Noone’s Gonna Live Forever

Song by Dibson & Essody

Since the liberation of Nigeria in 1960, the country has always used music to vibrate and peacefully reunite everyone.

Many musicians merged politics and music into one. And that is indeed what made Nigerian Funk so great.

So many artists used music as a tool for expression. Fela Kuti comes to mind, who was a pioneer of Afrobeat, but at the same time was an activist, fighting for equality issues with his music.

And the spirit of Fela continued to progress and spread.

Dibson & Essody's "Justice" is one of the most remarkable Nigerian Funk albums you'll ever find.

Initially released in 1982 on one of the most esteemed Nigerian labels - "Wilifilms."

The Wilifilms records have always brought together the spirit of Afro-Funk and more.

The label was owned by one of the most enigmatic figures of the Nigerian music industry "William Onyeabor." He's the one to thank for pressing the liberating and groovy album.

West Africa has always been famous for its undiscovered disco jams, but this one unshackled the country's spirit.

The whole album is like an adventure through Nigerian culture. Bringing back the soul of the Funk. Vocals, bass, live drums, and lead keys were fusing to create a unique face of the country.

This duo has been forgotten and undiscovered for quite some time. Mainly because in 1982, only a couple of hundred copies were released, making this album extremely rare.

But great music finds a way.

In 2019, the collaboration between Dig this way records and Sleeve Records made it possible to repress the whole album. Two forces came together to repress this legendary album and spread it to the entire world.

And when you listen to it, you feel sorry that this groove and boogie was hiding for so long.

Seven tracks, and all of them are just iconic. We find different rhythmic beats, driven with funky synthesizers, layered percussion, and many other surprises.

But the song "No one's gonna live forever" turns over everything that we thought we knew about Nigerian Funk.

The track is already spry in the very beginning and immediately catches the audience's attention. It opens up with some hip Afro-Funk basslines and played-down percussions, which quickly merge with sick live drums and flugelhorns.

The soft and gentle voice of the vocalist woman smoothly sliding into the song, who is whipping the whole piece, but also topping off the song into one. The entire piece is resonating over sick percussions throughout 4 minutes.

While listening, and we encounter some serious synth gear in the background.

They continue to jam with catchy flugelhorns until the very end—some significant revelations of the 80s.

And the verse sung by Dibson & Essody is like another musical instrument, paired fantastically with everything else.

A concrete must listen to from Dibson & Essody.