Who was St. Janet? The Nigerian singer whose music was banned over explicit lyrics

• St. Janet, born Omotoyosi Kayode Iyun Ajilore, was a Nigerian juju and highlife singer known for explicit songs.

• Her 2013 album Faaji Plus was banned from broadcast and public play after regulators and the Lagos State House of Assembly objected to its lyrics.

• The singer, popularly known as “Mama Yabis”, died on August 1 after a brief illness, according to publisher Femi Davies.

St. Janet, born Omotoyosi Kayode Iyun Ajilore, was a Nigerian juju and highlife singer whose music was banned multiple times by regulatory bodies over the course of her career, most notably following the release of her 2013 album Faaji Plus.

She was born in Abeokuta, Ogun State, and began singing in her local Cherubim and Seraphim church choir as a child. In her teens, she joined the Los Kenge highlife and juju band as a backup vocalist, where she also met fellow musician Kayode Iyun, whom she later married. She earned a diploma in Mass Communication from a polytechnic in Abeokuta before pursuing music full-time.

Her stage name, "Saint," came from her early bandleader, who gave her the nickname during her time as a backup vocalist in his group.

St. Janet's exact age was never publicly confirmed throughout her career, a detail that remained private even as her music made her a widely recognised and widely discussed public figure.

In a 2013 interview, St. Janet said she began incorporating explicit lyrics into her performances after a listener requested a more explicit, unrecorded version of one of her songs. She said audience response to that material led her to include it more regularly in her sets. She added that she believed some of the criticism directed at her was tied to her being a woman performing that style of music.

Her 2013 album Faaji Plus drew sanctions from the Performing Musicians Association of Nigeria (PMAN) and the Music Advertising Association of Nigeria (MAAN) over its explicit lyrical content. The Lagos State House of Assembly subsequently banned the album from broadcast and public play, citing obscenity. 

In a later interview, St. Janet said the ban increased her public recognition and that some officials who had restricted her music privately booked her for events. "The banning of my CD made me popular," she said. "Now, virtually everybody knows Saint Janet."

Over the course of her career, she released more than 20 albums, including Olori Ebi, Ore Tuntun, Bottle Cathedral, Value Bar Osogbo, American Swagger and 5G Plus. She was known by fans as "Mama Yabis" and performed regularly at private events and venues across Lagos. 

Reports from 2023 indicated her music had begun attracting attention outside Nigeria, with at least one entertainment outfit reportedly considering a US tour for her. In 2010, a house fire at her residence in Alagbado killed her adopted brother and destroyed property.

St. Janet's death was announced on Sunday, August 2, by publisher and socialite Otunba Femi Davies, who said she died the previous day after a brief illness.

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