Voice from musical edge of African diaspora – Winnipeg Free Press

Tomiwa Omolayo sees himself as a futurist.

“You know the way hip-hop took over the world for a while? Afrobeats is going to be the next wave,” says the Nigerian-born, Winnipeg-based musician, whose stage name is Tommyphyll.

Omolayo also believes Winnipeg is an emerging hub for some of the most cutting-edge sounds of African diasporic music.

“Music execs that are present here would have the advantage of significantly tapping in early before the rest of Canada starts to realize that, ‘Oh, there’s something really special that’s going on here,’” he says.

The 27-year-old performs an evening of original music Thursday, Jan. 16 at the Rady Jewish Community Centre’s Music ’N’ Mavens concert series. Omolayo calls his program Afrodiem, a portmanteau of “afrobeats” and “carpe diem,” which is Latin for “seize the day.”

In this way, he reflects the modernist leanings of his take on the afrobeat genre, which emerged in the 1960s as a fusion of traditional Nigerian and Ghanaian sounds with American jazz, funk and soul.

In the 2000s, a distinctly new wave emerged — often called afrobeats (note the addition of the “s”) — influenced by more contemporary pop styles like hip-hop and electronic dance music.

Omolayo’s mission is to further push the genre into unexplored terrain.

“The ethos of most of my music is progressive. It’s about looking towards (the future),” he says.

Omolayo’s mother is a singer and his father is a visual artist. His far-ranging references reflect this artistic upbringing.

One influence he cites is Afrofuturism, an esthetic that uses sci-fi and technology to explore African diasporic experiences and envision Black futures.

In a nod to this influence, his Instagram profile reads: “Afrobeats from the year 3570.”

Omolayo, who put out his first album, The Art of Dreams, in 2020, says he’s been making original music — including mixing and producing his own beats — for about seven years. (Pointing out that this math doesn’t add up, given that he lives over 1,500 years in the future, earns a gracious laugh.)

But his experiences in the performing arts go back to his childhood in Lagos.

“My mom was actually the one who taught me how to sing. I was in a lot of musical theatre, like The Sound of Music to Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat,” he says.

Omolayo moved to Canada in 2015 to study at the University of Manitoba (graduating with a degree in global political economy), and decided to pursue music professionally around the time of the pandemic.

Afrobeats is now an international sound, inflected by the regional styles and experiences of Nigerians and Africans across the globe. But finding like-minded musicians in this little city on the Prairies was tough for Omolayo at first.

“In the past three years, I would say a growing community has emerged,” he says.

“I genuinely feel like Winnipeg itself will become a strong contender in the Canadian music scene, and I’m not even talking like a decade from now, but probably like in the next three to four years.”– Tomiwa Omolayo

“People have been doing it before that time, but I think the influx of international students also coming to the province to study (has helped). I’m actually excited for where it’s going.”

Omolayo is taking an active role in developing that community, not just as an artist but as organizer. Since May, he’s worked as the co-ordinator of Manitoba’s Black Professionals in Music program, taking over the role from founder Andrew Sannie after he moved to Toronto.

While Omolayo also hears the siren song of Toronto, for now he’s strongly invested in Winnipeg.

“I genuinely feel like Winnipeg itself will become a strong contender in the Canadian music scene, and I’m not even talking like a decade from now, but probably like in the next three to four years,” he says.

Omolayo is collaborating with many of these local talents on his next album, Afromdiem — arc 1, which is set to be released in the spring.

In the meantime, he’s looking forward to performing at Music ‘N’ Mavens — delivering what he expects will be the first afrobeats concert in a series that leans towards jazz, folk and classical.

“I’m excited to see how that goes and to also take in their feedback and the reception,” he says. “It definitely will be an interesting mixture.”

conrad.sweatman@freepress.mb.ca

Conrad Sweatman
Reporter

Conrad Sweatman is an arts reporter and feature writer. Before joining the Free Press full-time in 2024, he worked in the U.K. and Canadian cultural sectors, freelanced for outlets including The Walrus, VICE and Prairie Fire. Read more about Conrad.