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How did the reunion of your musical partnership influence the creative process for this album, and what was it like working together again as former husband and wife?
We went in to this musical partnership with great excitement knowing that we both have grown so much over the years musically, professionally and personally. We knew our evolution would be present in “OLATUJA” and the ease of creating together would be amplified. We remained close friends after our marital relationship transitioned back to friendship so there was already a strong foundation of trust to create from.
The album beautifully blends soul, jazz, gospel, and Afrobeats. How did your diverse backgrounds and experiences shape the sound and themes of this project?
We’ve always prioritized the merging of our musical ideals and backgrounds to create something new and synergistic. So we trusted each other’s musical experiences to do the shaping and the sounding with “OLATUJA”.
What was the most challenging aspect of creating this album, and how did you overcome it as a team?
Sometimes when schedules get busy you have to dig deep for the energy to create something from nothing, the alchemy of songwriting. But to avoid burnout we approached the making of “OLATUJA” as a team. We would lean on each other for inspiration through conversation and allowed each other to take the lead on certain songs, navigating what direction we wanted a song to go.
The album features several musical collaborators. Can you talk about some of the guests and how their contributions enhanced the overall sound?
For us every musician that lended their genius to “OLATUJA” really helped enhance the sound, not just the featured musicians. However being able to capture the inspiration of featured artists Christian Sands, Femi Temowo, and David Rosenthal really opened our ears to how the music spoke to them through their artistic contributions, offering a whole new perspective of the music.
What are some of the central themes explored in the lyrics of this album, and how do they reflect your personal journeys and artistic growth?
“OLATUJA” speaks about love, loss, transformation, resilience and self-empowerment. These themes were the backbone of the conversations had between us that shaped the lyrical and musical content.
Looking ahead, do you have any upcoming projects or plans to continue working together, or are there individual pursuits you’re excited about?
We look forward to a lifetime of musical creativity and collaboration! We make music magic together, a whole new level of “feel-good music” that leaves our audiences uplifted! We also look forward to our individual pursuits coming up that will contribute to the continued evolution of our craft that will only enhance our future collaborations together and with other artists as well! OLATUJA is not just the music we make, it’s who we are.

Photo Credit: Whirlwind Recordings