Nathaniel Bassey: Five Facts About Him You Don’t Know

Nathaniel Bassey is many things. He is a musician, songwriter, Pastor, trumpeter, producer, and marketer. He is one of the biggest names in the gospel genre of music in not just Nigeria but a large part of Africa and even beyond the continent. How much of the star do you know? Here are five facts for you, about him.

1. The star started in the mainstream

Nathaniel Bassey was born into a pastor’s home, his father was Pastor E Joshua Bassey of the Apostolic Church Bashua Assembly. He grew up nursing a passion for music. His talent attracted Fela Kuti’s manager Steve Rhodes to him and he made Nathaniel a member of the Steve Rhodes Orchestra. Nathaniel Bassey became not just the lead trumpeter but also leader of the band for more than two years.

The star, probably dissatisfied with his chosen career went into gospel music after getting counsel from the late renowned pastor of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, City of David Parish. His decision to become a gospel artiste didn’t go well with many of his close friends and associates who felt he was throwing a lucrative career under the bus for the gospel.

2. Nathaniel Bassey studied the art of music

Born on August 27, 1972, in Lagos, besides earning a degree in Politics and International Relations in London University, Bassey has undergone studies in music in Nigeria and overseas, notably the Middlesex Summer School in the United Kingdom.

If you have ever wondered why the “Imela” and “Casting Crowns” crooner does what he does with class, this is a pointer you should consider.

3. He once broke the internet

In June 2017, Nathaniel Bassey held Nigerians spellbound for thirty days with his Hallelujah Challenge tagged “Olowogbogboro” in which he held live worship of songs at midnight for one hour on Facebook and Instagram every night. Thousands of Social Media users defied both sleep and the cost of internet to join in the challenge which soon included testimonies from participants whose ailment and problems got breakthroughs via the challenge.

The hashtags #Olowogbogboro and #HallelujahChallenge trended throughout the month with hundreds of thousands of posts on it in Facebook, Instagram and Twitter globally.

While you are here, see: Five Lesser Known Facts About Frank Edwards

This challenge went beyond Nigeria and Social Media and CNN was attracted. They reached out to the star who said, “I had a sense which is the leading of the spirit to praise God the whole month against the backdrop of the challenges in the world today, especially our nation, with the scourge of terrorism and the recession.”

Celebrities were attracted. Don Jazzy, Toke Makinwa, and Funke Akindele all posted about the challenge. “Thank you, Nathaniel Bassey, for bringing us together to praise God. May you be blessed and more and more,” the Jenifa’s Diary creator said.

The challenge was not without its detractors whose main line of criticism largely bordered on the fact that the challenge won’t change anything as Nigeria needs more than just praises.

The challenge is billed to become an annual programme.

4. Nathaniel Bassey is a millionaire (in dollars)

Almost. More or less. According to bionetwoth.com.ng, the artiste is worth 950,000 dollars as of early 2018. Which isn’t a bad return for someone whose associates thought he was derailing when he chose the gospel line. It is, however, not out of place for him to have this amount of money. His albums have sold well and he is a household name, which means his appearances on shows will add a few zeroes to his account balance. The blog didn’t state how they got this information or give a breakdown of his assets and earnings.

If this is an indication of his worth, then the artiste is not in a bad shape.

5. He met his wife in a dramatic manner

Nathaniel Bassey got married to Serah in 2013. The event leading to their meeting was quite dramatic.

First, on deciding it was time to settle down, just after breaking up with his ex, the star made a list of 15 friendly sisters whom he believed he could settle down with. He presented this list to God in prayers. He was led to see that none of them was destined to be his wife. He decided to distance himself from them.

Then he met Serah. She was a student intern at Mobil Oil. This did not quite appeal to Bassey as his Ex was at Mobil. Another Mobil heartbreak? This was not to be. As he ended up marrying Serah.

The couple has two kids.