Interview: Efe Oraka Wants To Be True To Herself 

Over a decade into a career that started when she was a child, Efe Oraka is still coming to terms with herself and how the wider public perceives her. After rising to fame for her inventive cover of Jon Bellion songs and Olamide refixes, she graduated to even-keeled dispatches on national pride and emotional angst that showed a growing range and intuitive understanding of self. 

As the years have passed, the singer’s artistic vision has grown exponentially, leading to pivots into soft Rock on 2024’s “BSTRD” and full-blown Afropop on 2025’s “LipGlo$$.” As she has grown older, the singer has also experienced the harder parts of life, dealing with immigration issues and homelessness. Still, music has always been a refuge for the singer. “ In a way my struggles have really shown me how resilient I am as an artist and as a person,” she says. “I threw myself into the music and used it as an avenue to find some sort of recourse.”

In May 2026, she released a ten-track project titled ‘Eferoghene,’ as a precursor to her forthcoming album, ‘Florence Dei.’ Per Oraka,  ‘Eferoghene’ marks a return to her truest self, delicately blending heartfelt confessionals with forthright music.  “It’s a mixtape that gives context into what kind of world I am trying to weave through the music,” she says. It’s an intricate body of work that dexterously melds honestly with aspirational zest with songs like “Back In Blood,” “High/Low,” and “Turnup444me” as highlights. 

Our conversation with the singer has been edited for clarity. 

How have you handled the transition from being a child star to being an adult musician?

It’s been a crazy journey. The funny thing is I didn’t even think of myself as a child star at the time. Someone referred to me as that last year and for the first time ever I was like, “Oh… wait.” I knew I was making waves and a lot of people were connecting to me but it was only when the ‘buzz’ around me started to die down that I was like, “Oh, where did the attention go?” And even then the feeling exacerbated when I would speak to people and they would refer to me as some sort of past glory. It’s been a deeply transformative journey to say the least because I’ve had to reconnect with myself multiple times and lean on my vision to afford me multiple chances to not only start again, but keep going. I think what marks my evolution is that I am no longer tied to only being one version of me. There’s no unified theory of Efe and I’m committed to following through with my soul and seeing where that goes.

How long have you been working on ‘Efeoreghene’?

In terms of conceptualizing and releasing it, last year December. I had come to Lagos to do a couple shows and being back in the thick of it, I was like, “hmm.” But in terms of the actual music, there’s music on there that has existed since 2020. My album, ‘Florence Dei,’ is dropping this year and when we were thinking about what a potential rollout could be, it was kind of obvious that there needed to be more music in circulation. It’s a mixtape that gives context into what kind of world I am trying to weave through the music. ‘Eferoghene’ serves as a return to self. An ode to giving oneself a chance and persisting even when all the odds are stacked against you. The songs that ended up on the mixtape were ones that were created in very specific times in my journey as both an artist and a producer. So yeah, they are very reflective of what you could potentially expect with the soundscape.

You’ve mentioned dealing with homelessness and instability on social media, did that provide inspiration for ‘Efeoreghene’?

Yes it definitely did. I got thrown into a situation I didn’t anticipate and it flipped my world on its head. The only thing that made sense to me at that moment was performing and releasing music. In a way my struggles have really shown me how resilient I am as an artist and as a person. I threw myself into the music and used it as an avenue to find some sort of recourse. Not really being sure of what was gonna happen to me made me more sure of the fact that I’m Efe Oraka. I think that level of ‘grief’ really made me more aware of my own presence. It was like I was fully in my body and my visceral reaction was to be an artist. very meta stuff.

What direction do you think you’re going towards in your career?

I think right now I’m just doing what feels the most authentic to me. I want to have an expansive catalogue that reflects the material and metaphysical information I keep gathering. I want my career to be big too. Grand even. I’m a global superstar. And I know I make music that everyone can listen to. that everyone should be listening too. So yeah, I’m moving towards the direction that affords me the most joy and coherence.

You said you have an album forthcoming, what’s the process of putting that together been like?

It’s been interesting. I thought I was done writing but I’ve been revisiting things. Finding meaning and new experiences and allowing myself to open up emotions I’ve been scared of creating from. I think I’m usually wary of being consumed but that process has to happen. I’ve been going back every now and then and tweaking things on the album, narrowing down a track list, recording more elements… the good stuff. I hope it’s a body of work that everyone truly takes the time to listen to. I’ve been saying my music is atmosphere-shifting. ‘Florence Dei’ is nothing short of that.

Listen to ‘Efeoreghene’ here.

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