‘THE NIGERIAN AUDIENCE IS THE BEST ON THE PLANET’ – LES BROWN

World renowned motivational speaker, author and television

LES BROWN

personality, Lesley C. Brown, was in Nigeria recently, on the invitation of telecommunications giants, MTN, to speak at the MTN Enriched Lives Seminar. He visited four of the nation’s top universities and also came in contact with a number of Nigerians.

His experience changed his perception of the people of the most populous black nation on earth as he tells in this interview.

Excerpts…

Tell us a bit about yourself.

My name is Les Brown. I am an author, speaker and also a speech coach. I teach people how to effectively tell the story to influence and impact audiences and to advance the causes and missions they believe in. I was born in a poor section of the United States, Miami Florida called Liberty City. It is drug-infested and extremely poor, with a great deal of violence. I was born and abandoned on the floor with my twin brother. We were rescued and when we were six weeks old, we were adopted by Mrs. Mannie Brown.

Why public speaking?

I am involved in this area of speaking, training and self empowerment because I am a product of it. When I was in the fifth grade, I was labelled mentally retarded. I was brought back from the fifth grade to the fourth grade and later failed the eight grade and I had no college training.

But I had a high school teacher who taught me the value of effective communication skills and working on your mind. He said, “Develop your mind and develop your communication skills, because once you open your mouth, you tell the world who you are.” And I have been travelling and speaking around the world for over 40 years now. I am 65.

Why are you in Nigeria?

I am in Nigeria for the second time. I was here in April 2009 at the instance of MTN and what really fascinates me about the work that I am doing with MTN is that the people now have  an opportunity to enhance, enrich and empower themselves by having access to information, with this new technology they have with their 85:20 telephone. And that is very fascinating to me because for the first time in the history of the world, poor people have access to the same information that wealthy people have. And they interact through social networks, they can reach things that entertain, enjoy themselves and, more importantly, give them access to information that allows them to transform their lives and transform their communities to make a greater impact on their career professionally.

What about your twin brother?

My twin brother is into security. He works in a prison as a security guard and he also does work in his community and in his church. Ours lives are totally different. He has never ever attended a motivational seminar or workshop. He has only listened through about three or four of my speeches. My mother adopted seven kids and none of my brothers and sisters is involved in the work that I do in terms of upgrading their relationships, seeing the value of reading and listening to motivational messages or going to seminar. I’m like an alien to my brothers and sisters. It’s like I am from another planet. But they are proud of me. They look at me as an exception as opposed to an example of what is possible for them too if they engage in the same process.

You never had college education, what was the process?

Number one is that you have to be very clear about the goals you want to achieve. They have to be goals that are beyond your comfort zone and what is very important about that is, you have never done that before, you have to become someone that you have never been. You don’t get what you want to get in life with what you are. Once you become clear about the goals you want to achieve, the next thing that is very important is research. You start studying and following all the directions of the things that you want to achieve through developing yourself in order to become that kind of person. If you want to go from one country to another, you have to get a map or get in contact with someone who knows there very well, so that you can be able to know how to get to your destination. So, you need  to have a clear vision of what you want to achieve, a game plan and an action plan that will allow you to develop yourself into the person that you need to become in order to achieve that goal. This is the same process in achieving any goal. You also have to be around like minded people, people who think like you think and people you look up to; people who have already achieved what you want to achieve; people who are always reaching and striving to achieve; people who are always smarter than you are; people that you can learn from; people who as a result of your relationship with them, you will be able to give birth to that part of you that you are not aware of.

That means you should always probe into yourself to find out things that are there which you don’t know?

Yes, absolutely! You discover those things by attempting to do things that are beyond your comfort zone, things that you are passionate about, and things you want to accomplish. Then, you start pursuing those things, you start working on yourself, you start learning the things that you don’t know so that you can discover the things that you need to know that will give you access to this new life and in the process of doing that, you become aware of the other abilities and talents that you have which you are not aware of right now.

