Bidemi Olaoba, an anointed man of God and gospel star with a unique style whose ministry has continued to confound many with his special gift. In such a short while, Bidemi has recorded such a phenomenal rise within the gospel community. Without a doubt, if you put together a list of the five biggest Gospel artistes in the land today, Bidemi Olaoba will most definitely be on that list. The very first thing about Bidemi, apart from the incredible gospel hit songs he has put out there, is that he is unbelievably humble. He has attained a celebrity status that many of his contemporaries, both male and female, will give an arm and a leg to. But yet, Bidemi carries on like he has no idea how hugely popular and successful he has become. His humility shows in the way he relates with people. Bidemi Olaoba wears no chips on his shoulders, and when he is ministering, he takes the task very seriously. For him, the art of ministering through worship is not showbiz. He never forgets that his principal task is not to entertain people as a gospel minister but to let the people hear God through him, pure and simple. No doubt about it, Bidemi Olaoba has emerged as one of the most powerful and celebrated voices in the gospel music industry. This young, vibrant and hugely talented minister of the gospel took the gospel community by storm some few years ago and despite the precarious nature of the sector, Bidemi has remained at the very top in spite of all odds previously stacked against him. As a performer and minister, Bidemi has been incredibly consistent, putting out great musical works that have become phenomenal hits in their rights. Bidemi, in this interview with WALE LAWAL, took time to respond sufficiently to each question despite that he was running a pretty tight schedule. Enjoy excerpts of the interview.
We are so delighted to finally have you with us. How has it been for you in the last few years? How have you been able to handle the challenges and the joy of success and fame?
First, I want to appreciate you for this wonderful privilege to be interviewed by your platform. I would give everything to God. Paul said, I am what I am by the grace of God. So, my success story has not been totally smooth. There are low moments obviously and there are not so low moments. But I thank God for His consistent mercy that He has shown me because it is only by God’s mercy. It’s not about talent. It’s not about energy. It’s whom God has shown mercy that is able to even be a star. We are all stars. We all have glory and we all shine differently. In the past few years, I have been intentional enough to put in more work, especially because as much as you grow high, the more you have to be intentional about your humility. This is another thing that I would like to let people see and know about the Bidemi Olaoba brand.
What do you think the younger generation of musicians would need to understand that you didn’t get the success you enjoy today served on a platter of gold, you worked hard for it because they always want to hit it big from the very top.
There is no overnight success. Anything that starts from the top takes you close to the grave. For you to bear fruit, you have to first of all be ready to serve. You have to go down, you have to be planted, you have to be rooted. To a young and aspiring artist that thinks that there is an overnight success, that’s a big lie. Yes, there is a place for hard work but more importantly, there is a place of the grace of God. And the Bible says that God gives grace to the humble. Yes, you have to be consistent. Yes, you have to be very hardworking. But character is something that you cannot afford to joke with. Anybody can have an opportunity to be seen or to be heard. But it only takes a man or a woman with good character to stay at the top. I would just encourage the young aspiring artists to be as diligent as possible. The bible says if you see a man that is diligent in his business, he will stand before kings and all men to be diligent at what you do. But at the same time, there is no other means of getting to the top except from the mercy and the grace of God. Please don’t run helter-skelter. Also, one thing that this generation lacks is the spirit of service. If you don’t serve, you will not have the mantle. You have to have the mantle, it’s a must, it’s a spiritual pre-requisite for greatness. Elisha served before he could have the double portion of Elijah. Jacob served even before he later became Israel. And there are so many others. Joseph had to serve at Potiphar’s house before he became the Prime Minister. Service is critical because a lot of people just want to wake up and become known overnight. Most of the grace that will be endowed on you comes in your years of service to God and to spiritual authorities.
Before you became a gospel star, who was your spiritual mentor? Who are those that influenced you?
I grew up at Christ Apostolic Church. I submitted to the authority of the church, that was when I was a child growing into a teenager. But when I became a youth, I became active with the RCCG youth ministry. From then till now, I am totally submissive to the authority of the church head, which is Pastor E.A. Adeboye.
So you’re a full time member of RCCG?
Yes, a devoted member of the RCCG.
How much influence did your mom and dad have on you in terms of directing your growth towards the way of the Lord? What sort of role did they play in your journey to becoming who you are today?
