Twelve Summers of BOJ

Coat and jacket by KIDSUPER, top by ZEGNA, pants by BURBERRY, sunglasses by GENTLE MONSTER, jewelry is BOJ’s own.

Gianni Lee— What do people call you? What do the fans call you?

BOJ— My fans call me Bolaji, some people call me BOJ.

Do you like one better?

Bolaji or BOJ. I don't mind.

Can you explain your heritage and your tribe?

I'm Yoruba; that's my tribe. I live in Lagos, but my family comes from Ogun State, from a place called Sagamu.

How did that impact your music and your growth in music?

So I grew up in Lagos, which is like fast life. It’s very, very chaotic — almost like New York. I was born in London, which is another chaotic place. I feel like that blend of Nigerian tradition and the Western influence of London just comes together. I feel like it has an impact on my sound, and I feel like it has an impact on my fashion as well.

Do you feel that your Nigerian upbringing keeps you centered?

So when you're Nigerian, it's like you're born with a sense of pride already. Wherever you go in the world, you know where you're from, and you hold onto that.

Coat by LOEWE, sweater and cardigan by PAUL SMITH, sunglasses by GENTLE MONSTER, jewelry is BOJ’s own.

How do you feel about New York City?

I fuck with New York. I fuck with it!

How does it make you feel when you are here?

If I’m being honest, like in America in general, I'm always on edge. You see so many things on TV, you hear about so many things that happen here, so I just feel on edge. But I would say there’s a lot of culture here. It’s multicultural, and I vibe with that. That’s one of the reasons I like London as well.

What I like about London is people are going to tell you what it is. I see people always debating, having arguments outside.

You know what's crazy? I feel like in America, people are more straightforward and blunt, whereas in the UK, it’s more polite.

Polite, like political almost?

Yeah, like, “I'm afraid I can't let you in.” Like, what do you mean you're afraid? So I get to the club and they’re like, “I’m afraid…” you know? Whereas in America, it’s more like, “Get the fuck out of here!”

What's your favorite dish in New York?

To be honest it's African food, man. I like Chick-fil-A too… It's not bad!

Chick-fil-A is good. The chicken has a lot of flavor in it. Have you ever had some Southern fried chicken, like soul food?

Not yet.

You need a good Southern Black restaurant and get some good hearty soul food! If you could bring anything from London or Nigeria to get a good American twist what would it be?

Just food, just food! If Nigerian food was accessible, this place would be perfect. You know about this restaurant called Lagos? That's the only one I know about.

Top by OFF-WHITE, shorts by KENZO, boots by DIESEL, socks by CALVIN KLEIN, sunglasses by A BETTER FEELING, jewelry is BOJ’s own.

Who are some of your musical idols?

So, my musical idols were all discovered when I was younger, like way younger. When I used to move around with my parents — I was an only child for 9 years — I just listened. I used to like Wyclef, Sean Paul, Tracy Chapman, Toni Braxton... all these people. That's who my parents used to listen to, so naturally, I got influenced by that.

I love Toni Braxton. Why her in particular? Did you find her interesting as a kid, or was it just because your parents were playing her?

It’s both. It was my mom listening to her, and me thinking she was a dude. Her voice was so strong. I remember this argument with my mom when I was a kid in the car. I was arguing with her, saying, "This is a guy singing," and she was telling me, "No, it’s not, it’s Toni Braxton." And I was like, "Her name is Toni Braxton — that's a guy's name!" Her voice was so strong! Then, a couple of years ago, maybe like three years ago, she came to Lagos, and out of nowhere bro she just goes on Instagram to make a video and she's singing my song. Imagine that! That's crazy, that's crazy! She's there singing my song, and then she's like, “This is one of my favorite artists from Africa.” I was like, "what the fuck?"

You grew up on her!

I grew up listening to her, and then she was right there. The show she came for, I actually went with a friend. She’s an artist as well, Tiwa Savage. She was performing at the same event, so I went there to meet her. I saw Toni Braxton perform, and then the next day, that whole thing happened on Instagram. Our teams linked up, and now we’re trying to make music.

Do you ever think about the impact of your music when people listen to it?

I really don't care to know what people think about it or what they don't think about it. That's the truth. I don't care to know their opinions; this is just my way of expressing myself. What I want people to take away is that, as a human being, you can express yourself freely without boundaries, no matter what it is. That's what I want people to feel when they see me. I come from a place where I was expected to be a doctor or accountant or something like that, but that's just not me, you know? I followed what I wanted to do, and I feel like everyone should be confident enough to do the same, whether you're scared, have doubts, or whatever. If you have a passion or love for something, try to make that your bread and butter.

Coat by CASABLANCA, top by PAUL SMITH, pants by ZEGNA, jewelry is BOJ’s own.

What does brotherhood mean to you?

Brotherhood, to me, just means loyalty. It means love. Unconditional love.

I ask that because you were part of a group.

I still am!

How do you pronounce it? DRB? What's the full name?

Double R Boys. Before I joined, before it was anything, it was two of my boys, Benzo and Fresho. They were rappers at the time, so it was like ‘Rap Royals’. The first ‘R’ is from ‘Rap’ and the second ‘R’ is from ‘Royals’. That's ‘Double R’, so that's what it is; Double R Boys.

