olden days with a fresh twist. A little bit of nostalgia and newness.
Listen to African Night by Oyedele
If you were to collaborate with any artist, who would you like to collaborate with?
Internationally I’d like to collaborate with Deem Spencer, a New York rapper and also, Frank Ocean. Locally, I think I’ll like to do something with Lagbaja, Mohbad, Tope Alabi, Q Dot and The Cavemen.
If you could open a show for any artist, who would you choose?
I think I’d like to open for an artist whose audience would kind of, uhm, feel my sound. I’d like to open for Show Dem Camp, Johnny Drille and Wizkid.
What other things do you do asides music and writing?
I do directing, creative directing and I own, run and edit a platform, theblotted. It is a culture journal for the metropolitan African. We review literature, art, and movies. We review art that people rarely pay attention to.
Any plans for a show anytime soon?
Yeah, once I drop my Ep, there is the potential a show might happen from there.
What message would you like to give your fans?
People that are my fans, uhm, if I do have fans out there— 2022 is the year that you people are going to listen to more Oyedele music. You know we coming out with the heat. The music is coming and it’s going to be amazing
How do you feel the internet has impacted the music industry?
The internet has taken over the middleman. It has improved the audience-artist relationship. So people can actually buy into their favorite artiste. That means there’s a greater linkage and potential for branding. There’s greater focus for branding, to be honest with you, since the internet came through.
If you could change anything about the industry, what would you change?
I feel like we need a lot of things changed. However, to mention one— people say we have the highest population in Africa but we don’t really support a lot of our Artistes. We havent completely adopted the habit of paying for music, and this is why many artistes may not look at the Nigerian market as their paying audience. I’d like us to imbibe a culture that pays for music. Kill the pirates!
What’s your favorite song to perform?
I’d like to perform Blackout and Felt, when the time and mood is right.
Which famous musicians do you admire?
Definitely Childish Gambino
As Oyedele, what’s is next for you?
As a musician, dropping more music, putting out more works to stand the test of time.
As a person, right now I’m doing a lot of things, but what is next for me is to keep putting out quality things, I have a lot of videos to shoot this year, even this month and the next. It’s easy to dream but to bring out your vision— you know you need resources, you need people to key into your vision.
Watch Trailer by Oyedele – The Artiste Oyedele showcases previous works under the name “Deelokz” as he begins a new chapter and blossoms.
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