Performative Dimensions of Gospel Music Artistry in Nigeria

Abstract

While in America, gospel music is a form of music that is deemed an offshoot of African spirituals, in Nigeria, gospel music evolved from the evangelistic activities of Christians who used the music in their outreaches. From being an evangelistic music, gospel music has become the mainstay of church music in many churches in Nigeria; thus, there is an increasing patronage of gospel music artists in Nigeria. This has led to the formation of gospel music bands by many practitioners whose performances are here referred to as gospel music artistry. In addition to singing, the gospel musicians have incorporated additional sonic and extra-sonic nuances into their church musicianship; however, how gospel music is performed in the context of church music has not engrossed adequate scholarly discourse. This has left performance practices of gospel music as a form of church music out of the grasp of standard gospel music literature, especially in Nigeria. This article engages non-participant observation and interview of select gospel music artists to discuss the performative dimensions of gospel music artistry in Nigeria and their implications for church music directing. Findings indicate that gospel music artistry in the context of church music in Nigeria includes prayers, prophesy, preaching, singing, choreography, sound engineering, and dancing. The findings underscore the importance of knowledge of Christian worship, preaching, prophecy, choreography; and sound engineering to gospel music directing. It is recommended that music directors should be knowledgeable in the reported dimensions for effective church music directing.