You have been a motivational speaker for 40 years and you are 65 years old now, at 25. What were the experiences that made you start?

I was a disc jockey for many years and I was involved in broadcasting and then I went from dee jaying to become a state legislator. I was elected to the higher legislature in Columbus Ohio. When I was appointed to the chairmanship of the Human Resource Committee, my mother became ill with breast cancer. I resigned to go back to Miami to take care of her to fulfil a childhood dream and while there, I had to determine how I was to earn money to pay her medical expenses and that’s when I decided to become a motivational speaker.

How many times were you elected into the legislature and at what age were you first elected?

I was elected to the legislature three times. Now, about the age, I am not good with numbers. It is interesting I can tell you thousands of quotes and statistics in studies, but I don’t know years and I don’t know what room I am in at this hotel. Somebody has to always tell me. I don’t know why. That’s very weird. It is a fascinating thing, but I don’t know how to break it up in years. But if you in the course of this conversation ask me, what’s one of the most important quotes Malcom X made? I will say he said “The resolution is within you. That if you don’t change, there will not be a revolution.”

What is something that Booker T. Washington said? Booker T. Washington said that, “You have the power to achieve your dreams. It is important that you can with what you have and not give up.” And I can give you quotes and statistics and studies, but I can’t give you times or numbers or hotel room numbers.

How then do you find your hotel room?

I find something to write it down with or ask whoever is with me at that time or I go back to the front desk to ask the receptionist.

Has it been like that all along?

The thing is that I do that which I am fascinated about. I read two to three books a week because that is my fascination. When I got into this area, there was nothing like an African-American male speaking to white audiences which comprise the majority of my customer base. So, to develop myself as an intellectual resource and to have a reach over white speakers and their employees who have years of experience with PhDs and MBAs and credentials that I don’t have took a lot of study and development on my part to establish myself and my reputation. I became singularly focused on the knowledge that I needed to accomplish my mission.

What is the process of your preparation as regards speaking to particular audiences?

When I became involved in public speaking, I knew that I had to spend plenty of time to study what would be most effective in how you can change a person’s mindset in the course of a presentation. How can we change the human mind through verbal communication? Two, having a range of knowledge and skills to come in and do an assessment and find out what the audience needs to hear. Because I don’t believe that one speech fits all situations, so I do research. When I came to speak for MTN, I developed an MTN presentation and it was dramatically different from the last presentation. So, the speaking industry has been governed by a course that trains people to “Tell them what you are going to tell them, tell them and then tell them what you have told them”. I train speakers from my perspective. I teach and train speakers, “Never let what you are going to say get in the way of what your audience needs to hear.” Find out who they are. Conduct communication intelligence, ask questions in order to get a good understanding.

What do you find unique in your Nigerian audience?

What I think that is unique in the Nigerian audience than any other audience that I have spoken to is the cultural predisposition to train and to influence and impact. And what I mean by that is: I spoke at four colleges. I have never had the opportunity to speak to an audience that was so respectful and had such a committed listening. Nigerian youths, children and adults have a cultural training that is mind boggling to me. Because they listen at a very deep level towards what you say, while with other audiences that I have spoken to, it is not as deep, it is not as committed, it is not as focused and concentrated. They listen to each word as you speak. That is fascinating to me as a speaker. I love it. It is the best audience on the planet. That’s very unique. I have only seen that here and I have never seen that anywhere else, that’s why I am coming back.

Before you came to Nigeria, what was your perception of Nigeria?

I sought to find out what MTN wanted me to do. So, what I wanted to find out was one: How viable is advising students and adults to invest in themselves, to have access to technology, to a telephone that can give them access to information. Once I found how valuable that was, not only in terms of using it for social networks and communication, but also today at this time in our history, this is a knowledge-driven world. Knowledge is the new currency. So, to me that’s very fascinating because everyday people now have access in the palm of their hands to information that will allow them create new opportunities for themselves; To create relationships with other like-minded partners. Students can get together and do home work and to advance themselves academically so they can create a network where they can communicate to find out the opportunities in the industries where they can work upon graduation or even while in school. So, that to me is very fascinating. We have never had that sort of technology before.  When I started speaking 40 years ago, there was nothing like Twitter or social network, YouTube and all the things that allow people to connect around the world.

