Bidemi Tata transformed Joeboy’s album into an immersive visual experience.
BidemiTata is a digital artist born in Lagos, raised between Nigeria and Ghana, who has been creating professionally since 2020. He recently designed the album artwork and visuals for Joeboy’s new project Viva La Vida, and we got the chance to sit down and talk with him about his journey so far.
Q: So, professionally—that’s been, like, five years now?
A: Yes.
Q: As a digital artist, what do you think about the recent debate around AI creating art—like taking an artist’s style and generating pieces from it? We’ve seen that a lot recently with Ghibli-style art, for example.
A: Yeah… I feel like, ethically, it just feels dismissive and kind of insulting to the human behind that style. I don’t want to outright say it’s wrong, but there’s something very uncomfortable about it. Like, as a person with morals, you shouldn’t feel okay taking something someone else spent time building and just replicating it with no credit or depth. I don’t like the idea of that at all. But at the same time, I won’t lie—it’s dope. I don’t have an issue with AI as a tool. I feel like it has its uses, it has benefits, and it shows how far technology has come. It’s not that AI itself is bad—I just struggle with how it’s being used.
Q: That’s a fair take, I’ve seen a lot of people say exactly what you just said—that AI could be a tool to sharpen your skills rather than replace the art itself.
A: Yeah. One issue I think a lot of artists can relate to is the search for good references. It can be a really daunting process—you already have the vision in your head, but finding that perfect reference to bring it to life can be tough.
That’s where I think AI can actually help. Like, if you have a solid description of what you want, AI can generate something close to it, and that becomes useful. That’s how it should be used—as a supporting tool.
But the way it’s being used now—or maybe the mood around it—it feels like it’s trying to replace art and artists. And I don’t get why it needs to do that.
Q: True, I want to talk about your career as well. You said you’ve been doing art for eight years, but five years professionally, right? So what has changed since you started working professionally in 2020?
A: I mean, definitely, there’s a lot more interest in the artistic side of things now. Especially in the entertainment scene, everyone wants to have an identity—a brand. And a big part of building that brand is the visual side. So, there’s more appreciation for how art plays into creating a brand or persona. That wasn’t really a thing when I started. It wasn’t seen as essential, but now people really value it, which I appreciate.
There are also way more artists in the space now, which is really encouraging. When I was growing up, I didn’t really have references—like people I could look up to. These are some one of the biggest differences I’ve seen in the space. We can still do more sha.
Q: Yeah, I agree. I feel like art is more respected now. Like you said, back then we weren’t really taking it seriously—especially when it came to creating a proper visual theme. But now, that’s definitely changed. Let’s talk about the artists you’ve worked with. I’ve seen your work with Blaqbonez, Ruger, Psycho YP—a lot of names. What’s it like working with artists in the Nigerian music industry?
A: Yeah, like I mentioned earlier, there are more people who are genuinely interested in this kind of work now. Thankfully, I’ve met artists who appreciate my style enough to trust me with bringing their vision to life—and that’s been a blessing.
It’s been good so far. I don’t want to dismiss anyone else’s experience, because I know people have had their fair share of struggles. But personally, I haven’t come across anyone who’s made the process difficult.
That said, translating someone else’s vision is always a challenge. At the end of the day, it’s another person’s perspective you’re trying to express, not your own. And it takes some effort to step back, remove your own ego from the process, and really put their idea at the center of your creative approach. But yeah, overall, it’s been fun. It’s been really interesting.
Q: That’s good feedback, because most of the people I’ve talked to, they’ve really had one or two things to say about working with artists.
A: You’ll meet some crazy ones for sure, but the people you’ve mentioned so far, it’s all been seamless. There’s been understanding. I mean, they know my style, they know what I can do, and they try to make it all work together. So yeah.
Q: Something I’ve been meaning to ask— you know how music artists have their genres and can say, “I do Rap or R&B”? I guess it’s kind of the same for visual artists. So what’s yours? what kind of art do you do?
A: Okay, interesting question. I mean, if I can even call it a genre—I don’t think I’ve actually thought about it like that before. But I like to call my style escapism.
It’s like escapism. It looks… wonderful, I guess that’s one way to put it. It’s like creating a different reality, something that takes you away from your current one. That’s really how I try to approach my work—creating an alternate universe that you can get lost in.
I don’t know, just… enjoy the vibe, in a way. But yeah, I haven’t thought about it as a specific genre before.
Q: I mean, yeah, it’s something to think about. I’ve just always wanted to ask an artist to describe their style in a word or a set of words, you know? But yeah, about being a digital artist—we’ve had eras where digital artists could do exhibitions and even make good money, like with NFTs and all that. As opposed to traditional exhibitions where you have to be drawing or painting physically. Do you think that kind of era still exists?
A: I mean, not as much as it used to be—back when the NFT bubble was at its apex. People are still there, they’re still in those spaces, but I feel like the investments have shifted more into tokens now.
I don’t have a full understanding of how it all works in that space anymore, but if you can sell your art as tokens, I guess you can still make profit from it.
But back when the NFT trend started, people would buy your art personally. It wasn’t, like, sold as multiple copies. I don’t really know how to explain it properly, but yeah—it’s definitely not what it used to be.
