‘My music touches soul, conveys message’

Sometimes, when you hear a song for the first time, you just know it is for you: The vibe, the rhythm and tonality go deep into your consciousness. No doubts, it’s impossible to look back on moments in history and not conjure up a soundtrack in your head.

Some of these moments are paired with more intimate memories like hearing an unfamiliar voice for the first time or falling in love with a song that feels like it is made for you.

From Off-the – Wall to Endless Love, Rhythm of the Night to All Night Long, Billie Jean and What has love got to with it, the list of memorable songs is endless.

Now, when you put together artists who have memorable tracks Abu Krymless is one of them. He is a new and rising artiste poised to make a major impact in a few years to come. The young act, since his sudden emergence has had a steadied growth.

Krymless’ songs leave you with lasting feelings. It isn’t about knowing that he is the next big thing or that his track is a hit single, but there is a weight to his songs that feels like the beginning of something important.

Amid COVID-19 pandemic lockdown, he provided exciting moments for music lovers to cheer — Good vibes in time of Coronavirus. Krymless, as he is called, was born in 1993 in Ilorin to a father from Mokwa in Niger State and a mother from Owanta in Ika North Council of Delta State.

Raised in Lagos, Krymless, whose birth name is Solomon Abdullahi Abubakar, began his musical career at 13 years of age, singing in the choirs of the Four Square Gospel Church, and Kings College, Lagos where he was exposed to a variety of music including contemporary Nigerian and European classical.

He subsequently earned his degree in business administration from the University of Economics Administration and Journalism (ESAE) in Benin Republic.

Multilingual in English, Hausa, Yoruba, Ika, Igbo, and according to him, rudimentary French; Krymless taught English and economics during his youth corps service in Taraba State and then decided to finally follow his childhood dream of being a singer.

He has recorded six numbers so far: Obimo, Komije, Ma -Fi Mi Le, Hold Somebody, One and Only and God First, his latest being catchy and danceable, which some listeners have found reminiscent of Fela’s.

While Krymless acknowledges Fela as a major influence, he describes himself as versatile. He performs in a variety of genres — afrobeat, afropop, rhythm and blues, reggae and dance hall. He is also familiar with rap and hip-hop and country music.

His Obimo is a reminder of Alex O and the P-Square — A blend of Yoruba and Igbo. However, Abubakar, who describes himself as someone who believes in God, states, “I can do a lot of genres but I focus on making good music with quality lyrical content that touches the soul and conveys a message.”

Krymless writes his own lyrics, composes his own music, sings and plays the drums. He is also a budding entrepreneur / proprietor of Abu Honey Wells, an up and coming honey retail business.

Asked about his stage name, Krymless, Abubakar recounts a humorous backstory about a secondary school escapade, which he was mistakenly thought to have been involved in, but eventually was found to be innocent of. Subsequently, his schoolmates nicknamed him ‘crimeless’.

His late father, Muhammad Abdullahi was a customs officer, while his mother, Florence Iweriebor, also late, was a civil servant. He has an older sister, Zenaib, and acknowledges the support he got from family members, especially his late uncle, Emeke Iweriebor.
For relaxation Krymless plays football, swims, listens to what he describes as ‘good’ music and plays video games.