Remembering a Highlife Icon: The Legacy of Bobby Benson . The story of Nigerian highlife music cannot be told without Bobby Benson’s name, whose impact cannot be overlooked. Born Bernard Olabinjo Benson in 1922 in Ikorodu, Lagos, Bobby’s influence stretched beyond music. He was among the first to weave jazz, Caribbean rhythms, and African sounds into a distinctly Nigerian highlife style. . Benson’s journey to musical prominence was anything but straightforward. Before settling into his musical c