Oluwo Yusuf Gbolaga could have been many things, so multidimensional are his talents, yet it’s music that has made him. “People have been telling me I have a great voice since 2009. Wande Coal had just dropped ‘Mushin2MoHits’ and I got inspired. But I have done several other things before settling for music,” this fast-rising Lagos artist says. “At some point, I was a graphic designer, and then I was a photographer. But doing music made me realise that I actually just love to create.”

First going by the stage name YusufKanbai, he later shortened it to YKB and got noticed on SoundCloud with his freestyle ‘Swaggu’, which saw him picked up by talent incubator emPawa Africa and feature on the resulting album ‘Class of ’20, Vol. 1’. Since then, his buzz-worthy releases have included ‘Hear Me Out’, ‘Oshofree’ and ‘Dey Your Dey’ and the EP ‘Before I Blow’. He puts some of his success down to finding the right people to partner with. “I just talk to whoever is doing it for me,” he says. “Earlier in my career, I used to put everything on myself. But I came to find out that music is a very collaborative art. I’m still learning to delegate more, but I always have an input on everything that is going on. I always have a contribution.”

For an independent artist in Nigeria, noting is easy. With scrupulous policies and a very struggling economy, releasing music without a label’s backing might seem like a task for Hercules but YKB thinks that it can also be a blessing. “The odds are stacked against us as creative people in Nigeria. But I always say that tough environments create tough people,” he muses. “There are a lot of eyes on afrobeats right now. People are trying to replicate the sound but it’s not replicable because you have to go through what you go through to become what you have to. We’re forced to be more creative in such a way that people who are not experiencing those odds might not be able to attain.”

His latest hit single and video ‘San Siro’ is a perfect urban African love song. On what inspired it, YKB readily admits: “It was a girl. I wanted to make a love song for a girl I knew who liked good song-writing. I just wanted to impress her, and we thank God she liked it. So, I had already won before the song dropped.”

What he won’t do to impress others though, is compromise his fashion. For him, personal style goes deep and is another channel through which he can express his artistry. “I’ve always wanted to be that guy that shows, and not tells. I see clothing as a representation of one’s identity and not a symbol of status. That’s why you’ll never find me wearing expensive clothing, just to show that I can afford it. That’s why styling matters. Fashion is art for me. That’s why if I wasn’t doing music, I'd be doing fashion so hard. Also, the necklace I wear each day has to match my mood. All the time.”

His artistic temperament makes him the perfect addition to the ART X Live! show this weekend alongside Obongjayar, DBN Gogo and Winny plus video artists Daberechi and Fahd Bello. This immersive evening happening expresses the theme of the seventh edition of ART X Lagos, ‘Who will gather under the Baobab tree?’ through its contemporary celebration of previous generations of African musicians whose shoulders this stellar line-up stands upon.

“I’ve cancelled all my shows leading up to ART X Lagos because of rehearsals and all. For them to tap me and say they want me to go on it, to share the stage with some serious musicians and visual artists, you know I’m going to give it my all. It feels like an exam,” YKB humbly confesses. As he conquers this local audience and looks to the global one, his melodious tales of love, navigating the industry and life as a young mogul are set to take him to the top.

Nataal is media partner for ART X Lagos. The fair is at The Federal Palace Lagos from 4-6 November 2022. Find out more here.