TolumiDE

Tolulope Yeboah (née Olumide; born in Toronto), known professionally as TolumiDE, is a Nigerian–Canadian singer-songwriter whose music is a mixture of soul and African music. A former member of Black Canadian band Women Ah run Tings, she has opened for Les Nubians and Toby Foyeh and Orchestra Africa (in addition to singing as a backup vocalist for the act), and headlined at Blues Alley in Washington D.C. TolumiDE's solo albums are My Love (2010) and Mama Sunshine (2018). Her performances have been covered in The Baltimore Sun, Nigeria's Premium Times, and music blogs like Singersroom and SoulTracks. She, or her videos, have appeared on Baltimore's Fox 45, Voice of America, Nigeria's Channels TV, and BET International.

Early life and career

Born in Toronto, Canada, to Olufolahan and Adeyinka Olumide, Tolulope Olumide was raised in Lagos, Nigeria. After completing primary school at University of Lagos Staff School and secondary school at Atlantic Hall (both in Lagos), she moved to back to Canada to study Fine Art at York University. Olumide was at the same time part of the all-female dancehall/reggae/R&B/hip hop band Women Ah run Tings, which were nominated for a Canadian Reggae Award three times. Recruited by the band's founder Lady Luscious at a summer job prior to college, she auditioned on the spot. Olumide toured with the band for six years, starting out as a backup singer then singing leads, the youngest in the group.

Solo career

Shortly after moving to the United States to pursue a career in graphic design, Olumide came up with her stage name, TolumiDE (pronounced Toe-lu-mee-day), a play on a combination of her first and last names. Word of mouth about her solo performances percolated at open mics, weddings, and festivals, and she quickly garnered a following for her vocal presence and songwriting skills which fused soul music with Nigerian culture, exploring themes of life, love, joy and inspiration with mainly English lyrics and a touch of rhythm and her native Yorùbá language.

TolumiDE's 2010 debut solo album My Love was critically praised. Culture blogger ThatKellieGirl described her single "My Love (Ke me Rocky)", which TolumiDE sang on the Morning News Show on Baltimore's Fox 45 on Memorial Day Weekend 2011, as "an uplifting song with a fun beat". As of April 2021, the YouTube music video for "My Love (Ke me Rocky)" has garnered more than 67,000 views.

MVII Magazine in 2011 described TolumiDE as "a soulful vocalist reminiscent of India Aire or Mary Mary, TolumiDE's African flair and musical styling exudes a finesse and an energy rarely seen in inspirational music". In the secular world, BET International featured the music video for her single, "For Me", in a 2012 special to mark Whitney Houston's death, re-airing it on the Ladies Love video show February 13 and 14. TolumiDE has said she wrote the song when she was considering dating and contemplating her role as a woman. That year she performed at the Theatre Royal Stratford East during the 2012 London Olympics.

TolumiDE headlined at Blues Alley in 2013 and performed at the African American Festival in Baltimore, an appearance covered in The Baltimore Sun, and the National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington D.C. in 2016. For the latter, Kevin Jackson was on guitar, Joshua Patani on bass guitar, and Emmanuel Blackwell on drums. She appeared at another area international fair, FestAfrica, the next year, a return engagement, her first being in 2012.

TolumiDE performed at MusikFest in eastern Pennsylvania in October 2018. Her second album Mama Sunshine was released the following month. Olumide was interviewed by Voice of America upon the album's entry into the World Music category of the 61st Annual Grammy Awards.

TolumiDE opened for Les Nubians, in December 2018 at Howard Theater in Washington D.C. which she has described as "a dream come true". She and her band performed selections from Mama Sunshine and other songs from their catalog along with previously unreleased tunes. The next year, TolumiDE also performed at the Atlas Performing Arts Center in Washington D.C. In January 2019, Tolumide appeared as a feature in the Visual Collaborative electronic catalogue, She was interviewed alongside other creatives from around the world such as; Remi Vaughan-Richards, Tiphanie Brooke and Kanayo Ebi.

Her 2021 single "Throwback" is a song that recalls the simpler times of childhood. It received praise from the Singersroom, whose writer stated:

Tolumide introduces us to Yoruba, one of the three major Nigerian languages through song. The rhythm is so good, you’re not going to notice anything but how it makes you want to move your feet. It's got a nice tone and engaging intent. Most will find themselves moving involuntarily, because they cannot resist and their bodies will betray you even if you’ve sworn never to dance, snap your fingers, sway, or tap your feet before you know it your neck will be giving you away.

Style

TolumiDE describes her music as "Suya Soul":

African heritage is very much part of all creative themes I explore as an artist in my music, fashion, cooking, and lifestyle. I describe my music as Suya Soul a phrase I coined to describe the fusion of contemporary R&B with African music. Suya, being a popular spicy grilled shish kebab indigenous to Nigeria and many West African countries, represents the alternative music flavor I offer to listeners who love soulful music.

The band's performing repertoire also includes covers of Sade and Onyeka Onwenu. The singer-songwriter also designs the graphics for her music brand.

Toby Foyeh and Orchestra Africa

TolumiDE also sings as a backup vocalist for Toby Foyeh and Orchestra Africa and has been doing so for over 10 years. When Foyeh started teaching her to play guitar, he would call her up to perform solo before the full Orchestra Africa performs. One such show was on February 4, 2016, at East Carolina University in Greenville, North Carolina.

Memberships

TolumiDE is a member of the Recording Academy and a voting member of the Grammys (as Tolumide Yeboah). She is also member of the nonprofit Afropolitan Youth Association, the Maryland-based hosts of FestAfrica.

Personal life

She is married and is based in Washington D.C.

Discography

• Specialty (EP, 2007)
• My Love (2010)
• Mama Sunshine (2018)

External links

• Official website

This article "TolumiDE" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:TolumiDE. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.

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