Ola Onabule signs international recording deal.

Written by | Artists, News

Ola Onabule announced today his signing to New York based jazz and world music label Dot Time Records.  His first release under the new contract will be titled “It’s The Peace That Deafens” and is scheduled for worldwide release in October 2015.

It’s The Peace That Deafens” will be Onabule’s eighth studio outing. Recorded in London and mixed in the USA by three time Grammy winner George Whitty, the album marks a departure from Onabule’s two recent albums and features a largely acoustic set, reminiscent of the great Jazz and Soul artists of the 1960s and 70s, whose music was able to change perceptions and open minds.

When asked in a recent interview by Becca Horne, published on this site, to describe the album Ola responded:

The new album is a collection of songs written about my experience and my sense of Africa, Nigeria more specifically. I spent 9 years of my childhood there. And I am at the point of my life where it is almost required or expected, to be nostalgic. I have always had a tense struggle with my Nigerian-ness, on one hand I am extremely proud of my Nigerian heritage, but I am very unhappy with some of the memories I have and some of the things that have happened and are continuing to happen […]. The songs are stories and memories that I have of that time. I decided to call the album, The Peace That Deafens because, I realized, I have never really ever heard of any concerted efforts to change some of the things that I think need to be addressed. Nigerians are among the most educated people in Africa, but they are also conformists. No one has ever really wanted to “rock the boat.” They want to maintain the status quo or what they call peace. I think this peace is the most raucous sound I have ever heard. When I wrote the song, It’s The Peace That Deafens, I knew it had to be the title song.”

With his career spanning over two decades, Ola Onabule is an artist that has blazed his own trail at every step choosing to work outside the system, in fact the majority of his previous albums have been released independently through his own label Rugged Ram Records. The move to work with an established label would seem to be a logical step in Ola’s career giving him more time to focus on his busy touring schedule and the many collaborations he is involved with. 

In the press release his management stated:

… we are excited to be embarking upon this new relationship with Dot Time Records. It marks a new phase in Ola’s career and will help to realize and expand upon his international potential as a recording and performing artist.”

It’s The Peace That Deafens” is scheduled for worldwide release on Dot Time Records in October 2015.

More information at www.dottimerecords.com

Last modified: July 15, 2018