Artists have long used music to relay personal experiences and take on topics ranging from love to pain to mental health. These experiences form the crux of the stories of the artists. In 2022, Emoseh Khamofu, known professionally as Bloody Civilian, made a striking entrance into the Nigerian music industry. Her debut single, How To Kill A Man, depicted the realities of Nigerian women in a patriarchal society, offering a voice of resistance against women-targeted injustices. She followed it with I Don’t Like You, where she professes a disinterest towards the song’s subject. “If I ever hate on you, let fire burn me now, If my mind on you, let thunder strike me down, Your brain is co-dependent, that’s okay, But I am not your friend,” she sings, hinting at a romantic fallout. The two songs, both part of her debut EP Anger Management (2023), showcase her unapologetic stance. “As I was making some of the songs, I was actually really upset. I was really angry. I was trying to tone it down but it wasn’t working because it simply was not aligned with my reality,” she revealed to The NATIVE Mag in a 2023 interview.
In local Nigerian parlance, she no send anyone. Singing about a relationship that went sour, Bloody Civilian resisted the urge to suck. She remained unapologetic. Her unapologetic stance is also reflective in her stage name. “It’s a derogatory term the Nigerian military use when they’re unleashing their violence on us,” she explains to Nataal in another 2023 interview. “I decided to flip the image of what a Nigerian civilian is; we’re not nobodies that you can just toss to the side so I gave myself that name saying ‘I’m this Bloody Civilian and you can’t get rid of me,” she added.
Her style leans towards R&B, reflecting her early influences which are mostly songs by Asa, and Nneka, Kid Cudi, Kanye, Tame Impala, She produces her music herself, a DIY approach which began inadvertently. “Production started off without me knowing I was producing,” she said “It was on an app called Audacity that my cousin had given me; I would make acapella beats by transposing vocals, using everything the app could possibly offer to try and make instrumentals.”
Her ability caught a producer’s attention, leading her to production apps like Fruity Loops and Logic, marking the beginning of her professional journey as a producer. Initially producing Trap beats, beloved by her rapper friends, she fondly remembers her early endeavors, charging N15,000 per beat. Her big break came with a collaboration with Afropop star Rema for Wake Up, which is part of the GRAMMY-nominated soundtrack of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.
In June 2023, Bloody Civilian released her debut EP, Anger Management under 0207 Def Jam, a UK arm of Def Jam recordings. Prior to the release of the project, she had gauged the preferences of her growing audience to understand the kind of songs they resonate with, and in the six-track EP, she unleashed her feelings, unbridled and assertive. In Escapism, she speaks of surviving struggles and disillusionment with her homeland, a “country she said gave her nothing.” It candidly reflects on her socio-economic realities with the poignant lyrics “My country gives me nothing and the economy is falling,” resonating deeply with the experiences of young people in her region. The introductory track, Escapism, establishes the album’s theme of non-conformity of featuring light and rhythmic Amapiano log drums. In Family Meeting, she offers a poignant response to the intrusive and melodramatic Nigerian aunties, sending a powerful message of independence in the sultry Afropop song. The track serves as a lesson to these ‘Aunties,’ with her assertively singing, “Auntie no want to go house, Auntie, please go home, even God rest on the seventh day,” Essentially, she’s making a clear statement for privacy, firmly keeping intruders into her private life at bay. Mad Apology finds her unrepentant over a soured relationship, maintaining the EP’s theme with upbeat instrumentals. The EP culminates with Come From, a poignant tribute to her roots, whether that be Kaduna, her birthplace, or Abuja, her base. The song paints a serene, then troubled picture of her homeland, ending with a lament over its fractured state. In Anger Management, Bloody Civilian stands out as audacious, bold, and unyielding, while drawing inspiration from several other women. She pays homage to her mother for her sacrifices and trailblazing career; to Aṣa, whose song Fire On The Mountain left a profound impact on her; and to Chimamanda Adichie, whose fearless writing inspired Bloody Civilian’s artistic boldness. “I can recall reading her [Adichie’s] books in chronological order and wondered how she could write stuff like that and not care what people would say. That really inspired me to do the same,” she said.
In late 2023, Bloody Civilian returned with Anger Management: At LEasT wE tRIED, an expanded edition of the initial project. Retaining its essence, she introduced new collaborations with Tay Iwar, Fave, Joeboy, Lifesize Teddy, Majeeed, ENNY, and others to the tracks, reaching out to a broader audience in Lagos, where she moved from Abuja last year.
Upon relocating to Lagos, Bloody Civilian expressed that she has adopted a new level of enthusiasm and motivation for her craft. This transformation is reflective of the dynamic spirit of Lagos, in stark contrast to Abuja. Lagos serves as a melting pot where individuals from all walks of life strive to leave their imprint, and this vibrant environment extends to include music artists like Bloody Civilian. “You can focus in Abuja because it’s a quiet, small city and you can just focus on yourself. There’s not much silence here in Lagos, so it’s a different type of excitement and it motivates me,” she said. This renewed vigor contributed significantly to her successful year. Her collaboration with ODUMODUBLVCK on Blood On The Dance Floor topped TurnTable charts for several weeks. 2023 was the year for Bloody Civilian. She successfully carved out her niche in the Nigerian music industry, establishing herself as a defiant songstress to change the societal constructs that have repressed Nigerian and African women, and whoever stands in the way of Bloody Civilian will be bloodied.