Born April 11, 1981 in Lagos, Nigeria, Ayodeji Fakunle, the son of Samuel and Grace Fakunle, came of age in Washington D.C. in 1990, home to a litany of legendary musicians of all genres including Marvin Gaye. With beats and verbiage built virtually into his sacred notebook, LiL’Ayo had already inhaled the love of music by the time he was old enough to put pen to paper. It was only a matter of time before he made his own attempts to display his God-given abilities to rhyme.
“I serve Jesus Christ not only as an artist, but also as a human being, that’s how I was raised in our home. I relocated to the States at the age of four. At that time, my parents and my elder brother Aaron were already here.” Falling in love with music was never a doubt for this lyricist, who jammed to different genres of music from gospel artists-Bebe and Cece Winan to country star-kenny Rogers; from Nigerian gospel artists and icons-Bola Are and Sola Rotimi to Sunny Okosun. “I guess I can say that I am blessed with the best of both worlds. To grow up listening to them is truly a blessing.”
While in his teens, LiL’Ayo began crafting rhymes that blended both African and American literacy and rhetoric notes reflecting the harsh realities of his environment. He exploded in the scene in 2003 when he wrote his first song at The Apostolic Church Witness Rally in Washington, D.C. He has gone on to write multiple songs for the Witness and Women Movement in various churches.
The listening ears started paying attention to what LiL’Ayo had to say when he burst to the scene at an Open-Mic Event in D.C. back in 2004.
Older, wiser, more focused, and more fired up. “I’m still growing everyday in Christ, anything less will definitely be uncivilized. God has not only blessed me as an artist, but also as a graduate in Accounting and Masters in Accounting. There’s no limit to God’s greatness. My goal is to bless others with my gift so that they may God and His greatness along the way. There’s no limitation with God, none at all.”
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