Gani Adams was born on April 30, 1970, at Arigidi-Akoko, presently known as Akoko north-west local government area of Ondo state.
In 1992, he became an active pro-democrat by campaigning for democracy due to his struggle to avert military rule in the country and to make individual participation in democratic governance come into being.
The struggle however, fetched him an appointment as the Public Relations Officer of Mushin local government chapter of Civil Liberties Organization(CLO) in 1993; a group that pursues the promotion of fundamental human rights in Nigeria.
[6] Although Gani was not a founding member of OPC, he was appointed the National Coordinator of the Oodua Peoples Congress, then rose to nationwide popularity after Inspector General of Police Musiliu Smith declared him wanted in 2000 with a financial reward of N100,000 for his group's involvement in violent clashes.
[8][9] On October 14, 2017, Adams was declared to be the 15th Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland by Oba Adeyemi III, the Alaafin of Oyo.