Teladalase — Ayanfe
Ayanfe is one of the songs on the Anikulapo series soundtrack, written and performed by Teledalase. It's an absolute Yoruba indigenous love song, and chances are you've heard it play under many videos. Let's dissect it.
In Yoruba, Ayanfe means beloved: the one in whom you find so much satisfaction and attraction.
“Mo ni ife re nitooto
N 'o puro
N’o puro oo
Mo mo ogbe Okan re nitooto
Amo emi yato oo
N 'o puro”
Teledalase starts with a declaration of her true and unadulterated love. She acknowledges the hurts his heart carries, but assures him that she is a different breed.
The songs peaks at the chorus:
“N o gbe o rin do
Ese re oni kan 'mi
N o ba o roke
Ese re oni kan le”
She dives into what’s she’s bringing for him. I will carry you across the river, yet your feets won’t touch the water. I will climb mountains with you, yet you won’t feel it.
“Mo shey ogbingbin
Je n ba o lo
Ibi o ba nnlo
N 'o ba o re
N 'o ba o re
Ayanfe, je n ba o rele oo
Ibi o ba nlo
N o ba o lo
N o ba o lo”
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Teledalase announces her readiness to follow him, anywhere you go, I'll follow.
“Won ni ki layanmo mi
Mo ni Iwo ni
Won ni ki layanmo mi
Ife re ni
Irin wa ti di ajorin
Ebo wa ti di ajogbe
N o puro oooo
N o puro ooo”
In this verse, she takes the love further, calling him her destiny. Her destiny is tied to him and the love they share. She reinforces that they've become one: their journey is now a shared journey, and their sacrifices are now carried together.
“Ila lomo oriki ila oooo
Ogiri lomo oriki ooobe ooo
Ayanfe dakun dabo shey temi
Ibi o ba nnnlooo ooo
Ayanfе, Ayanfe ee mi
Ayanfe je n ba o dеle oo”
Here, she shows how the two are a match made from heaven, using two idioms from the Yoruba language.
'Ila lomo oriki ila oooo', A yoruba idiom that says, it takes an okro knows how to eulogize and make the okro happy.
"Ogiri lomo oriki ooobe ooo". Ogiri is a traditional flavor enhancer that has a deep and savoury aroma that makes a oobe (soup) sweet. Put together, they make something neither makes alone, and that’s her point about the two of them.
She's asking to come into his life so they become a perfect match.
“Ibi o ba nnlooo
Ibi o ba nnlo oo
Ayanfe dakun shey temi
Irin wa ajorin
Ebo wa ajogbe
Iku wa ajoku”
The song ends on its boldest vow: whatever comes, even death, they face it together. A love that death itself won't separate.
