Oseyiza Oogbodo Blog

One might be tempted to think that Professor Wale Omole is strictly a disciplinarian. He however tells OSEYIZA OOGBODO and EFE OMORDIA that he also participated in all the extra-curricular and romantic escapades that come with being young. Did you have a happy childhood? I have always been happy because I would fight any stressful situation. Though I grew up in a polygamous household but by God’s favour on my life, I did well as a student and you know the Polygamous setting where you have many of you from many mothers but it wasn’t the best of circumstance that I was doing better than my elder siblings so by the time I finished I resolved not to go for HSC. I decided to leave home with just my box, a few clothes and just two pounds. I didn’t tell my mother where I was going. I went to Ibadan so I decided. I decided not just to work but to combine working and schooling. Though I could have studied any course, that decision took me to the school of Agriculture. Well as a man I decided ...

Right now, the question that should be asked regarding the female rapper known as Mz Kiss is why she’s not yet the talk of the music industry. She has what it takes, charisma, attitude, passion, ambition, courage, boldness, and even beauty, to become the nation’s hottest female rapper. But she’s yet to attain the throne. There are indications however that she should soon ascend the throne, as her songs and videos for Spartacuz, Figure 8 and others keep spreading by the day and increasing her fan base. So, if you don’t know her yet, then she eventually becomes the hottest thing in rap, as hot as, or even hotter than Olamide, Phyno, Reminisce and co, don’t be surprised.

When it comes to the issue of musicians and their fan base, sensational singing twins, P-Square, definitely have a lot of fans. And just like them, Congolese musician, Awilo Longomba, has a lot of fans too. As a matter of fact, both P-Square and Awilo’s fans are not restricted to just their countries, Nigeria and Congo, but worldwide, and that’s why they are extremely successful musicians. But since a coin has two sides, and what’s good has its bad side, it mustn’t just be about fans who love them for these superstars. They must also have some enemies who hate them for unjust reasons that include how successful they are. Well, we don’t know their enemies, but they know them, and they’ve teamed up on a song, Enemy Solo, which as its title suggests, is a warning to their enemies and those of their fans that they are powerless to do them any harm. So if you are a P-Square or Awilo hater, dem don sing for you oh.

About four years ago, talented Tanzanian singer, Diamond Platnumz, was practically unknown in Nigeria. But, considering the importance of the Nigerian music industry in Africa and the world, Diamond had other ideas about being unknown in Nigeria, since being known in Nigeria would enhance his brand all over Africa and the world. And the step he took to remedy the situation is the step that has paid off for him big time. He featured the one and only Omo Baba Olowo, Davido, on the remix of his song, Number One, and since then Africa has accepted that there’s an artist named Diamond. Doors have opened for him thereby and they keep opening, because he keeps attaching to Nigerian artists. The latest of such attachments is his collaboration with Nigerian highlife rave, Flavour. The song is titled Nana, its video is out now, it’s already gaining attention, and there’s no doubt that it will be a continental hit. Before this Flavour collaboration, back in 2013 when Peter P-Square got married, ...

Asides money and shows, there’s probably nothing that music artists crave more than awards. When they are interviewed, they don’t hide it that they want to win awards, especially the Grammy. And when an award’s nominees are announced, some who are not nominated actually feel badly because they know it will be another full year before they can be considered again for that particular award’s categories. And though they crave awards, they crave some more than others. In Nigeria presently, the Headies is the award that they really want to win. But even more important to them than the Headies are international awards like MTV EMA, BET, MOBO and others that originate from America and Europe which have a Best International Act, Africa category that really enhances its winner’s brand value because the winner will be known as the best in Africa. So, the Black Canadian Awards holding today in Toronto has a lot of significance for Africa because it has a best international act category that has ...

By now, it’s no longer news that Olamide has released yet another music video. The video is for a song, Melo Melo, which like most of his songs, is a surefire hit. What’s news however is that Olamide is releasing videos at a rate that will diminish his brand value, rather than enhance it as he hopes. Three months ago, it was the video for Falila Ketan that he dropped as his first video of the year. Unusually for him, both the song and video didn’t really catch on, so it was understandable when he dropped Bobo’s video three weeks ago. Since Bobo’s arrival, it has caught on, and is in fact still spreading. The dance in the video is the latest dance in town and the latest slang in town is ‘Shakiti Bobo,’ one of the lines in the song. So, releasing Melo Melo just when Bobo is about to really peak, doesn’t make all the sense in the world. Olamide is not the only Nigerian artist guilty of flooding the airwaves with music videos to his own detriment. Phyno, his close friend, also released ma...

Highly rated celebrity, Timaya, has confirmed to HipTV that he’s expecting his second child. Unlike some of his colleagues, though, who have offspring with many women, he disclosed that he was expecting the child with the same lady who had his first child. He added that he took the decision to have another child at this time because he loves his first child, a daughter named Emmanuella, so much that he wants to have more children.