Do you concentrate more on the message instead of the people?

Both. Because you have to see how it applies. Take for instance, Nigeria is one of the poorest countries in the world. Is it because they don’t have knowledge; they don’t have the resources or that they don’t have the wherewithal in order to create wealth? Absolutely not! What the technology does is that it gives the same access to the same information to the rich and the poor. So, the everyday person has the chance to duplicate the same accomplishments that the successful ones have.

Without a public speaking appointment at the back of your mind, what was your knowledge of Nigeria?

My knowledge of Nigeria was that of a cut-throat nation; a country with no integrity; a dishonest people; people who have the reputation of being ruthless in how they do business, as a violent place; as a place that one would be fearful of and never desire to come. Many of my friends tried to discourage me from coming here. They told me ‘you are crazy. You are going to Nigeria? You must be out of your mind’. One of my eldest daughters said, “I am sorry dad, I can’t squeeze a decapitation in my schedule. They cut people’s head off.” I said come on. You can’t believe CNN which stands for Constant Negative News. You can’t buy into that kind of stuff. So, because of the way the media portrayed Nigeria, most people you ask about Nigeria, nine times out of ten, you will hear a very negative story about Nigeria and also from Nigerians. The same things that I hear from people externally is the same thing I hear from Nigerians and that is one of the things that I am very passionate about that I think particularly that this year that celebrates the 50th anniversary of Nigeria, that a new story needs to be told. The story of Nigerians as hard working people; who are people of integrity and passionate and have power and intellect.

I have spoken to more black people in Nigeria than I have spoken in the United States for 40 years. And so you have people with an unstoppable desire to want to get to the next level. There’s poverty here, but there’s spirit here. Nigerians almost have a zero desire of taking their own lives. Nigerians are not suicidal. Nigerians believe that tomorrow will be better in spite of poverty, corruption and people not doing what they are supposed to do in order to make them great. At some point in time, trust me, things will change.

Are you going to take back this message to all the people that tried to discourage you from coming to Nigeria?

Absolutely. In fact, when I get back on my website, I am going to show all the pictures and all the things I experienced and give another view of Nigeria different from what’s being portrayed in the news.

I think it is a travesty because of this incident with this young man who by the way was not born in Nigeria and was not trained in Nigeria to make Nigeria the face of Al Queda. It is a tragedy to classify Nigeria as a terrorist state and that story must be counteracted. Faith comes by hearing and hearing even if it is a lie and one of the biggest challenges that Nigeria is facing right now is not having a voice in the national arena. And I am talking about voices outside the political arena. One of the things we plan to do is to create a thousand innocent voices of hope; Nigerians who are experiencing uncommon grace and success with the spirit and drive and hunger to create a new life; Everyday Nigerians that the world never hears about, who the world never sees and never reads their stories. We are going to tell their stories.

What is your message to the Nigerian youth?

My key message to the Nigerian youth is that they should become clear. What are the goals you want to achieve, professionally, what are the kind of legacies you want to leave and most importantly, what’s the new story that you are going to create with your life that will reflect the real Nigerian?

‘I’M NOT AN ENTERTAINER, I AM A MINISTER OF GOD’ – BOUQUI

BOUQUI

Bukola Folayan (aka Bouqui) has stayed the course since she arrived on the Nigerian music scene about five years ago. She chose to do gospel and do it at par with the demands and innovations of the contemporary secular hip hop style. So far, she has done well and with two albums, B.O.U.Q.U.I and Redefinition, to her name, she seems to know what she wants.

But it is not just simple rap music for Bouqui, and in this chat with us, she explains the things that set her apart from the crowd…

Why did you name your last album, Redefinition?

