By Andrea Andy | The Book Series – A&R Duty
In a world where beats speak louder than words and soundscapes can transcend time, there exists a name that echoes with calm revolution — Sensei Lo. Known for her signature fusion of Afro rhythms and electronic beats, Sensei is not just a DJ or producer. She’s a cultural translator, a trailblazer, a quiet storm changing the narrative of Nigeria’s music scene one deep synth at a time.
When she hopped on The Book, it wasn’t just another interview — it was a long overdue conversation with one of the architects of Nigeria’s sonic evolution. What followed was an expansive, insightful, and emotionally layered deep dive into her journey, challenges, vision, and cultural impact.
From her earliest memories, music was always more than entertainment for Sensei. It was a medium of expression. “I think everything that has happened over time has happened by design,” she says. Her path, however, wasn’t linear.
Before decks and dance floors, there were scrubs and stethoscopes. A trained nurse, Sensei practiced for years while holding music quietly within her. It wasn’t until 2011 or 2012 that she took her first leap — a friend’s sister’s naming ceremony, where she casually took over the playlist. That moment — seeing people react to her music choices — lit a fire that never went out.
By 2014, her best friend, who had landed a job managing a lounge in Elegushi, handed her the ultimate test: DJing in a bustling Lagos beach lounge with zero formal training and no equipment. “There wasn’t even a controller, but I had to make it work,” she recalls. Eventually, her ingenuity convinced the lounge owner to invest in modern equipment — under the condition that Sensei would take full responsibility for it.
That controller became her weekend companion. While working Monday to Friday as a nurse, her Fridays began with her lugging it to the lounge. For eight straight months, she lived and breathed the Lagos nightlife, slowly honing her skills and earning her stripes in a space not built for newcomers — let alone female DJs.
Though she started with Afrobeat-heavy crowds, Sensei always gravitated toward something different: electronic music. At first, the Nigerian crowd didn’t get it.
“People would walk up to me and ask me to play the latest Nigerian songs… even during a themed event called Saturday Night House,” she laughs.
But instead of letting the resistance discourage her, she innovated. Sensei began fusing popular Nigerian vocals with electronic instrumentals, a move that birthed a signature sound that today defines her sets. “I was tired of people questioning what I played. So I decided to meet them halfway,” she explains. The result? A unique blend that satisfied both her creativity and the crowd’s familiarity.
This pivot wasn’t just a stylistic choice — it was survival and expression meeting in perfect harmony.
Sensei’s love for electronic music is deeply personal. “It’s my childhood,” she says. Growing up on MTV in the ’90s, she was immersed in music that felt cosmic — not knowing they were “house music classics.” Gypsy Woman, Whitney Houston’s “I’m Every Woman” — all infused with nostalgic, thumping rhythms that echoed into her adulthood.
“Electronic music is calming. It’s storytelling. A lot of Afrobeat songs end in two minutes. In-house music, two minutes is just the intro,” she explains, beaming.
Her passion is not just to play electronic music — it’s to translate it for Nigerians. To let them experience what she calls “a global language born in Africa but returned in a different accent.”
In 2020, she began producing her own music. That was the moment. “I always dreamt of playing gigs where I’d only play my own music,” she says. Today, her tracks have traveled to Tokyo, Brazil, and beyond. People she’s never met reach out to thank her for giving them joy.
“That’s the purpose. Even if it’s just one person. That’s more than enough for me,” she says with the conviction of someone walking in their truth.
Sensei is one of the few women navigating Nigeria’s DJ scene, and she’s done so without relying on anyone’s validation.
“In the beginning, guys would walk up just to check if I was really the one playing,” she says. “I just smile. Let the work speak.” And it does — loudly.
But if there’s one thing she still craves in the ecosystem, it’s mentorship. “Girls need mentors. Not just someone to teach them decks, but someone to help them believe they can do this,” she emphasizes.
She recalls having to choose between music and agriculture in secondary school, a decision dictated by outdated education systems that prioritized conventional careers. “We were never told we could be both,” she says. “Lack of mentorship cost me years. Now I have to work twice as hard to catch up.”
Sensei’s long-term dream is not just to play — it’s to build. To bring immersive rave culture to Nigeria. To create spaces where people feel seen and moved — spiritually, emotionally, and sonically.
“Electronic music is an experience,” she asserts. “Not just in Nigeria — everywhere in the world.”
She’s working on her second EP, set to drop late this year or early next. It will explore themes of love, grief, and navigating the complexity of life — a reflection of where she currently is emotionally and artistically. She also has exciting collaborations lined up with producers from Nigeria and across Africa.
In what was arguably the most profound part of the conversation, Sensei revealed that electronic music has deep African roots. She spoke passionately about William Onyeabor, a Nigerian funk pioneer from the ‘70s whose electronic production predated many Western “innovators.”
“Documentation is everything,” she stresses. “We didn’t document our stories. So it was easy for others to claim it and sell it back to us.”
Her mission? To correct that narrative. To ensure that Nigerian contributions to global music don’t disappear into undocumented silence.
When asked how she wants to be remembered, her answer was direct: “I want to be remembered as one of the brave ones. The ones who took a bold step when it wasn’t cool. When people didn’t get it yet.”
And bold she is — blazing through a genre many overlooked, proving that sound has no gender, and that music, when authentic, will always find its audience.
Sensei Lo is not just a DJ. She’s a documenter of the past, a curator of culture, and a prophet of sonic futures. Her story reminds us that when you walk in truth, the world eventually aligns with your rhythm.
As she continues to redefine electronic music in Nigeria, her voice — both literal and metaphorical — serves as a beacon for emerging artists, especially women, who dare to walk an uncharted path.
Sensei is not just part of the music — she is the music.
Follow her journey. Listen to her frequency. And remember her name — because history will.