Ife Ogunjobi's 'Tell Them I’m Here' - First Listen

From the first note, Ife Ogunjobi’s new EP announces itself with a radiant self-assurance. Tell Them I’m Here is a surge of colour and feeling, a project that opens its chest wide and lets every influence breathe. Alive and bursting with the groove and joy of Afrobeats, the raw emotion of R&B, and the freedom of London’s jazz lineage and the grit that shaped him in South East London, the Ezra Collective star pulls his life experiences into one warm and colourful embrace that extends to every ear that takes the time to listen. 

It can best be described as music that greets you at the door and pulls you straight into its world, vibrant, layered and deeply human. Ife moves between nostalgia and discovery, stitching his Nigerian roots into every rhythm and letting his trumpet speak with a voice that is equal parts playful, fearless and sincere. Tell Them I’m Here does not just reintroduce him; it affirms him and his journey up until this point.

Initial reaction

On first listen, the EP feels like a burst of energy and identity. There is a sense of arrival, a confident re-centring as Ife blends the worlds that shaped him with the clarity of someone who knows exactly what he wants to say. The sound hits instantly full of rhythm, momentum and intention. It feels like a fresh beginning but also like a homecoming.

Artistic perception

Artistically Tell Them I’m Here feels like a powerful expansion of Ife’s voice. His trumpet becomes a storyteller that carries memory, emotion and cultural weight. The compositions feel free yet grounded, refusing to sit neatly in any one genre. There is honesty in the melodies and a deep curiosity in the production. It reads as a project made by someone who has spent years learning, absorbing and now finally choosing to speak in his own language.

Visuals

The EP evokes scenes of movement and colour. The visuals that rise from the music are rooted in the philosophy that everyone needs to be more childlike. A younger Ife in motion wide wide-eyed and absorbing everything around him, is seen as the centre of the artwork, while the present-day version carries that spirit forward with fuller understanding. The artwork mirrors this merging of timelines, youthful freedom meeting intentional creation.

Final thoughts

Tell Them I’m Here is bold, personal and beautifully crafted. It solidifies Ife as not just an exceptional musician but a narrator of culture and emotion. The EP leaves you with a sense of uplift and a desire to run it back immediately to catch every detail you might have missed the first time. It is the sound of an artist standing firmly in his identity and it sets the tone for what feels like an exciting new chapter.

Tell them I’m here - announcing your presence. How much does this speak to it being your first body of work since Stay True (2023) and how have you evolved since then?

I feel like I wanted to use this title. With this EP, I'm finding my feet in terms of where I am as an artist and knowing what sound I have. There are so many sounds and genres on this EP, but they all come together to make me who I am as a person. The EP is called Tell Them I’m Here because I'm honest and apologetic and true to myself on this record, a continuation of the last project. This is definitely a new beginning in terms of reannouncing myself and really putting myself forward as an artist. 

East Street Market, the opening track, pertains to your upbringing in South East London. Though you’re influenced by your Nigerian heritage, how much of that DNA can you pertain to your music? 

It’s all over that project, and especially on that track. In terms of Nigerian influence in my music it’s everything from old school to new school. Things like King Sunny Adé, Fela Kuti, Victor Olaiya - and the new school - Tems, Asake, Wizkid, Burna Boy. ‘East Street Market’ was so special because it feels timeless and modern. When I listen to it I get the feeling of those Nigerian  artists I mentioned, but it sounds so timeless and so London.  When I hear this track, I think of East Street Market and its African influences - it’s busy, chaotic, and frantic with all this energy. Just like East Street Market, which is why I named the track that.

Sam Henshaw joins you on ‘Cali’ for a vibrant collaboration - Although you’re most probably used to collaboration, as a solo artist, how do you pick the right voice to accompany your music? 

‘Cali’ specifically was interesting. We were going in the Hip Hop direction. When we were making the song, we did something that was so different to what I had done before, like a lot of tracks on this project. It sounded sick, but it needed some extra sauce and influence for something else. I’ve known Sam Henshaw for a long time, since lockdown times. I’ve seen his shows and he’s come to see some of mine. He’s a good friend of mine and he’s so talented in so many different ways. It’s hard to describe his talent unless you’re in the room, he sings, he raps, he writes - he can do it all. This track was so special because no one had really heard him rap before. I’m so happy that on this track I was able to get a different side of him.  It’s almost like I’ve got Sam Henshaw’s alter ego on this track. With collaborating, I always try to get something different out of the artist, instead of getting them to do something with my name on  it. An example is Kano getting Giggs on ‘Free Wheelups’, a 140bpm track and everyone lost their mind because they were used to hearing him rap in a slower tempo.  Sam is super talented, and you need someone talented to be able to bring that.

