Bob Ejike, the Nigerian artist who helped begin Nollywood, returns with a twelve-track Afrobeats album, Simply Love, out 23 November
Bob Ejike has launched many information. He has not, till now, launched one fairly like this.
Simply Love is a twelve-track Afrobeats album, written, composed and carried out by Ejike, and set for launch on 23 November by Amuse to 31 music companies throughout 250 nations. It arrives with the entire catalogue behind it: Simply Love, Fortune Teller, Fiesta, Love Dance, Margerita, Mirror Mirror, Shakeam, Brilliant Eyes, Yaga Yaga, Forevermore, Dance Love and Cry.
For many artists that may be a profession. For Ejike it’s one room in a really giant home.
He was born in Umuahia, Abia State, was studying Chinua Achebe at six, and was nonetheless a schoolboy at Authorities School Umuahia when his quick tales appeared in Drum, on the identical web page as Ben Okri. He took a theatre arts diploma on the College of Port Harcourt underneath Ola Rotimi, Gabriel Okara and Elechi Amadi, was the youngest columnist and theatre director in Nigeria, and recorded his first album, No Emptiness, throughout his nationwide service in Ogun State. He joined Ken Saro-Wiwa’s Basi and Co as actor and scriptwriter.
Then he made the movie that modified the trade. Echoes of Wrath, starring Richard Mofe-Damijo, gained the Nationwide Competition of Arts and Tradition and went to market forward of Dwelling in Bondage, and with it the Nigerian video-film revolution started. Ejike is considered the founding father of Nollywood, now the second largest movie trade on the earth, and has made some 550 music movies alongside the best way.
Europe got here subsequent, and stayed. He has carried out on the Odeon in Greenwich as visitor artist at two movie launches, and for the British Council, the Alliance Francaise and the Goethe Institute. He’s Director of Music to the Miss Commonwealth Magnificence Pageant, performs yearly on the EPRA Awards, a celebration of African diaspora achievement attended by British mayors, and holds its Lifetime Achievement Award. He was additionally the face of Britain’s Spot the Signal marketing campaign in opposition to trendy slavery, which ran throughout UK tv.
Uganda was six years. He based Probe Studios in Kampala and ran the Ugawood mission with Basic Elly Tumwine, an try and construct a movie trade on the Nollywood mannequin, and President Yoweri Museveni is a fan of his music. Then got here the tour with Aki and Pawpaw, Nigeria’s best-loved comedy pair: the reveals Ejike staged with them in Kampala and Jinja drew greater than 250,000 folks, with Bobi Wine on the invoice. On the Imperial Royal Lodge in Kampala the Nigerian Cost d’Affaires, Ahmed Abubakar, sat within the entrance seat of an overcrowded live performance corridor. He has additionally carried out throughout america, on the African American Competition of Arts and Tradition and Igbo Fest in Chicago amongst others.
In 2013 he stood on a stage in Dubai as Nigeria’s entry on the World Music Fiesta and was named Finest Performer out of 35 teams from 35 nations, draped in Nigeria’s colors, singing Hotter Than Dubai, Gimmi Gimmi, Iyawo Mi and All By means of The Evening. The papers referred to as him Nigeria’s King of Pop and Nollywood Ambassador.
The album is an argument for a similar factor he has argued all his life: that African in style music belongs within the mainstream of world music, not at its edges. Twelve songs, one voice, one author, one performer.
Simply Love is launched on 23 November 2026. Broadcast-quality audio, biography, pictures and the Afrobeats pack can be found by multilingo.on-line.
Bob Ejike is a Nigerian-Italian artist, composer, actor and filmmaker, and the founding father of Nollywood. In 2013 he was named Finest Performer on the World Music Fiesta in Dubai, representing Nigeria in opposition to 35 nations. His movie Echoes of Wrath, starring Richard Mofe-Damijo, gained NAFEST and preceded Dwelling in Bondage into the market, starting the Nigerian video-film revolution. He has toured and carried out in Europe, america and Uganda, together with the concert events he staged with Aki and Pawpaw in Kampala and Jinja. His catalogue consists of Darling Give Me, Agbalumo, Cash Dey, Africa, Sala Maleku, Love Dance and Mama.
All songs written, composed and carried out by Bob Ejike.
Press contact: Workplace of Bob Ejike, music@multilingo.on-line, multilingo.on-line
