The air was shrill with Temitope Olawale’s pure notes as she breathed into the microphone. “Hallelujah! Hallelujah!” She easily swivelled into a vibrato, “Lift up your voice, as we sing Hallelujah”, rousing over 5,000 attendees at the recent Great Physician Christian Gospel concert, in London, into a worship mien.

Temitope’s command of singing techniques is the most astounding quality in her renditions. For the first half of her performance, she explores her Mezzo-soprano range, using recitatives to sautee her harmonies, “You will do what you say you would do, exceedingly and abundantly,” she punctuated her octaves, with odes to God.

The conversational approach kept her pitch melancholic enough for a Worship section, inspiring introspection in her rendition. She uses this technique, even during the praise section of her performance: “Come on, move your body! To the left, to the right/ Tell your neighbour, the devil is in trouble/ Begin to shake your body!”

On other instances, her use of trills and ostinatos injected emotional depth into her rendition, as she sang the ‘Hallelujahs’ for the first half of the 12-minute performance. “I worship you, the lamb upon the throne/ We raise our shouts to You,” she continued singing, raising her voice into a fortissimo that heightened the dramatic tension within the song.

However, Temitope struggled, occasionally, with enunciating her lyrics, dampening the effect of the fortissimo. Her vocalisation, also, went off-key in a few instances, causing momentary lulls within the performance. Nonetheless, the beautiful polyphonic progressions, especially from the chords and percussion, buttered the delivery.

Another cursory look at Temitope’s performance also revealed her potency as a worship singer. Her stellar control of ‘tension-and-release’ technique, in her pace, as well as her use of grace and pure notes, respectively, also extended the melancholia in the record, and, by extension, spiked the catharsis in the performance. “You are powerful/ So powerful/ You are merciful, in all your ways,” her voice pierced the room.

Temitope’s unique transitions also stood out in the performance. Oftentimes, she code-switched into prayerful Christian ‘tongues’, stretching the spirituality and musical vibrance of her performance.

Temitope’s praise section ushered in groovier percussion, with her use of the Gangan (Yoruba talking drum), and tom drums, showcasing her versatility as a soulful and Christian pop crooner, respectively. “Oh be lifted/Above all other gods/We lay our crowns/And worship You/Oh glorious God/We praise Your Name/We lay our crowns/ And worship You,” she sang, with a piercing forte. Her cadence also glistened as she sang, “Oh/ Be/ Lifted,” exploring the ostinato with more emphasis and dancey groove. She also fully combined her use of the entire choir and band, within this section.

Overall, Temitope’s performance, and, by extension, her discography, flourishes with a powerful expression of talent, both in Christian Worship and Praise music. Her use of singing techniques sits as her biggest strength, with her stellar delivery, spotlighting her distinct synergy with her backing choir, live band and audience. Her performance thrives with a satisfactory replay value, although it still misses any shock value of sorts.

Born Temitope Olawale, the singer has built a reputation, over the years, as a Christian missionary and musician. She is renowned within the country’s Christian music scene for leading mass choirs in Nigeria, especially her 500-member choirs in Lagos, Abeokuta and other parts of Nigeria. She is also presently leading a 200-member choir in her European tour, which recently featured a street concert in Wales, and Northern Ireland, respectively.