Speak to me about the artwork of this cover - is this a younger self? Do you channel your younger self in your music? 

It is my younger self. The EP cover has multiple meanings to it - it represents my younger self growing into who I am now. Especially with me feeling more rooted in this project, that nods to this journey. 

My influences and the things I was surrounded by came out in this project too. I also feel like in this day and age we need to be more childlike. When kids want to do something or have an impulse - they do it  , and no one tells them no until they get into trouble. 

As adults we need to embody that. We learn so much in adulthood that sometimes make us less of ourselves or consumed with trying to fit in, but when you’re younger, you’re just yourselves. I think adults could do a lot of unlearning in order to be able to be their true selves, and that’s part of what I want to tell people through this project - to be their true selves unapologetically and not try to fit into the crowd. Everyone has a story to tell. 

You’ve collabed with a star studded list of artists - Wizkid, Burna Boy, Jorja Smith, and Dave - do you recharge while bouncing off of other musicians or while creating by yourself? 

Not really. I see it more as learning rather than recharging. When collaborating it’s like being a student in the room. Sometimes making music can be so isolating, locked in four walls with your headphones on. When you’re working with other people you’re able to sit back and get an insight into the other artists' process. There's things I learn from that that I take into my own music. It makes you more complete and versatile as an artist, to be able to work with different people in different genres with different work processes. 

Working on ‘Cali’ I learnt a lot about how Sam writes, and the same with Wizkid and Burna - all have different processes, but there's something to be learnt from all of them.

As the audience, you only see the finished product, but the initial conception of a song to when it’s finished is a whole thing. There’s another version of Cali that no one will hear, but I know where we came from, and where we are now. 

How did ‘Real One’ come about ? 

At the time I was listening to a lot of R&B. It has a big influence on me, but as an instrumentalist, the question  has always been about how to get that same kind of emotion from an instrument rather than a voice because the genre is so vocally dominated. I was definitely listening to artists in that world like Ari Lennox, Summer Walker, and trying to get into that vibe. There needs to be a little groove to my music so I wanted to balance having my Nigerian background and music that makes you dance with that emotional and lyrical side of music. Putting those two together is how ‘Real One’ came about. 

I feel like the title came from the melody. The melody feels so memorable and it made me feel like it was synonymous with the real people in your life that you never forget - essentially the real ones that always have your back and always ride for you, is something you never forget. Something about that song felt very uplifting and triumphant but also so memorable and iconic, and that's what the real people in my circle make me feel like. 

As a core member of Mercury Prize and BRIT Award-winning Ezra Collective, you’ve been at the heart of some of the most defining moments in the UK’s contemporary music scene in recent years. What from group collaboration have you learnt to take into your own creation process?

I see both as blessings. It’s nice to be a part of things that you can navigate with other people, but there are things I want to say and I want to do individually, so having the two is a very nice balance. With all the success we’ve had, sharing it with the people around you makes the occasion so special.

Even as an individual artist, there's a big team of people that are helping me out, and my band who I always play with. Even though you don’t see the whole team, there’s still a group of people who are helping me out. There are things I like to do individually, but as a group, there are things you achieve that feel different to when done solo. 

How would you describe the journey of this EP, from ‘East Street Market’ to ‘Real One’? 

The journey of the EP - It definitely hits you in the face, it's not one that starts slowly. That's me as a person, that vibrancy, that kind of dynamic is something I wanted to get with. It's sort of telling you we’re here now, so get with the program. It’s fitting that East Street Market is the opening track because that’s where my journey began. There’s a lot of old school Nigerian highlife vibes.

Then we have Zimbabwe, which is a little bit further down in the journey. The first time I went there was on tour with Burna Boy. and the influences are more modern, it’s present. It’s a part of my life that I really like, even from the music video, to the artwork, it’s just a big vibe. It’s me in a nutshell, I just want to have a good time. That kind of follows on with ‘Cali’, the same feeling as Zimbabwe. When you turn it on,  forget about your troubles and worries and enjoy the ride.

It features someone who is close to me and part of the journey, so it helps to tell my story as well. ‘Don’t Leave’ is the more reflective and intimate side of me that gets more vulnerable. It gets slow and brings things to a more reflective point. It’s about pulling your close ones nearer to you. ‘Real One’ pulls onto that reflective mindset but with a bit of a lift. There's a lift to represent that energy and the people who keep you flying high even at your lowest times. 

What's next for you?

I always like my music to be a mirror. As much as I reflect on my own life, putting out music for me has always been about helping people search deeper inside, or find some escapism from whatever they’re going through. In terms of what's next, new music will come, new shows in different places, we have the London show on November 28th and the Europe dates for next year. [the aim to] play and release more music and spread it as far and wide as it can go - the goal is just to take it as far as it can.

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