Breaking: Popular Nigerian gospel musician, Aduke Gold is dead

+ What She told City People

The gospel music community mourns the loss of rising star Aduke Ajayi, better known as Aduke Gold, who has sadly passed away. The news of her demise was shared on Tuesday by fellow gospel artist Esther Igbeke on social media. Esther posted a tribute with Aduke Gold’s picture and the caption: “A general has fallen. RIP.”

Aduke Gold’s death comes in the wake of the death of another prominent gospel singer, Egbin Orun, who died on April 28, 2024. Esther Igbekele, a close colleague, confirmed Orun’s death via an Instagram post.

Despite the competitive nature of the gospel music industry, Aduke Gold had made a huge impact.

Her soul-lifting songs and passion for her gift won her a growing fanbase and popularity.

Aduke Gold’s breakthrough single, “Nitori 0go” (translated as ‘Because of Glory’), featured on her popular eight-track album, gained viral praise on social media.

Aduke Gold once shared her inspiring journey on Instagram, revealing her early struggles.

From her early days of selling slippers, yam, and fried fish, to her experiences with hardship, she recounted how these challenges shaped her music career.

Aduke Gold revealed that she had once packed fish heads at a frozen foods store and had learned to cook with firewood when kerosene was scarce.

She also reflected on her personal hardships, including being orphaned at the age of four and battling severe vertigo.

Aduke’s academic achievements were as impressive as her musical career.

She earned a degree in History and International Relations from Lagos State University through a scholarship from Hon. Opeyemi Bamidele, the then Commissioner for Youths and Sports in Lagos State.

Aduke also held a higher degree in Child Psychology, a Diploma in Montessori Education from the UK, and numerous other qualifications in Special Education, Aquaculture, Cake Making, Cookery and Decoration, Music Rudiment, Business, and Piano.

Her passion extended beyond music, focusing on working with children with special needs, including autism, cerebral palsy, and dyslexia.

Below is her Last Interview with City People

I WENT THROUGH HELL TO MAKE IT IN LIFE
published by City People April 18, 2023

•Gospel Singer, ADUKE GOLD Tells City People
Aduke Gold is one of the Gospel singers who is currently making waves in Lagos. Everywhere you turn these days, Aduke Gold is there, performing in churches and at major concerts. She even gets invited to government functions. Last Christmas & New Year season, she performed back-to-back. And since then she has been on top.

What many don’t know is that her story has not been that rosy. She has had a lot of challenges and obstacles thrown her way by many of those she met on her journey.

She started off as a kid, with the stage name Aduke Penkele, but had to change to Aduke Gold, along the line, to give herself, a solid brand identity, which has turned out to be very positive.

A few days back, she was on stage at Evangelist Ebenezer Obey’s 81st Anniversary Thanksgiving in his church, Decross Gospel Mission in Lagos and she held the congregation spellbound.

It was after the scintillating performance that City People Publisher, SEYE KEHINDE & Head of City People TV, SUNDAY ADIGUN got her to open up, for the very first time, on the story of her life. Below are excerpts.

Let’s talk about your career. How has it been and how many years now?

I am heading to 21 years now by the Grace of God.

So, what has kept you going?

What has kept me going is the fact that I know I am called for it. For every facet in this journey, I have every reason to say, yes I am a called musician. Though, the financial part of it has not been coming forth but whenever I see people giving me these encouraging words, I am so happy. I am working towards the future which I know is very bright.

I know I am going to get there and I will do better.

Let me take you back to the beginning. How did the whole journey start?

I started with Aduke Penkele, and the very first media house that supported me and projected me to the world is City People. I remembered many of City People’s events, the publisher will insist that I sing first, so I became an official artist for City People, I must open the floor for every other musician, be it Fuji or Gospel.

As at then around 2008, Dr. Seye Kehinde gave me 10k personally from his own pocket, and when I am going he would ask Aunty Susan to pay me, so City People has been doing me good. I can not write the success story of my life without mentioning City People. So, from Aduke Penkele, though I had issues with my Manager then, I was under duress. I had 10 years agreement but at the 4th year because of abuses, emotional and physical abuse, it was a very tough decision for me to leave him. I left and the man blocked all opportunities that came my way. Of course, he was the one who assisted me to get them and when I left he blocked everything. What he built he crashed it, but what God built is me and nobody can crash it. All that he did then, everyone he had told to help me because I was an orphan, they went back to them and rubbish their work, and tust me the work was rubbished.

It got to a point where I needed to rebrand myself. It was then Aunty Tope Alabi told me that God told her that bearing Aduke Penkele is working against my destiny.

