Amojo Amen-Niyeye: a study in Esan minstrels

Abstract

This study investigates the life and times of Atine Obetoh (Amojo Amen-Niyeye). It examines the musical creativity of this personage. This research benefits from a vast aggregate of inputs from Amojo’s siblings and his first son, Lucky Obetoh. We also harvested some remaining members of the group for their opinions on certain issues raised in this article. These were done basically through historical and analytical methods – interviews, focussed group discussions, review of audio clips and of related literature. From this study, one could vividly see that Amojo remains an enigmatic giant in Esan minstrelsy whose creative ingenuity is yet unsurpassed.

Keywords: Amojo Amen-Niyeye, Esan Minstrelsy, Genre, Technique, Style, Esanland