Her name and talent have become an admired brand in the gospel music sector. She has not only become a sought-after gospel minister, but also an inspiration to all and sundry through her spirit-filled works.
Popular gospel music minister, Patricia Temitope Alabi, fondly called Tope Alabi by her fans, has dedicated her life in igniting souls and populating the kingdom of God with her music.
Despite her steady rise and her exertion to remain on top, she has proved that her music is divine and that she is not ready to lose her space in the industry.
A recent work entitled: The Spirit of Light, from Alabi in collaboration with a popular songwriter and celebrity photographer, TY Bello, has proved that she is indeed an exceptional musician, following the success, as well as the instant acceptance the song received from her fans and lovers of good music generally.
“It is my song. I went to TY Bello’s studio for a photo shoot. I spent about two days with her and on the second day, we did a spontaneous worship. She was the inviting artiste and I think I am the third person. I felt the presence of the Holy Spirit and the host of heaven immediately when we started. I told them I can’t eat or do anything any longer aside the worship,” she revealed.
Unknown to many, the hit song, Logan Ti Ode, according to her, was the ninth track of the 15 songs recorded on the fateful day. “We did about 15 songs. She (TY Bello said that God told her to keep quiet that I should continue with the song and I felt the manifestation of the Holy Spirit during the rendition. Logan Ti Ode was the ninth track of all the songs we did on that day. I was in trance, when I was singing the song; I was with Jesus at that moment. I didn’t know how I did it; I didn’t know how the lyrics came or what brought about the song. It was until when I watched the video later that I saw how the whole thing went. I saw how I was crying with my eyes closed. I cannot even explain the whole experience enough, because it was beyond my imagination. It was TY Bello that made me realise that I had just done 15 track-songs. She has a track making it 16,” she recounted.
On whether she was convinced that the song would be a hit, Alabi said she never thought so, especially with the fact that it was not a fully prepared production unlike her previous works.
“The song was just coming with a free flow. The inspiration was so sudden. I started with We Are Here To Bless Your Name Sweetest Jesus, and that is a song I had never sang in my life; it was the Holy Spirit that bought it. So, I sang the song till when the inspiration of Logan Ti Ode came. The origin of this was part of the TY Bello’s effort to celebrate me with something and one of the songs of the spontaneous worship on my birthday. So, she was trying to put the songs together and I think that Logan Ti Ode was the one that was ready for her to use along my pictures slides. There are still lots of powerful songs in the spontaneous worship,” she stated.
For Alabi, her major goal is not only about her music and the glamour she brings onto stage. According to her, the main thing she carries about is God and that she would not want anyone to be distracted by her look, but that they should concentrate more on the inherent messages in her songs and above all, to look onto God.
As a strong voice in the industry through her wealth of experience and influence, Alabi also expressed her optimism on the future of the industry at large. “I feel the gospel music industry is going higher. I see God moving through us more than ever before. In five years time, I am afraid of what God is going to do in our midst. I can see that people are now more of God than the world,” she added.
Following the success of her recent concert that set the city of Lagos agog, the light-skinned gospel musician is currently warming up for the international version in March this year.
“Some promoters are collaborating with me to take the concert to Canada; so, it is not my personal plan. We had a meeting and I accepted. It will not be a sole performance; I have other notable Nigerian artistes that will perform at the event.”
So far, the Ogun State-born film composer-cum-gospel artiste has churned out many hit albums and songs, including Ore ti o Common, Agbo Jesu, Mori Iyanu and Amin. Through various film productions, stage drama and most importantly, soundtrack production. She has more than 350 soundtracks to her credit. She remains a trend-setter of soundtracks in the Yoruba speaking movie industry.
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