Q: But would you ever do a physical exhibition?
A: Yeah, I would. I mean, I’ve actually done it before. But for me, I feel like digital art needs to be presented as an experience. Like, it’s not enough to just put it on screens or print it out—people need to feel it, interact with it.
I have this huge vision for how digital art should be exhibited, so it’s kind of hard to go back to the usual format. I’ve done, like, two exhibitions before. They weren’t bad, but I didn’t feel like they fully captured what I was trying to express.
I’d definitely still like to do more, I still have that interest—it just has to be an experience, not just a display.
Q: Making it an experience really helps people feel that escapism you described. To truly enjoy something like that, you have to be kinda immersed in a world—you know, like watching a movie.
A: Yeah, yeah, exactly. You get it.
Q: What do you do more? Personal projects or Commissions?
A: I mean, I do some…I don’t even like calling it commissions. I like calling it collaborations. Like, you pay me still, but we’re working together, so it’s like a collaboration between me and you. So, I have a lot of collabs that I get paid for, and also a lot of personal projects.
Q: The recent work with Joeboy, was it a collab with his creative team? Did he have any input?
A: I feel like it was more of, like… like I said, I don’t like calling it a commission, because at the end of the day, we did way more than just the artwork. It translates into the whole visual aspect of it. Like, it’s not just the cover art; it’s also the mood it sets. We set the mood, and also the references for some of the music videos as well. So, yeah, we also worked on every single song. Every song had its own artwork and its own presentation visually.
Q: What’s the inspiration behind the artwork and name for “Viva la Vida”? Was it a personal idea Joeboy came up with?
A: I think Joeboy already had the idea before we worked on it. I think it basically translates to like, what would I call it now? “Live your life, be free.” From the brief he shared with me and conversations later, he was more in a headspace where he wasn’t desperate for a hit. He was interested in experimenting with his sound and just making music—just letting go and letting the music come to him naturally. He wanted that to be translated in the artwork, with the bird being the reference for freedom.
Each song was about letting go of something—whether it was a toxic relationship or his ego in seeking love. So, the bird was a reference for that freedom. The visual aspect was about being one with nature, and we just worked around that whole concept.
Q: That’s great. I see that you pay attention to every detail. You really try to make everything work. But would you have ever thought, I know a lot of things have changed, but back then, most artists wanted to do a shoot, like a physical shoot for their cover art. But now, many artists use digital artists to create experiences for their covers and even in music videos. Did you ever think that it would get to this point, where digital art would become as big in the industry?
A: I mean, I won’t lie, yes. When I started, it wasn’t like this, but there was this optimism. I felt that dream. I felt like all we needed to do was increase the quality of content we were making, and people would want that constantly. I think Duro and Dukes were the first artists I knew that were doing this actively, and it was really inspirational to see them. They raised the bar so much that I wanted to join that race.
Q: Who are the artists you’d like to work with? They could be Nigerian or foreign. Who would you like to share an idea with?
A: I’ll say one from America and one from Nigeria. I want to work with Destroy Lonely.
Q: Destroy Lonely? really? Are you into the Opium vibe?
A: I mean, I like him. That’s all I’ll say. I like his music. I listen to their songs when I create, too. So they kind of direct some of my visual language sometimes. So, yeah, I’d love to work with him at some point, and in Nigeria, I’m really fucking with TariQ recently.
Q: TariQ? I was literally listening to his album, I think he’s hard.
A: Exactly, exactly.
Q: In the next five years, or next ten years, where do you think digital art and digital artistry will go? With how we’re having people pulling prompts to create works, where do you think it’ll go in the next five or ten years?
A: I struggle to really see it being a threat. The more people are prompting or doing their prompts, people who can actually draw will increase in value. It’s like wine—the older it gets, the more expensive it becomes. So, I feel like it might get to a point where it’ll be so rare to meet people who can draw by themselves, and they’ll become more valuable. If it gets to that point, I don’t think it should take away from actual artists. At the end of the day, we create, and we have our style. I don’t really have that fear of it.
Q: I actually feel the same way. AI art works with the prompt—you have to input something for it to generate something. It’s like garbage in, garbage out. An artist, a human being, is spontaneous. You could wake up one day and get an idea. That’s something AI can’t do. There’ll always be a separation, like, just like when you tweet something and someone comments, “Yo, this is ChatGPT.” I think there’s gonna be a clear separation.
A: The best ideas don’t come easily. They’re not always easy to communicate at first. As an artist, some of the best ideas I’ve had came to me as a feeling, a vision, or a picture that I began to understand more as I created it. That’s what gives it the soul. But, yeah, it’s just a trend now.
Q: Exactly, everything’s a trend these days.
A: I think last year, there was that whole clay art style thing that was trending. What was it called? I can’t quite remember, but yeah, it was clay. They were prompting that too.
Q: Yeah, it’s all about prompts. It’s just someone’s art style being easily replicated.
Q: It’s really been nice speaking to you. I’ve actually seen some of your works and didn’t even know who was behind them.
A: Really? Thanks, I appreciate it, man.
Q: You’re welcome. I don’t know if there’s anything else you’d like to say or maybe something you’d like to share about your work.
A: No, not right now. But if there’s anything, I’ll hit you up, Thank you.
