Aliu began acting in 1959 when Akin Ogungbe, a Nigerian veteran dramatist visited his hometown, the same year he joined the Akin Ogungbe theatre group where he gained some experience in drama.[4] In 1966, after he spent seven years with the Ogungbe troupe, he established "Jimoh Aliu Concert Party", a group based in Ikare in Ondo State southwestern Nigeria.[5]