04/08/2025
THE POWER OF MUSIC ON THE SOUL OF HUMANITY.
By Adebayo Faleke.
Imagine a world without music.
No lullabies to rock babies to sleep.
No hymns in churches, no anthems in stadiums.
No wedding songs, no songs of heartbreak, no healing chants during war.
That world would be dull. Dead. Emotionless.
Because music is not just entertainment, it is the soul's echo.
From the beginning of time, before man discovered alphabets or wrote on stone, he made music. Primitive man beat drums not just to entertain, but to speak; music was his language. In Ancient Egypt, music was sacred. In Greece, Plato insisted that children must first learn music before philosophy, because it shaped the character. In Africa, music wasn't just sound, it was a teacher, a healer, a messenger, and a memory keeper.
And as centuries rolled by, music never stopped speaking. It kept evolving, transforming minds and societies along the way. Certain musicians rose and didn’t just entertain, they shook the world. When Bob Marley sang "Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery, none but ourselves can free our minds," he wasn’t singing reggae; he was building mental revolutions across generations. When Michael Jackson sang "Heal the World, make it a better place, for you and for me and the entire human race," he wasn’t just performing; he was crying out for global compassion. And when R. Kelly sang "I believe I can fly, I believe I can touch the sky," millions of people who had lost hope began to believe again.
These are not just songs. They are soundtracks of transformation. They reached across nations, religions, races, and languages, touching everyone. Because music does what politics, religion, and education often fail to do; it connects. It teaches without shouting. It heals without medicine. It remoulds without force.
Music is therapy. Psychologists agree that it can reengineer broken minds. Music helps children learn faster. It improves memory, boosts creativity, reduces depression, and sharpens focus. In education, melodies have been used to teach alphabets, moral lessons, and national values. Imagine if our school curriculum was designed around musical intelligence, learning would be fun, retention would be better, and the message would stick.
Music is a powerful tool for social change. During apartheid in South Africa, songs were used to inspire hope and resistance. During the civil rights movement in America, music was a marching stick. In Nigeria, Fela Anikulapo Kuti used Afrobeat not just to entertain, but to fight tyranny. His songs like “Zombie,” “Sorrow, Tears and Blood,” and “Water No Get Enemy” were not just art; they were political weapons. Sunny Okosun gave us "Which Way Nigeria", a prophetic cry for national direction. Christy Essien-Igbokwe sang "Seun Rere", promoting culture and parental values. Majek Fashek pleaded for unity in "So Long Too Long." These were musicians who thought, who cared, who used their voices as interventions in a struggling society.
But what do we have today?
A generation of Nigerian artists obsessed with fame, fortune, and vanity. Music has become noise. Lyrics glorify drugs, prostitution, fraud, nudity, and moral collapse. Songs that should heal now poison. Beats that should uplift now degrade. The power that was once used to call a nation to order is now used to drag it into deeper confusion.
Who is singing for the poor today?
Who is asking the government the hard questions through music?
Who is mentoring the youth through lyrics?
The microphones are still loud, the beats are still banging, but the message is gone.
It is time we remind our artists that music is not just for clubs and charts. It is for classrooms, prisons, streets, hospitals, and hearts. It is a national weapon. A global language. A sacred responsibility.
Dear Nigerian artistes, we celebrate your talent. We admire your energy. But we challenge your conscience. It is not enough to go viral; your music must go valuable. Let your sound inspire, not just seduce. Let your lyrics build, not just boast. Let your fame become a platform, not just a playground.
The world is crying. Nigeria is bleeding. Our youths are drowning in confusion. If you can't speak through policy, speak through your music. Let your beats be a balm. Let your songs become schools. Let your words become walls that shield, not swords that stab.
Because when you sing, millions listen.
And when music speaks, the future listens too.
Dr. Adebayo Faleke
Broadcast Journalist, Author & Filmmaker.
