The Tongue Is Sharper Than the Sword
Artist: Moyo Okediji
Title: The Tongue Is Sharper Than the Sword
Medium: acrylic on canvas.
Date: 2018
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Artist: Moyo Okediji
Title: The Tongue Is Sharper Than the Sword
Medium: acrylic on canvas.
Date: 2018
PART OF THE BEAT
Only you can kill yourself,
hiding your game in the shelf
Too many die
living a life of lie.
Too many fellows live
but can’t survive
You must go anyway
but don’t go away
Place your feet on the ground
while you’re still around
The Proposal
(To the colonial master)
Oga, will you marry me,
and take me home?
I can be your second
even third or fourth wife
You look so handsome
and I giggle
YORÙBÁ DÌDE
Ọmọ Yorùbá ẹ dìde
Dìde, dìde, dìde.
Ẹyin Yorùbá ẹ dìde
Dìde, dìde, dìde.
Gbogbo Yorùbá ẹ dìde
Dìde, dìde, dìde.
Ọjọ́ ti pé, ẹ dìde
Dìde, dìde, dìde.
Ẹ má sùn mọ́, ẹ dìde
Dìde, dìde, dìde.
Iṣẹ́ ti yá, ẹ dìde
Dìde, dìde, dìde.
Èrù ò bà wá, ẹ dìde
Dìde, dìde, dìde.
Àyà ò fò wá, ẹ dìde
My work displayed at the Museum Of Contemporary Art (MoCA), Miami, for the 2019 Miami Basel event.
LAGOS BORN
You have been to London?
And Toronto?
And Washington DC?
And, New York, Paris and San Francisco?
And you have traveled to all the capitals of African countries?
To all Omo a yọ orù bá wọn tọ́jú ọmọ tuntun;
Ọmọ́ gbó,
Orù ò gbó:
the offspring of those who bring out the orù pot of herbs to care for infants;
the baby prospers,
and the pot does not falter.”