Google has celebrated Oliver Sunday Akanite, Nigerian highlife musician and guitarist better known as Oliver De Coque, with a doodle on his 74th posthumous birthday.
The Google doodle is a special alteration of the logo on Google’s homepage to commemorate special holidays, events, achievements, and people.
Oliver De Coque kickstarted his music career at a young age by playing the guitar before gaining recognition after his impressive performance at a 1970 concert organised by Sunny Agaga and his Lucky Star band.
The iconic musician is renowned for infusing the modern West African highlife genre with a Congolese-influenced guitar style and the energetic dance elements of Igbo music he grew up with, crafting a unique musical style, which he called Ogene.
Until his death, the singer established himself as a household name in Africa’s music landscape with strings of awards and recognition.
The doodle, illustrated by Ohab Tochukwu, a Lagos-based artist, features an image of the legendary musician holding a guitar and clad in his characteristic Igbo traditional attire.
Nigerian musician Oliver de Coque infused modern pop, Congolese-influenced guitar, & traditional West African music to perfect a musical genre: Ogene ??
Learn how he strummed his way into listeners’ hearts → https://t.co/6TrNVQvyJi#GoogleDoodle ? by guest artist @OhabTBJ pic.twitter.com/BSFSCb2W7D
— Google Doodles (@GoogleDoodles) April 14, 2021