“My burning desire is to lead my generation into the very act of worship, worshipping the Lord in spirit and in truth. Whenever God tells me to record an album, he always tells me how to go about it.”
Patricia Temitope Alabi, also known as “Oore ti o common” and “Agbo Jesu”, is a Gospel Artiste, Soundtrack composer and Actress. She was born on the 27th of October, 1970 into a catholic family. She was born to Pa Joseph Akinyele Abayomi and Madam Agnes Kehinde. Her parents had received a prophecy when she was seven years old that she would be a “great minister of God”. Because of this prophecy, her mother wanted her to become a Reverend sister. Her mother later realized being a Reverend sister isn’t what the prophecy meant and decided not to put her in a convent. Tope is the only daughter out of the three children in the family and hails from Yewa, Omoko, Ogun State. She attended Oba Akinyele Memorial High School and obtained her West Africa School Certificate (WAEC) in 1986. Then, she proceeded to the Polytechnic Ibadan where she studied Mass Communication and graduated in 1990.
When Tope was little, she often dreamt of herself singing in stadiums, with crowds of people listening to her. She started singing when she was very young, and at the age of seven, she joined the choir in her local Catholic church.
Tope pursued her education with all dedication and seriousness because her parents were strict. In secondary school, she joined a theatre group known as Jesters International group, Ibadan in 1983, acting alongside three other people, Jacob, Papilolo and Aderupoko. This was where she got her initial training experience in drama before she proceeded to Ibadan Polythenic to study Mass Communication. Afterwards, between 1990 and 1991, she worked with the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) in Ibadan as a correspondent under the supervision of Mr. Yanju Adegbite. She also worked with Centre-spread Advertising Limited, Ilupeju between 1991 and 1992. Having gathered various work experiences, she went back to her first love, the Theatre Art profession and joined the reputable and prestigious “Alade Aromire Theatre group” in 1994. She stood out in the group as an exceptional singer and actress. The group gave her the edge and exposure to subsequent domination of Yoruba movie soundtracks production. She was exposed to all the core area of drama and acting profession. Today, she is referred to as the pacesetter of soundtracks in Yoruba home video industry. Tope Alabi has been invited by various writers, producers and directors in the Yoruba movie industry to write and perform soundtracks for their various movies, she had to her credit to date, over 350 soundtracks which she had composed for various Yoruba movies.
Tope’s passion for theatre increased. She travelled with theatre groups, performing on stage, acting and singing for productions. She later metamorphosed into Gospel music after she became a born again Christian. She says that she discovered her talent and passion for singing through messages from God in her sleep. She also understood that this is what she has to do in life, even though she loves acting and comedy. Tope came to limelight in year 2000 when she released the “Oore ti o common” Album. This album brought her recognition and also earned her the nickname “Oore ti o Common” and “Agbo Jesu.” With this album, she received several invitations to minister to people. It is revealed by her that before any ministration, she prepares adequately through prayer and studying of the word. According to her, the duration of her prayer depends on what God says. She said “If he says I should pray for ten hours before a ministration, I would gladly heed his instruction. I only perform after I have prayerfully prepared.” She further revealed that the best time God reveals something to her is in her moment of quietness, or sometimes on stage during ministry. She carries her pen and paper with her because of this, to write down whatever God has said. She did Oore ti o common (uncommon favour) first as a cover of a makossa hit before changing it to a Gospel song in 2000. She also did some soundtracks such as Adake dajo, Angeli Mi and many more. Prior to releasing the “Oore ti o common” album, she had released two others known as “Ikoko Dudu” and “Baba Iwo la k’epe.” Although, they didn’t sell, it didn’t matter to Tope. She didn’t give up because she knew that God had called her and who anyone calls, he makes provision and uplifts.
Tope has released lots of Gospel tracks and albums. These Gospel albums include, Ikoro Dudu, Baba Iwo, Oore ti O Common (2000), Certificate, Agbara Olorun & Agbara re Ni(2005), Kokoro Igbala, Angeli Mi, (2007), Mori’Yanu, Agbelebu (2012), Alagbara (2012), Oruko Tuntun (2014), Yes & Amen, (2018), The Spirit of Light with TY Bello (2019), Lowo Olorun Lowa (2020) and the recently released album, Hymnal Volume 1. Since the beginning of her career, she has featured in many young Gospel music ministers’ songs. Her love for God has made many people move closer to God. She has a unique and recognizable voice and she can even create a few melodies by combining modern and traditional beats. She has released some songs in the Yoruba language to the tunes of salsa, makossa, and hip-hop styles. In an interview with Punch Newspaper, Tope admitted that singing in Yoruba language put some limitations on her music. She stated thus “I want to gain more grounds for God. I have been trying to adjust because some people don’t understand Yoruba. Also, you know my Yoruba language is deep. But I cannot stop singing in my dialect because that is the gift God gave me. Most of my songs are subtitled for others to understand.”
Even with her singing in Yoruba language, Tope Alabi has become a famous and household name known in Nigeria and beyond. She has won several awards. Some of which are, “Gospel Artiste of the Year, Nigeria Entertainment Awards (2015)”, “Best Soundtrack Artiste of the Year”, “City People Movies Awards”, “Proclamation Award, New York State Senate (2016)”, “Award presented by Gospel Promotion Outreach, Orioke Baba Abiye Ede”. On the 21st of May, 2019, Nigerians on Twitter crowned Tope Alabi the queen of Yoruba language. This was as a result of a competition by United Bank of Africa in their 70th anniversary celebration.
Tope is happily married to Soji, who is also her manager and producer. Their love story began in 1994 when Soji was a studio engineer in Lagos and got a chance to produce some movie soundtracks for Tope. The two instantly fell in love, and four years later, in 1998, they got married. They both run a music label, Tope Alabi Gospel Vibes. Under this label, they organise event and concert where a lot of people come to worship God. One of the worship concert is the annual Praise The Almighty Concert. Also, they established the Mardebra Comforter Foundation, a subsidiary of the Gospel Vibes. Through the foundation, Tope and her husband cater for orphans and the less-privileged. It is revealed by them that they have never quarelled on business related issues as they understand each other very well and have the same vision concerning the business. They have three children, Ayomikun, Deborah and Boluwatife.
Tope Alabi is an example and inspiration for every person who wants to have an accomplished career and be a good spouse and parent. She has time for everything, from meeting her fans to spending quality time with her family. Her flexibility and talent also makes a difference. She got the talent, but she is flexible enough to adapt to changes in seasons.
SOURCES
ChristianDiet
Peoplepill
Entrepreneurs.ng