By Ghazali Ibrahim
Veteran Nigerian folk musician Segun Akinlolu, better known as Beautiful Nubia, has publicly accused well-known gospel singer Yinka Ayefele and rising gospel act BBO of allegedly copying the melody of his 1997 classic song Seven Lifes without permission.
In a post shared on X on Thursday, February 19, 2026, Beautiful Nubia claimed that Ayefele’s 2012 track “My Faith in God (Igbagbo Ireti)” and BBO’s new 2026 song “Amin” borrowed heavily from the core melody of his original 1997 hit Seven Lifes composition.
“There was Yinka Ayefele with ‘My Faith in God (Igbagbo Ireti)’ in 2012 and now someone called BBO with ‘Amin’ this year. Both stole their melodies from our original song ‘Seven Lifes’. When will Nigerians (especially the so-called gospel musicians) learn to respect copyright?” he wrote.
The allegation has sparked debate on social media, with some agreeing that artists should respect intellectual property while others argue that similarities in melody do not automatically prove copyright infringement.
However, there’s a throwback video trending online which shows BBO playing piano while singing ‘Amin’ eight years ago. His face appears younger in the video which suggests the now-viral new year resolution song has been composed long time ago.
As of this report, neither Yinka Ayefele nor BBO has publicly responded to Beautiful Nubia’s claims.
