Artist: Cornelius Benjamin
Song: NKEM APUGHI ICHE
Album: JESUS BE OGA 2
Track: 3
Genre: Gospel
Language: Igbo
Released: June 11, 2001
Duration: 3:00
Record Label: 5737480 Records DK
If you are going through the old Nigerian gospel catalogue, “NKEM APUGHI ICHE” is another beautiful one from Cornelius Benjamin.
The song was released on June 11, 2001, as the third track on JESUS BE OGA 2. The album has 14 songs and runs for about 46 minutes.
The title is in Igbo, and the song is built around dependence on God. The message is basically about recognising that there are things we cannot do by ourselves and that we need God in our lives. That simple message fits perfectly with the kind of straightforward gospel music Cornelius Benjamin was known for.
What makes this particular song interesting is that it has continued to find listeners more than two decades after it was first released. Cornelius Benjamin’s official Audiomack account currently shows over 100,000 plays for “NKEM APUGHI ICHE,” while the song also appears among his top songs on Apple Music.
And when you look at the other songs on JESUS BE OGA 2, you can see that Cornelius Benjamin wasn’t trying to make an album around one particular style. The project moves through different expressions of praise and worship, with songs such as “JEHOVA MAZURU,” “EZI ENYI,” “OLU OMA GI EBUKA,” “OBU JEHOVA,” “NANI GI,” “HEAVENLY RACE” and “GOD IS GREATER.”
There is also something nice about hearing these songs again today. A lot has changed in Nigerian gospel music since 2001. Production has become more modern and gospel music has mixed heavily with Afrobeats and other sounds. But songs like “NKEM APUGHI ICHE” take you back to a period when indigenous Nigerian gospel music had its own very distinct sound.
And Cornelius Benjamin hasn’t disappeared from the music scene either. His catalogue stretches back to the 1990s, and his latest listed release, “GINI KAM GA EJI (WHAT SHALL I RENDER),” was released in March 2026.
So if you enjoy discovering old Nigerian gospel songs or you simply want to revisit the music many people grew up with, “NKEM APUGHI ICHE” is worth putting on.
Listen to Cornelius Benjamin – NKEM APUGHI ICHE using the audio player below and enjoy another classic from JESUS BE OGA 2.
