Oliver De Coque

Oliver De Coque started playing music at the age of 11 and was taught to play the guitar by a Congolese guitarist living in Nigeria. He was an apprentice of juju musicians Sunny Agaga and Jacob Oluwale and became locally well known by the time he was a teenager. He received international attention after performing in London in 1973 and his guitar work was featured in Prince Nico Mbarga's 1977 album Sweet Mother. His debut album, Messiah Messiah, was released in 1977. In total, De Coque recorded 93 albums. Many of his songs were noted to be in the ogene genre, blending modern music with traditional Igbo harmonies. Singles included "People's Club of Nigeria", "Nempi Social Club", "Biri Ka Mbiri", "Ana Enwe Obodo enwe", "Nnukwu Mmanwu" and "Identity", the latter of which spent several weeks on Radio Nigeria 2's Top Ten in 1981. In addition to his solo work, De Coque frequently played with the Igede International Band, led by his brother Eugene. De Coque was awarded an honorary degree in music from the University of New Orleans. He died on 20 June 2008 following a sudden cardiac arrest.