Evangelist Ebenezer Obey will be 84 on April 3rd, 2026. But he is not having a party. This is because his birthday falls on Good Friday.
Last Tuesday, City People crew led by Publisher SEYE KEHINDE (OON) spent quality time with the man many call Baba Obey.
He was in a very relaxed mood. That was one of the rare times he will be free, because most times, he performs back-to-back. From Mondays to Sunday, he is in high demand.
Everyone wants him to Grace their events.
At 84, Baba enjoys the Grace of good health. He is very strong and vibrant. He is ready to move anywhere, once his services are needed.
For 2 hours, Evangelist Ebenezer Obey engaged us. He told us about the evolution of his music from Highlife to Juju.
He went down memory lane, explaining to us how he developed his skill of composing music and why he has been described as a Master Composer. Till today, he still composes songs and he still rehearses every week.
At 84, Baba Obey has remained high disciplined and does not take nonsense from anybody. He keeps to time and has been described as a very straightforward man who keeps to his words. He has remained committed to his music and church work.
Below are excerpts of Baba’s interview.
On behalf of the City People family I will like to say a very big thank you for granting us this interview, for us to get to know how you are planning to celebrate your forth coming 84th birthday which is just a few days away.
I’m happy to receive you. You are welcome. I pray that City People will continue to grow and achieve more success. I am one of the great supporters and admirers of City People. We thank God that you have come a long way and more progress more success in Jesus mighty name.
About my forth coming birthday, on April 3rd which is Good Friday, I will be 84 years old. My 84th birthday is coming on Good Friday and because Good Friday is a special day I don’t want to have any celebration on that day I will like to have a low-key birthday celebration this year to allow the Easter to come. And for all Christians to celebrate the Easter. If the Lord tarries I will like to have a louder 85th birthday special 85th birthday, come next year April 3rd by the Grace of God. I will use this year to have a low-key like I said and reach out to underprivileged, use it to have crusade special crusade during this period and out reach to the handicap and underprivileged people by the Grace of God.
So we are going to have a Crusade from March 25 and March 26 in conjunction with Methodist Church, Riye Council of Knights. We are going to have ministers conference where all church workers choir, ushers, security and different departments in the church administration will discuss growth. It is going to be a Conference of all church workers and Ministers. All church workers are going to be there.
It is going to be a very powerful 2 days Conference and crusade. The conference will start by 9am on Wednesday 25th till 2pm then the Crusade will be in the evening from 4pm in the evening.
And on Friday 3rd like I said, we will have our normal service a Good Friday service at Decross Ministry headquarters at Agege area of Lagos. There will be normal Good Friday service. And normal Easter service will hold.
Sir I will like to know your attitude to birthdays. How do you see birthday celebrating year in year out
In the past I always celebrate my birthday every year. I have been doing, big crusades during my birthday. I have done Osogbo crusade, Ilaro crusade. I have done several crusade at Abeokuta at the stadium for so many years. It is a good thing to do, just to appreciate God and thank God for his blessing for he has done so many many many great things in my life and I must continue to thank him and appreciate him.
If you look back on your birthday in the past which one can be called the most elaborate of them?
Well I celebrated my 40th, 50th, 60th, 70th, my 80th. And my 82th birthday. Those have been my birthdays that I celebrated and I just use it to specially thank God and appreciate all he has done for me. And it is also a time of reaching out to the handicap, widow, orphanage homes and underprivileged. It has be a time of reaching out to them and blessing them.
When you look at the last 84 years what will you say about your life
The 84 years I have spent here on earth I will start by saying that God has been so faithful to me that right from school that I have been involved with Music, in the school, in the church. As a matter of fact I have said it many times I was born in the church. What I mean by that is that my mother was a very devoted person and from pregnancy my mother started taking me to church even when I was in her womb I was delivered and I grew up in the choir I started with the church choir and when I started schooling I became involved in the school band and I rose to be the school band leader and that was where my gate was discovered and I just wanted nothing but music even though my mother intention was for me to be a lawyer or a medical doctor. But God have plan it this way, that music will be my profession. And I thank God that God has blessed me through music. He has made me a celebrity who travels throughout the world I just have to continue to thank God he has done so much for me.