How did you get your first big break? What got you guys to your audience? Were you doing this on your own?

Still doing it on my own... But yeah, we were doing it ourselves back in school, sending it via email to our friends. Remember when MSN was popping? That's how we used to share the music. I was just recording, and we'd send it out to our friends. There were a bunch of high schools that were all kind of interconnected, and suddenly the music started spreading between schools.

They would just play the songs on their phones?

Yeah, played on their phones, you know. Play it at parties. Send it to their friends like, “look at these guys that we know doing music.” That kind of shit.

So when did you first realize that this is really going to hit? Was it one certain song that you sent and it spread to the schools faster?

So yeah, it was one song we did. It used to be mostly remixes of songs we did, like "Bedrock" and "Champion". Then we made an original song, and it was an Afrobeat song. Most of the people who connected with it were Nigerians or Africans in general. So that particular song had everyone going, “What the fuck?!” And this was at a time when it wasn't even cool to listen to Afrobeats or be an Afrobeat artist.

Why?

Because it just wasn't cool. We didn’t identify with it. A lot had been stripped away from us, and you weren't that proud to be African before. I'm talking about around 2009. It was like, you were proud, but you kind of suppressed it when you were in the Western world. So at that point, doing that was kind of crazy — like, wow! Everyone actually connected with it, so we just kept it going.

So what happened from there? When did you get signed?

Nah, I’m not signed at all.

Oh, all independent?

Yeah! I have distribution, but yeah.

Jacket, top and pants by HERMES, sunglasses by CELINE, jewelry is BOJ’s own. 

How instrumental do you think YouTube was to your rise? Through the group and as a solo artist?

I feel like with the group, we started calling each other ‘Alté guys’, which means you're left of center. It was like saying you're doing things differently. So we started saying, "I'm Alté, I'm Alté." Next thing you know, it's now a subgenre in the African music space, in the Afrobeat space in general — something that has been recognized worldwide.

You coined this phrase?

Yeah, we coined that term. My guy Teezee, my boy, one of my closest friends — he's also in DRB – he's always making up slang. He was the one who just started saying, "Alté." It was him, TK, and FJ. When you see someone dressed extra extravagantly, you know, it's like, "That guy's Alté."

How do you feel about being called the Godfather of Alté?

Eh. It's cool, it's cool. I don't really…..It’s whatever, man. It is what it is.

How do you feel about people that might get inspired by the sound or copy it?

I feel like that's why we're here. That's the one new thing that we brought, and it gives me pride when I see people trying to imitate something that I'm doing. It just means I'm doing something cool. A lot of people get pissed off when others imitate them, but I feel like imitation is the best! It's like a form of flattery, right? It's a compliment.

Shirt, pants and tank top by DSQUARED2, boots by DIESEL, sunglasses by A BETTER FEELING, jewelry and hat are BOJ’s own.

It was announced on June 12th, 2023, that the Recording Academy added a new category called ‘Best African Music Performance’. It states that Alté is eligible to be included, which means nominees will no longer be limited to genres such as Afrobeats. How do you feel about this?

I think that's good! I think it's great to get recognized on a global scale because that's like the most popular platform for world music. I think that's dope, man. Shout out to them for being more inclusive and all that.

I think fashion is a key staple in African culture, definitely in Nigeria. Where do you see Nigerian fashion going in the next five to ten years and are you gonna be a part of it?

I'm one hundred percent going to be a part of it. I can only see it getting better, bigger. Yeah, there's a whole bunch of African and Nigerian designers that are doing crazy things right now, like worldwide you know. I think it's fucking dope.

What's a typical day like for you in Nigeria?

Mostly, I'm at home recording music. I go to the beach a lot. Every weekend I go to the beach. But during the week, if I don't have any meetings or shows, I'm at home in the studio. Every once in a while, I do go out, but not too much.

Coat and jacket by KIDSUPER, top by ZEGNA, pants by BURBERRY, shoes by CAMPERLAB, sunglasses by GENTLE MONSTER, jewelry is BOJ’s own.

Tell me more about your new project, 12 Summers.

I've been in the game for twelve years. I've been doing music professionally for twelve years, and it's like a celebratory album, basically. I'm just happy with where I am in life andI'm looking forward. This is the twelfth summer, and I was about to drop it in the summer. It’s like a summer-y album.

Do you feel like it's a culmination of everything you’ve done thus far, or do you feel like it's a rebirth?

I always feel like every time I drop something, it’s a reintroduction. I’m always trying to elevate each time, so yeah, you could say that.

You have thirteen tracks on the album. Was that intentional?

It was meant to be twelve. I wanted it to be twelve. But then I did one more song with a guy called Blanco from the UK, who I recently found out about. I was such a big fan that I tried to get him on a song. I reached out kind of late, but he sent his verse back in time. There was another song on the album that I was planning to replace if Blanco's verse came back, but I still loved the other song so much that I was like, ‘no, thirteen is fine.’

What's your favorite song off the album?

Right now? Today, it's "Borderline" featuring Cruel Santino. It's just the one I've been vibing with the most lately. I've been around America, doing a lot of listening and launch events, and hearing everything loud — that’s the one that's always [my favorite.]