Nigerian Afrosoul in the heart of Windsor

Recording artist Ayola is breaking ground in Windsor’s music scene with the release of his debut EP “Scum” on Nov. 20. 

Nigerian–born Ayola, whose legal name is Abdullah Abubakre, said he is excited to get his sound out to the public and said he hopes to share a piece of himself with everyone who listens to his album, which has been two years in the making. 

“I try not to just think, ‘What is on the radio,’” said Ayola. “I try to pull my personality into my music and do what I think is me.” 

Before coming to Windsor, Ayola was born in Osun State and raised in Kwara State, Nigeria. He said while he was growing up, he listened to music with his mom at home, an influence he held on to when the time came to create his own music. From there he studied biochemistry in Nigeria before getting his masters degree in pharmaceutics at University College London. 

Initially his plans were to get his PhD in London after completing his masters. However, he said when the time came, his scholarship had run out for the year and he had to make a choice. He could wait a year to return to his studies, or he could take another opportunity to study somewhere else. 

Before beginning his masters at UCL, Ayola said he also applied to study in Canada at the University of Windsor, an acceptance which he deferred in favour of attending UCL. However, because he did not want to wait a year to continue his studies, he said he decided it was time to come to Canada to earn his Master’s in biotechnology at the University of Windsor. During that time, Ayola said his plans began to change. 

“By the time I finished my second masters, the interest in doing my PhD, I think I kind of needed a bit,” said Ayola. “So, I didn’t bother pursing the PhD scholarship back in the UK anymore. I stayed back and started working here.” 

Living in Windsor, Ayola found himself attracted to Phog Lounge, a local bar known for hosting live music. It was there he found the Soul City Music Co-Op, a local music label dedicated to giving artists full control over their own music. When he returned home from listening to artists play, he said he immediately looked up the label and messaged them on Instagram. 

Ayola said it was through that conversation over Instagram he shared with Mike Hargreaves, also known as Soul Brother Mike, that Ayola joined the Soul City Music Co-Op in early 2020. 

Despite only joining the label in 2020, Ayola said he had begun work on his debut EP Scum a year prior in January 2019 with the release of the titular song Scum. 

Prior to joining Soul City Music Co-Op, Ayola already had another person to bounce ideas off – his producer Shalom Ogheneochuko, better known as Killashay Beatz or Killashay. According to the producer, Ayola met Killashay through a website for artists to buy beats and they began to work together, first collaborating on the song Starve from the EP. 

Killashay said the process of working with Ayola was interesting because while Ayola was working in Windsor, he lives in Lagos, Nigeria. He said working with the time zone difference was difficult, but they found a way to make it work. 

 “There were times I would wake up to my phone ringing at 2 a.m., it’s Ayola calling with some corrections and I would listen to his suggestions half asleep,” said Killashay. 

Killashay said working with Ayola was different than working with other artists. After making the beats, which was his part of the creative process, he said Ayola would come back to him with different mixes from different engineers and ask for his opinion.

Ayola said Scum was originally meant to be a five-song album set to be released in October. Plans changed after the massacre in Lekki, Nigeria on Oct. 20 Ayola said he delayed the album by one month out of respect and to work on the sixth and final track Home. Ayola said Home was inspired by protests against police brutality in Nigeria. He said it is a very different song from the rest of the album. Ayola said normally he would not want to get political with his music, but as he writes about life sometimes his music will feel political anyways. 

“I felt it was important to postpone the release in light of many tragic and traumatizing events which have thrown me off a great deal,” said Ayola. “Out of respect for the movement and the emotional journey we’ve gone through, I thought it best to move back the release date.” 

Online the album has been met with positive reviews. Nigerian-Canadian Alaba Rotimi said he loves the album and is looking forward to seeing what Ayola does next. 

“Scum is a great album,” said Rotimi. “But Home is what makes it special. You can hear his love for our home.” 

Overall, Ayola said he hopes his debut EP leaves people with a strong impression of who he is and what he cares about. 

Scum presented in partnership with the Soul City Music Co-op, is available now on all major streaming platforms and at ayolamusic.com.