Talented TV producer, Mursty Adinoyi, whose TV entertainment programme, Hitlist N Cruzin, is one of the most successful in the country presently, has disclosed that he’s starting the radio version of Hitlist N Cruzin. And on why he’s taking it to radio, he said, “I understand that the best way not to fall is to keep on moving, and to keep moving, you have to keep diversifying, keep expanding. I have people working under me, and anytime I look at them, something tells me that it’s like these guys are hooking their future on me, because if I fail, and by the grace of God I won’t, I’m not failing alone. “Others will go with me, and the only way not to fall is to keep diversifying and expanding. And when you look at expansion, radio should be part of our expansion as an entertainment production company. And God willing, if we have the opportunity tomorrow, to run 24 hours on any platform, we are ready for it. So those are the expansion plans. “And the only thing is to keep on getting bett...

Fans of singer-actress Stella Damasus would be happy to hear something of their favourite celebrity as she has not been satisfying them with her appearance in movies as she used to since she allegedly ran away to America with Daniel Ademinokan, once husband of her colleague, Doris Simeon. And speaking about Stella to i2radio, as he wanted to dedicate a song to her, he gushed that, “‘I am so excited to dedicate this song to one person who has been a rock. Sometimes God just aligns things to happen at the right time. Stella Damasus, you are an amazing person and I appreciate you so much. “The kind of mind you have, the way you think. It’s different and I’ll probably never meet anyone like you. People don’t know the truth about how we got together. I appreciate you so much and you are a very blessed person. There is something special about you. I have always said to you that the enemy will not attack you if you aren’t special. “You have been a source of encouragement to me. You have cha...

Zdon Paporrella is one of the music industry’s recognised faces. He is also a TV and radio presenter and he tells OSEYIZA OOGBODO BLOG about what music means to him. Your popular song, Nonsense, was a critique of the music industry as it supported the popular belief that musicians are singing nonsense nowadays. Did you sing it out of frustration probably because other musicians supposedly singing nonsense are making more waves than you? I sang Nonsense not out of frustration but because naturally I'm an expressive person. I'm not one to sit and wait until I or anyone I know becomes a victim. Rather than whine and cry in private, I used the medium I have, music, to expose what was going on in our industry so when by God's grace I'm retired from all this, I'll be happy that my music career stood for something objective. Did Nonsense achieve the purpose for which you sang it? Nonsense got my message across and that's what matters. Like I said, it has more to do wi...

There is no doubt that the most popular urban record label in the country presently is Don Jazzy’s Mavin Records. Mavin is the label that has recorded the most number of hit tracks spread across all its artists in the last three years. Such tracks and artists include God Win by Korede Bello; Awww by Di’Ja; Katapot by Reekado Banks; My Darling by Tiwa Savage; Surulere by Dr SID; OYO by D’Prince; and Dorobucci by all Mavin artists aforementioned and their mentor, Jazzy. It’s therefore not surprising that many artists are hoping Jazzy can sign them to Mavin, the same way artists used to want to be signed to Kenny Ogunbge’s Kennis Music when it was the most prominent urban music label in the nation. Nowadays, nobody talks much of Kennis again, and it can be rightly said that Mavin displaced Kennis from its perch atop the music industry. So, Kennis is no longer doing as it used to. But it’s not the only label not doing well. There are many other labels not doing well due to various reasons...

Actress-singer-entrepreneur Cossy Orjiakor is known for her enormous bosom and her brazen showoff of it. Because it’s her major selling point, and not many women can compete with her in that department, she flaunts it because she’s got it in excess, and the strategy is working for her. Her exhibition of it gets men’s hearts pounding, blood flowing and lusting for her. Many people feel that she uses it to attract the opposite sex and that’s her basic use for it. But as Cossy proved recently at the birthday party of one of her colleagues, Uche Ogbodo, her boobs also serve a glass holder for her. While at the party, she placed her wine glass in-between her boobs and it fitted there snugly, freeing her hands for other things. So now you know something else Cossy uses her boobs for.

Highly rated movie awards, Nollywood and African Film Critics Awards (NAFCA), has listed Dr Isatou Njie-Saidy, Vice-President of Gambia, and Floyd Maywaether Snr, father of flamboyant boxer, Floyd Mayweather Jnr, among those who will receive its prestigious NAFCA honorary awards when NAFCA holds in September in America. According to NAFCA organizers, Njie-Saidy is being recognized for inspiring women in Africa through her numerous achievements. Citing Njie-Saidy, the organizers said, “As well as being Vice-President, Gambia, she’s also Secretary of State for Women's Affairs. From September 1983 to December 1989, she was Deputy Executive Secretary of the Women's Bureau, the executive decision-making body of the National Women's Council. Later, under President Yahya Jammeh, she became Minister of Health, Social Welfare and Women's Affairs in July 1996, and then Vice President and Secretary of State for Health, Social Welfare and Women's Affairs on 20 March 1997. “She...

