The December Hymn That Refuses to Fade

By Folorunso, Fatai Adisa

 

There were songs, and then there were songs that didn’t just fill the air but touched the spirit. Songs that wrapped the weary heart in warmth and whispered reassurance into anxious souls. One of such timeless anthems, which often reawakens with the closing months of the year, is “Odun Nlo Sopin” by the CAC Good Women Choir. Under the golden voice and artistic grace of Mrs. D.A. Fasoyin, the song became more than music, it became a ritual of hope. It is the song that prays for you.

“Odun Nlo Sopin” is a melodic prayer, a plea wrapped in rhythm. It asks God to shield the listener and their household from the shadowy evils believed to lurk at year’s end, while invoking blessings, health, and joy for the year to come. Its cadence, serene yet stirring, carries the authority of faith and the gentleness of comfort. The harmony of those voices, so pure and earnest, gives one the sense that each line of prayer has already ascended and returned answered.

We have witnessed beautiful, spirit-filled music emerge from Nigeria’s religious communities, songs that healed, steadied, and united hearts. However, looking around today, it is hard to find a modern production from that fold with the same sincerity, simplicity, and power, a song that prays for you even as you listen. In “Odun Nlo Sopin,” faith found melody, and melody became memory.

 

Odun Nlo Sopin Lyrics

 

Odun lo sopin o (This year is coming to an end)
Baba rere (Good God)
Baba Ma somi o (Oh Lord guide us)
Tomotomo (And our children)
Ohun ti o pa mi lekun o (Sorrow and sadness)
Lodun titun (In the new year)
Ma je ko sele simi o Baba rere (Will not be our portion good God)

Ma je nwo leri sokun (May I not weep)
Ma je n daso ofo bora (May I not mourn)
Ogun roju je roju mu (Struggle and Lack)
Mama je ko je ti temi (May it not be my portion I pray thee)
Alafia pipe ni mo fe, fi ta mi rore (Perfect peace I desire)
Je n ri na, Jen rilo (I pray for abundance)
Baba wa se mi logo (Lord shower your glory on me)
Ma je kawo na (May I not lack)
Ma je ntaraka lodun titun (May I not wander in the new year)

Dabo Olorun mi dabo (My Lord hear my plea)
Ma maje ko fi ire temi sapinle (My blessing will not be taken away)
Ma maje ko ro mi ja sofo lodo re (May my prayers to you not be in vain)
Dabo Olorun mi dabo (My Lord hear my plea)