That gift of music composition that God gave you, how did it start. And how did you develop it?
Well I just noticed that I have a gift and late Adeolu Akinsanya encouraged me. The first music that Adeolu Akinsanya played was Mambo Orchestra. In those days, Adeolu Record was full of meaningful lyrics and I noticed the way he put his words together meaningful lyrics. So I decided to follow his pattern of music and I started composing and I started taking my compositions to him and he was encouraging me. When I compose a song I will go and play it for him to listen to. You know, I was so happy one day when Adeolu told me he wanted to use one of my song I was so happy. I thanked him for it . It was a honor to me.
What made you decide that your music will focus on specific issues of life like birthdays,
Childbirth and all that. Is it a way of making you stay focused?
I sing about Life. When I sing about birthdays, people will be able to relate to birthdays, every day is somebody’s birthday so when I sing about birthday it becomes people song when I sing it became people song.
Its a song that is rejoicing with people who have a newly born baby in their family and then relating to congratulating the new born baby to the family and at the same time saying our own will come. So it became it became important music that people will go for commending everything to the hands of God. As I go out today to look for what to eat don’t let me meet unpleasant situations “agbako” what you don’t bargain for. The ketekete album. That was a storyline that was talking about how you cannot please. There is no way you can please the world . Meaningful songs people can relate to the song. That’s why they were successful and won awards. I thank God.
Can you tell us about your music. You started with Highlife, then you went into Juju…
Yes, my music is a combination of Highlife and Juju.
How did you mix them , how did the two get in together?
I like Highlife music. Agidigbo was there, before Agidigbo there was Konkoma then Agidigbo took over from Konkoma. Then Juju music is another kind of music that was started by Tunde King.
Ayinde Bakare was a player under Tunde King but Ayinde Bakare later took over and was doing far better than even tunde king was his master so from Juju to Highlife and Juju and that is the form and pattern I am using.
I will like to know if you are planning to release any album anytime soon
Yes, I continue to release. I do special release, people want me to do special release for them. So I do that. It is another source of income for me. When you are a good composer you know how to put words together it is like when you release a record for somebody, it is like an advertisement or life history of the person. It is like writing a biography of somebody. So when you put it into songs it becomes special.
Does it take a lot from you, to move from writing down the words, then to turn it to lyrics
No the gift is there. Once they tell me what they want I will put it into music.
How have you been changing with Technology in the music industry?
Oh it is a kind of advancement and progress, New technology is always an advancement and then to the music industry.
Sir I noticed at 84 you still do rehearsals. You still go over your music. How do you cope?
Well I think Music is a kind of therapy. When I looked at my life I saw that the moment I stopped playing music years back, I stop playing music for 17 years, what came out of that is the illness that followed. When I was actively going out everytime to perform, I didn’t have all the illness I have. It was when I stopped playing music, I only play in church. I did less of that for 17 years before I came back. It was during that time that all the illnesses and everything that happened to me happened. I can no longer walk, all those challenges I have. That was when it happened. When I was actually playing, it did not happen and even when all the challenges came as I go out to perform it is a kind of Therapy. It gives me Joy. People don’t know what the music means to me. Some people complain that what does this Baba want? This Baba is supposed to have retired. When I sat down for 17 years I did that what came out of that was the illness. And that was when all the illness happened and when I go out everyday nothing happened to me.
And the doctor has even said that I should continue if it is what makes me happy. You can do it. My children too have complained so many times. They have fought me. They don’t want me to go on performing at parties. People have also warned me. But when I do it I am happy. So no matter what happens everything that has a beginning must have an end. No matter how I love the Music it cannot continue for life, even life it self has a time: The time you come into this world. And the time that you will leave. It will stop one day. But I enjoy my self and I thank God for this. I will continue to perform, I will continue to compose. I will continue to do special releases.
