Olufisayo Isaac Bolarinwa, whose stage name is Dafissy BlackHorse, is a Nigerian-born Afro Beat Musician who has been living in Manchester for almost ten years. Although he was away to Bristol briefly at some point in his musical career in the UK, Dafissy considers Manchester a vibrant place where his music receives a wider audience. 

Training & Musical Exposures: 

'Fisayo has his early exposure to music within various Christian church denominations in Nigeria. Apart from coming from a musical family, his associations with different musical groups have also been part of his musical exposures which have his musical styles. 

"I started getting training through church music….The training started because, I attended different kind of churches. I got my basic music training through from the church. Ranging from Christ Apostolic Church (C.A.C), to Anglican church, to Pentecostal church, Catholic, Jehovah Witness,..... Celestial Church even C & S (Cherubim and Seraphim Church) as well. Because I remember my mum’s mum they are C & S church and I used to go to the church to drum...........And my friends were Anglicans, so, I go to the church. From there I had a chance to….we got enrolled to 'school of church music' in Ilesha, in Oshun State Nigeria. That is where I had a chance to learn a little bit of piano and general music studies before. But it didn’t go for a long time. Music has been something ...in my family as well. My elder brother is a musician as well. My elder brother (he plays Highlife in Nigeria. He’s called Tayo Marvel (Tayo Bolarinwa – Saxophonist, songwriter, recording artiste), so, music has always been part of me for a long time. I was always following him around to perform in Nigeria. I was a member of this group in Ilesha called Royal Priesthood. We were young and within the age group of 15, 16, 17 then. We used to play music all around Osun state then and holding concerts around. It was a group in the Anglican church. We started training ourselves on the instruments and playing together..." So, what instrument do you play now, or do you just sing? "Right now I’m just singing, but I play drums very well, not professionally but I play drum. That’s the jazz drums. I play some of the local drums as well. I also can run scales....a little bit on the guitar then on piano" . 

Manchester Experience ...

So, since I started in 2017, I had had a chance to perform in a few places in Manchester. My first performance was at Club Infinity and Middleton. I have had a chance to perform in Roots, a restaurant/club on Hyde Road alongside with J Matins and some of my colleagues as well. I’ve had a chance at a show in Blackpool sometime last year. Another one, Manchester Barbecue Night...it was a big show sometime last year by MaCafe, here in Manchester as well. I’ve had a chance to go to a couple of shows, so, It has been a very good experience for me so far..." Do you have a band? "Right now, I’m just a one-man-band. I use the soundtracks I’ve recorded in the studio. It depends on the show. Sometimes, I just play my soundtrack, then I can just sing with tracks I’ve recorded in the studio." "I started my music in 2017 at Bristol because I left Manchester for Bristol 2014 and came back 2018. During my time in Bristol, I started my music because I had some kind of peace of mind. I was therefore able to start the music. But I was always coming back to Manchester to record. I’ve always believed that Manchester has got a bigger audience for me compared to Bristol. It has a bigger community and it is not the same as Bristol. By this, I mean the Black community especially the Nigerian community, because they form the larger part of my audience. I have my ties in Manchester. If I can’t go to London, Manchester is the next place I have my audience. I’m not where I want to be right now but I am forging on". 

Musical Style and Identity 

Dafissy's musical style demonstrates his exposure to participation in a number of musical styles including that of Fela Anikulapo Kuti, and that of his brother Tayo Bolarinwa with whom he had performed in Nigeria. He, however, has his own unique musical style which has a flavour of Afro Beat and hip-hop. 

"Music is easily identified with the things I say in my music. For example, they will hear phrases like ‘they don know, abagayani, is different to abayagani’ or ‘it is Dafissy, In’t’. People also call me Mr melody. People always say my melody is unique, or that the sound is unique. What I do is studying what people are doing, and adding my own to it as well. Like I said, I play Afro Beat. I want to retain the Afro Beat flavour but I will be putting my own from any genre. I have mostly been influenced by Fela’s Afro Beat. I am a big fan of Fela musically and politically. People used to ask me why I listened to Fela, when I was young Fela has influenced a lot of people in Africa." 

"Music is universal and shouldn’t be for only a particular set of people. I am trying to make my music to appeal to everybody from all cultures. For example, my second to the last single, Chocolate, is loved by a wide variety of people including my Asian and European friends. I released it on Spotify, Youtube, and Sound Cloud. I also have a little fan base on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube. I also invite my friends to listen to my music. The feedback about the music has been great. I am actually working with some guys in Manchester right now and we shall be rolling out some shows after the pandemic. I would love to collaborate with other musicians around Manchester as time goes on."