My parents played a huge role. The Bible says train up a child in the way he should go so that when he grows, he will not depart. The Bible is very clear about this. It’s like a promise with a reward. Train up a child in the way he should go and he will not depart from it. My mother played a huge role. My mother was the usher in our church. You know how ushers can be. They make sure that everybody is orderly and attentive. I would always stay up during prayer hours, during sermons. She would ensure that we go to church, even as a child she mandated us to go for all the vigils, even when we were not willing to. And that played a huge, huge role in my spiritual growth as a young child.
Those days, did you ever think you were going to go into music and become this big? At what point did you realize this was the way you were going to go?
So, growing up, I had wanted to just study my medicine. I knew I had the talent at some point as a child but I didn’t envisage it would transform into the whole Bidemi Olaoba that I am today. I would say that I was very… I was just doing my thing. I was just singing. But at the same time, I was focused on my studies in school. But at some point, God began to show me off from my local church, Christ Apostolic Church at Agiliti, Mile 12. And that was when I began to attract a whole lot of attention, and the encouragement and support started to come in with people saying, Bidemi Olaoba, you can do it. I followed up it as a ministry.
Despite your huge success, you have remained a respectful personality. How did that part of you evolve from childhood to now and has come to play a big role in your success story?
I think the reason I have stayed this way is because I am aware of the danger that comes with pride. I mean, pride is a spirit and pride is also when you see yourself above what you are or you are not. I’m a man that God has just decided to be merciful unto. I don’t see myself as deserving of the mercies and the goodness of God. I see myself as just someone that God just showed mercy. I don’t see myself in that light of, yes, I have now become a star or something. I don’t see a reason to be proud. Because if God could dust me up, you know, and put me here, God can actually dust anybody up and lift him up. I’ve read in the scriptures and I’ve seen how pride played out negatively in people’s lives. I would not want to be another example, so that’s why humility is my anchor. And our father in the Lord, Pastor Adeboye has also mirrored that and that’s what our members, his children, his sons, have to follow. We follow him even as he follows Christ. Yeah, growing up, how that has also shaped this spirit of humility. I would say, I mean, coming from a humble background, you know, we were not very rich, you know, but we were okay, but just there. Yeah, so I mean, I would say that also influenced my perspective towards life.
How do your mom and dad feel about what you have achieved today?
I would say my mom is understandably proud, she still called me yesterday. She’s always about, oh, you need to rest and take things easy. Yeah, the marriage part is also something that she will always mention every day, so we are used to that. But I would say they are happy, they are grateful to God for how God has, you know, helped us. I would say my dad is very proud of me. I mean, he calls me, puts me on calls with his friends, you know, and he will be like, oh, yeah, that’s my son. So, the other day I visited them, like, you know, he literally made sure I was greeting everybody. You know, he was like, oh, yeah, that’s my boy, that’s my son. I’m not a parent yet, the joy can only be understood by parents. So, yeah, I would say they are joyful. I’m sure they are also grateful to God for giving them a child like Bidemi because it’s like a reward for their prayers.
Which of your works would you say really blew you and put you out there for the world to see?
Okay, I will say, ‘Give me chance,’ and ‘Isi gini’, I think those two did it for me, they pushed me beyond the shores of Nigeria. As a matter of fact, we are currently working on a project in collaboration with Pastor Travis Greene on the remix of ‘Give Me Chance.’ We are still working on that. As for ‘Isi gini’, I didn’t know that song travelled as mightily as it did, until I started seeing videos of people in foreign land singing the song word for word despite that they really don’t understand the meaning of those words. So, oftentimes, they are asking questions, like what’s the meaning of ‘mo gan pa’? And the energy level of the song as well is something else. We have other songs as well that also blew me out there.
How about locally, is there any particular song you would pick?
Alright, I will say, ‘Ta lo to ba Olorun ja.’ But even that one, I think it also pushed me beyond the country but I think perhaps ‘Give me Chance’ and ‘Isi gini’ just have a wider reach. There is also ‘Anu Re Lo Gbe Mi fo’ and other songs as well, but I will give the biggest credit to ‘Give Me Chance’ because that song got into the white community as well, and same with ‘Isi gini’. I remember the other day at the Experience, Israel Hilton came on stage, seeing the whole energy coming from the crowd, and was like, what’s the guy saying? So, yes, I will say those two did it for me.
