Shola Akinyele
In the heart of Ijebu Ode, Ogun State, the 2025 edition of the legendary Ojude Oba Festival exploded into colour, pride, and tradition, reaffirming its place as one of Africa’s most powerful cultural celebrations.
With elegance and honour, the sons and daughters of Ijebuland turned out in full traditional regalia not for spectacle, but to pay heartfelt homage to their heritage, their monarch, and their spiritual roots.
Clad in richly woven agbádás, matching filas, and coral beads that shimmered in the sun, every detail of the day was a deliberate act of reverence. Their appearance was a declaration of identity, of royalty, of unity. It wasn’t about camera lights or trending moments. It was about something deeper: a cultural rhythm passed from ancestors to descendants, alive in every drumbeat and dance step.
Before the revered Awujale of Ijebuland, His Royal Majesty, Oba (Dr.) Sikiru Kayode Adetona, GCON, the crowd stood with pride and grace. The regberegbe age-grade groups thrilled with their majestic parades, each one adding to the spiritual and emotional weight of the day. The atmosphere was electric, yet sacred an unspoken understanding among all present that this was more than a festival. It was a cultural heartbeat.
There were no paparazzi chasing clout. No attention-seeking antics. Just authentic celebration. People came not to perform, but to connect. This year’s edition was refreshingly real perhaps the most genuine in recent memory. As one attendee put it, “Nobody came to trend. We came to vibe. And vibe, we did—with soul.”
For the Yoruba people, Ojude Oba is more than a yearly gathering. It is a living ritual, rich with history and divine presence. As prayers were offered to the ancestral deities Obatala, Oya, Osun, Esu, and Orunmila the air buzzed with calls for favour, peace, innovation, and progress.
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