Alté music – and indeed the corresponding movement – is one that is associated with rebellion, ingenuity and breaking away from the norm. The genre has become a home for West African youths who make and enjoy music that does not fit into the scope of what is mainstream. To do Alté music, you have to be creative enough to make something different and bold enough to put it out. Not many people embody those qualities as well as Yinoluu.
He will claim to be – and the evidence to back him up is there – a pioneer of the alternative music scene in Nigeria. Having produced Odunsi The Engine’s “Alté Cruise” (the song that is, technically, the anthem of the Alté movement) all those years back, the fact is that he has been around since the start. He has remained relevant on the scene too, having produced several songs for the likes of Amaarae, PsychoYP, AYLØ to mention a few. He has also headlined a few projects of his own. His sound is both consistent and diverse with the uniqueness and genre-bending nature of each instrumental being the common denominator.
He was born Yinoluwa Olowofoyeku to a family that appreciates and indulges art in various forms. Music was his first love and the art form he was most inclined to but he also found spaces within his heart for photography, theatre, cinema and architecture (which he studied in the university). He gets inspiration from these different fields and incorporates them into his music. He has also had stints where he lived in Ghana and Canada and it’s not difficult to see how the cultures of those countries might have played in his music creation process. In short, he has no shortage of experiences to draw energy from and create endless possibilities with.
On April 9 he added “Petal Scent” to his sterling discography. The project is a 4-track collaboration with Riverays, Nigerian music duo based in Ukraine. This follows up other projects like “Daydreamer”, “Evening”, “Songs by Moonlight” and “Lost Files”. The music is as experimental as you can expect and the sounds entice you into the comfort of their ambience. It explores different moods and mind states and by the time the last second of the fourth and final song plays, you will agree with two facts: one, the “Petal Scent” experiment was a successful one and two, Yinoluu is a special talent