Then, I changed my brand from Aduke Penkele to Aduke Gold and registered it. Then I was afraid that they could do anything. I have been in a programme where Alariwo of Africa was on stage and they asked him to call me on stage and he didn’t all because the fire was on, because they vowed to deal with me because they brought me up.

So, I needed to go out of their way and start another life, and I thank God after I left God gave me “Anu Mi Mofe”, “Tori Ogo” that is trending massively now. I am still grateful to City People, especially Dr. Seye Kehinde.

At what stage are you now?

Musically, I am close to the top. I won’t fake it or show people what is not there. I am not yet there, but I am close to the top. And maybe God is preparing me to utilise what he has given me very well so that by the time I get to the top I won’t mess up. To the glory of God, I have bitter, acrimonious, average and sweet experience, so it is good for me to remember myself. I don’t let any praise get to my head because I always remember where I was coming from.

There is something within me that always tells me not to let the praise people get to you, it easily crashes people.

How do you prepare for shows?

I always prepare for my shows, even though I am doing 2nd degree UNILAG early child education. Music has been part of me. I am still very single, so I shuffle things, I go to school, it’s a week day classes. I am doing a little I could and I still believe I can do better, I am not at the climax.

How do you get songs?

I get songs just as you have said it, I don’t write songs and immediately I get it I record it. I can’t really explain it and I don’t want to lie, I get songs.

Basically what………….

I love to answer this question anytime I am been asked. Gospel means good news. If K1 comes here, he is going to tell you what has doing is good news and some people will listen to his good news.

Been a Gospel artist doesn’t confine you to the 4 corners of churches. The Bible says we are light, if I am shinning light, Baba Obey is shinning light, Baba KSA, Tope Alabi is shinning light, it will soon blind our eyes, why can’t we allow the light to go outside of the four corners of the church.

If not for the kind of agression or kind of ignorance the church or our audience have imbibed into them, I can go to Fela Shrine and sing Gospel, but if I try it now, you could imagine the kind of backlashes I will receive. But the Bible says “Go ye into the world” it didn’t specify don’t enter club or whatsoever, “Go ye” irrespective of the location. My kind of Gospel is different because I project Jesus; at the end of everything I will let people know that I serve Jesus. I can go to Lagbolagbo and sing Fuji for you, and at the very end I will let you know that I am a child of God, I serve Jesus, I carry Jesus on my head but I am not fanatic about Jesus.

If I see an Ogboni, I will respect him. Ogboni will know that I am serving Jesus; I am not the one that will turn Ogboni to a Christ child overnight, I will leave the work for the Holy Spirit. That is why I am always sorry for overbaked Christians. Many Christians will just go extral miles saying Jesus, Jesus and when they crash Jesus will still be on the throne. Most of the time I don’t allow what I believe as a Christ child to Shark me not to know my limitation. Gospel is for everywhere, anywhere. Many Christians of nowadays are too cooked and we are burning already.

Tell us about yourself, where were you born?

I was born in Badagry. I can not say much about my birth because till now I only know a little about my father. I have step brothers and sisters who are doing well but I can’t tell much about my parents.

When you look back at your career and what you have achieved how does it make you feel?

First of all the pains are much. One of the pains is lack of parental care. I have been carrying my cross since when I was in my teenage years, now I am over 30, so you can imagine how many years I have been carrying my responsibilities. I will be the only one that will get home maybe after 11 pm or 12 after the programme or owambe and start cooking for myself because I don’t eat outside. I will cook till 1 am, then read for 1 hour, 3 am/4 am.

I have woken up, 5 am I am out to school. My people will call me, I have a programme, and from school I will get a cab or Uber to the revival ground, and kit up again to perform.

So, I have been doing everything all alone.

Most of the time parental care is very paramount. My career has given me a bitter experience that has driven more to know about children. I have been abused in every way; neglect, not even talk about sexual abuse, raping that I have experienced.

So, when I see parents that don’t know how to take care for their children I pity their future.

Talking about music, what would you say has been your experience?

Music has been my pain killer, if God had not given me this opportunity to sing, maybe by now I would have been something else. I would be so callous and ruthless, because the experience itself has shown me that you have nobody, it is a situation of life that nobody wants to experience. God has really used music to tame me. Many situation that is abnormal has become so normal to me. Most of the time I will tap myself and say Aduke calm down you are still living in flesh.

I don’t believe in hospitality, anytime I move around, due to the nature of my job, as a musician and I have to do it because I can’t sleep with another woman’s husband, so I need to sing, aside the fact that people need to enjoy God in me, I need to feed myself legitimately, so I play back-to-back.