Muyiwa Majekodunmi became a celebrity by virtue of being the proprietor of Jazzville, a club where every notable Nigerian musician, including the legendary Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, had to perform. Popularly known as Majek, he made more news when he closed down Jazzville. He further made news with Jazzville’s conversion to Praiseville. OSEYIZA OOGBODO BLOG met him and he explained why. Jazzville was a very popular joint. Do you regret closing it? No. Never. Absolutely not. In fact, I wish I had done it earlier. Actually, it closed when it should, that’s all. In the aftermath, the wilderness period, you’ll grumble, that is natural, and ask, ‘Did You ask me to close down Jazzville?’ And the reply was ‘Yeah.’ I have no regrets. You’re saying God told you to close it? Yes. I don’t think all that was really me per se. I just think that at some point in time, you’ll ask yourself where are you coming from, where are you now and where do you want to go? Is this what you want to do for the rest of y...

In case you didn’t know this, the coming of Evangelist Obey Fabbiyi into this world wasn’t an easy one. In fact, it’s the classical case of any child coming to the world to excel will have a very hard time getting into the world. His mother, Abigail Oyindamola Fabiyi, went through tough and rough times. She was barren for about two decades as a married woman. She went everywhere and did everything in search of children but she was unlucky. Eventually, she was evicted from her matrimonial home by the counsel of members of her former husband’s family. This devastated for a long time until she was advised to go to Idogo village away from the face of agony and despair. Incidentally, it was around the time Nathaniel Olasewo Fabiyi moved from Abeokuta to Idogo in order to practice his carpentry alongside with cocoa farming. On the ticket of fate, she met Nathaniel and got married to him. Not too long after, she got pregnant for the first time in over two decades as a wife. However, the bun...

When you least expect, Dencia, who is well known as a cosmetics entrepreneur, comes up with a music effort that gets talked about because her personality is one that just can’t be ignored. And so, her latest music video, African Energy, is getting talked about and has music lovers divided in their opinion of it. While song commented that she doesn’t have the voice to sing and that she’s trying to copy the superstar, Rihanna, others praised her effort, saying it was nice and a good try.

Just like movie producer, on-air personality and columnist, Chris Ihidero, did recently, music artist, EFA, too has written a letter to Nigeria’s latest President, General Muhammadu Buhari. Following his memorable performance at last week’s Industry Nite, Now Muzik rapper EFA launched his website during the week with a visual, Letter To The President. The clip is part of a new series by the rapper tagged ‘60 Seconds’ in which he tackles a variety of issues with clever and hard hitting rhymes in each episode. The first of the series is ‘Letter To The President’ in which he poses tough questions, that are on the minds of many Nigerians, to Buhari. The video was shot on location in Lagos by Director Frames, a Lagos-based director.

One music artist that has been trending a fair lot recently for both right and wrong reasons is Dr SID. Be it for the birth of his first child, mass criticism of his latest single, Chop Ogbono Remix, or others, he has been trending, and he’s trending again negatively. According to a report making the rounds about him gradually, he has been blacklisted by one of the nation’s top entertainment promoters, Nigerian Breweries, which organizes a lot of shows that give musicians the opportunity to showcase themselves and also pays them well for it. Right now, one of NB’s annual shows, Star Trek, is going on, and the report has it that SID in not on it because he did not keep to some contractual agreements while on the Trek last year so NB has decided to ban him from all its events. Artists on this year’s Trek are 2face Idibia, Davido, Wizkid, MI, Seyi Shay, Timaya, Wande Coal, Burna Boy, Naeto C, Mr. Raw, Yemi Alade, Oritsefemi, Faze, Runtown, Cynthia Morgan, Banky W, Sean Tizzle, Pasuma, Sou...

Neptune Entertainment and Twenty20 Media present Let's Party Naija Mix Volume12 hosted by the international celebrity disc jockey, DJ Neptune. The Let's Party Naija mixtape is a combination of the hottest tracks out at the moment, perfectly selected and mixed by the ever blazing DJ Neptune for your listening pleasure. Aside the release of the new mixtape, Neptune has started the first leg of his DJ Neptune Live In Your City Tour in the United States of America. He performed live in California on May 22nd and Washington DC on May 24th. Chicago is next on June 6th, Houston on June 12th and 13th, New Jersey on June 20th and Dallas on June 27th with more cities to be announced.

The 960 Music Group, the music agency brand partner to Project Fame West Africa, has presented the music video for Project Fame Season 7 winner, Geoffrey Oji’s debut single, Bursting My Brain. In the captivating video directed by Mr. Miagy, Geoffrey is infatuated with his best friend, but she’s oblivious to his advances, and instead friend-zones him and asks him to help pick an outfit for her date with another man. After a disastrous date, she realizes Geoffrey is the best man for her. The video features celebrity dancer, Ezinne of the CEO Dancers, along with Precious, Creamy and Ada. Bursting My Brain is the first single off the Best of MTN Project Fame Season 7 CD compilation, and Geoffrey’s soon to be released 6-song EP which has production credits from Password (winner of MTN SongStar competition), Masterkraft, Rundatraxx, Wilson Joel and a feature from Project Fame Season 3 Winner, Chidinma Ekile. Mark Redguard, CEO, 960 Music Group stated that since Geoffrey’s Project Fame win, ...