jnj: What made you change your musical style from club/R&B to a modern afro beat?
Beautiful Nubia: It wasn't a sudden change but a gradual evolution. When we started recording my songs, we tried to fit them into the styles popular in the urban centres of Nigeria, such as reggae, R&B, jazz, soul, etc. I think naturally when you are an original artist, with original compositions, you will eventually come to a place of your own and with Jangbalajugbu, we are at that place. This album fuses the traditional African core of my art with other influences I have been exposed to all my life.


jnj: The album Jangbalajugbu is available for some time now. Since this is an independent release I'd like to know how satisfied you are with the sales so far.
Beautiful Nubia: As an artist without a huge international profile (yet), I cannot complain about our sales. We keep getting requests for copies of the albums from all over the place. They trickle in but at least they're still coming! In Nigeria, however, I think we are doing quite well, our music is getting massive airplay on radio and TV and our fan base is growing at a rapid pace. I know we are touching people over there and making a difference in their lives. For me, that is more important than money or fame.


jnj: Why did you relocate to Canada in 2001 and what were the reasons to record Jangbalajugbu in Nigeria.
Beautiful Nubia: I do not like to refer to it as a relocation. By 1999 I had gotten to a stage in my life where I wanted to go somewhere else apart from my country of birth and expose myself to new situations and experiences. I thought this would release greater powers of creativity within me. My vision was of a place where I would be totally unknown and be able to create in peace. Canada was one of my options and the fact that the country offered permanent residence to me nailed it. When I decided to record Jangbalajugbu, it was natural that I had to do it in Nigeria because that is where my band is. I haven't really left Nigeria, which is why I don't refer to it as a relocation...I share my time between Nigeria and Canada equally, six months in Nigeria playing music with my band and six months in Canada hiding away trying to write and keep the creative juices flowing. Of course, eventually we will have to start touring internationally as a band, and I'm preparing myself for that eventuality.


jnj: What impressed me the most (besides the music, of course) are your lyrics. While most of modern soul/jazz/black music just misses the opportunity to address problems of the world today like globalization, modern-day slavery, taking away fundamental rights or injustice, you just seem to come up with social conscious lyrics with great ease. Please tell me more about your mission and vision behind the songs.
Beautiful Nubia: I cannot but write and sing about serious issues because of the way and place in which I grew up. I have always been a very sensitive individual, sensitive to my environment, the struggles people have to face in their pursuit of happiness, and the cancerous greed and selfishness that ravage modern society. I've always said if I wasn't a musician and a poet, I would be a dead freedom-fighter or a politician in jail! I am always glad that I have these rare gifts which enable me to express my confusion, anger, questions, answers, truths, and humanity and as long as one person anywhere in the world is touched, inspired, or freed by my words, I feel my purpose is served.


jnj: You are also the author of three volumes of poetry. Where do you see the differences between written poetry published in your books and the sung poetry in your music. What can you express with the one that you can't express with your music?
Beautiful Nubia: When people come to a poetry show, they know the essential word is "poetry" and so they're prepared to hear words. With music, it takes a certain kind of craftsmanship as a songwriter to use the right economy of words such that your songs don't become long, endless, boring intellectual excursions. I have not always succeeded in doing this, I have been accused by people in the past of writing songs with "too many words". As a poet, a thinker, and someone who chooses to speak out against injustice, I am constantly challenged by the need to make my songs attractive (commercial) while not losing the message. Poetry I find very easy to write but, from my experience, it doesn't have as much reach, you can't penetrate people's lives, homes, cars, etc., as much as with music. So my music ends up being an extension of my poetry and one feeds the other. I don't think there's anything new in this - most distinguished songwriters that the world has known were poets, whether they claimed that title or not.


jnj: It looks like the rest of the world has forgotten about Africa. It only appears in the news when there are civil wars, or natural disaster and if you have a look at maps showing the numbers of internet access it's almost as if Africa isn't even existing except for South Africa. Do you think that Africa as a continent will some day have a prosperous future?
Beautiful Nubia: Africa has gone through a lot, from the de-humanization of slavery, being denied of our own history, and to the present economic enslavement by the powers of the western world. My position has always been that Africa does not need anybody's help. The only assistance its perenially abused peoples need is to be left alone by greedy and selfish western governments, capricious and dishonest NGOs [Non-Governmental Organization], and international organizations who come in their fancy SUVs [Sport Utility Vehicle] to lend a hand and leave with more than they came with. I believe the salvation of Africa will come through a process of self-discovery by its own children. Until a people come to terms with their own identity, history and group goals, they cannot truly sit with others in a global assembly. Africa's salvation and renaissance will begin with a cultural revolution, a journey of rediscovery, which will liberate us from long held self-loathing and a western-fuelled sense of inferiority. The moment a people come to realize their own powers, nothing can stop their progress. This is part of what I try to express in my music. I challenge people to look within and recognize and accept who they are and then take the next step of looking beyond faith, gender, face, and colour. It may not seem very obvious to many but there's a new generation of Africans whose world view is similar to this and it is my belief that more and more of such people will emerge as people realize the emptiness in the western cultures we are coerced to copy and buy into. In this generation lies the liberation and future prosperity of Africa. It may not come in my time but it will surely come and I am just happy to be able to contribute my quota to this process through my music.


jnj: What are your plans as a musician and poet for the future? Will there be a new album soon? And if what can we expect?
Beautiful Nubia: We have a new album, tentatively titled Awilele, slated for release in December of this year. It will be a development on Jangbalajugbu - music that reflects who we are culturally, the positive influences we have been exposed to, and our recipes for individual happiness and global peace.