I titled it Redefinition because a lot of people know Bouqui the brand and a lot of people ask questions about who she really is. I wanted people to really see me for who I am and what I stand for. I wanted them to listen to the album and all the songs in it and be able to identify me for what I stand for. I am not trying to compromise, I am not trying to be somebody else. This is who I really am.I kind of redefined myself. My first album was titled B.O.U.Q.U.I and I now redefined what B.O.U.Q.U.I actually is in this second album.

You left the country immediately after releasing the album without doing any promotional work on it. Where is your primary market?

Anybody who has ear is my primary market. I am not an industry person. I am not doing music, I am not an entertainer, I’m not an artist, I am a minister. I am a Christian. I see myself as an evangelist. So, I am not tied to a particular audience. The message is what pushes me to wherever I go. I’m not trying to be like someone else. I am speaking the word of God and taking it to anybody that is ready to listen. My songs are message-driven and it is because I am a Christian and I believe that the first and only thing I should be talking about is Jesus and what He means to me. And so, that way, I take all the styles that come to me and use them to talk about Jesus. He is the one that opens all the doors everywhere I go. Why I keep travelling is because I am not trying to be an artist. If you try to be an artist, they will limit you to a particular genre of music. Nobody does that to me because I am not singing about just love, I am not singing about a girl or a boy, I am singing about Jesus and whatever language or style that comes to me is what I minister with.

Since what you went for was a promotional tour for your album, why didn’t you do any in Nigeria?

My music is message-driven. God is the person I talk about all the time. He is the one who opens the doors and when he does, I won’t say that I’m not entering because I need to be in Nigeria to do a promotional tour. I am like an arrow in the hands of an archer and wherever I am pointed to is where I go. I don’t choose the direction I want to be pointed in. I go to wherever I am sent. I am a conveyor of a message, so I can’t say I want to do professional tours in Nigeria when God wants me to go elsewhere. When God wants me to do a promotional tour in Nigeria. He will open the door and I will do it. But if He says it is in America or London, I can’t say I am not going. Because the reason why people are not making it in this industry is because they want to be industry people. They are doing what they do for the money, fame, the blings and you can hear it through their songs and what they talk about.

Their music is not message-driven and everybody is just trying to be like the next person and do whatever they feel is acceptable. They talk about girls, booty and all sort of things and because they are talking about those, doors don’t open, because people have heard all those before. People need a fresh message; people need something that will give them hope and if God sees that this person has something that people need to hear, then He will open the doors for the message to get to the people.

I am not even trying to build a fan base, I am just going as I am led. I am not trying to open the doors myself, when they open, I just go with the flow.

How did the door open this time around?

I don’t know. I just got calls, different calls and I kept moving every week. I went from New York, Brooklyn, Chicago, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, California, Hollywood, Texas, Arlington, Dallas, Houston, Maryland, over 15 different places. I wasn’t even trying to sing in a nightclub. I was singing in churches and concerts. I could have said, “I owe it to my strong management or myself, but it was God all the way.” I have a good management and they are doing well, but when God decides to take you on as a project, He does. I was moving every weekend. I was singing Friday, Saturday and Sunday. I could be in the east coast this week and the next one, I will be in the south coast. I love every bit of it. For five months, I was singing every weekend non-stop.

What was the reception like?

Because of what I do, the reception was fantastic. I am singing to people that understand where I am coming from; people that have been there; people that have kindred spirit; Christians that understand. I am singing in a nightclub where they are drunk, but people that when you stop your song in the middle and you are sharing a testimony, they have been there and understand the power of God. The reception was awesome. When you get someone buying the CD for $5,000, you know that it’s not about the money, but the fact that you have touched them.

A girl told me that she drove for seven hours with her husband, just to see my performance. Last week, she told me over the internet that she was sick and then she remembered some things I said while I was in concert and she said to herself that if this girl can have this much faith and God is doing all these things for her, then God would do for her too. Those are the kind of testimonies I want to hear. I don’t’ want to hear that Alaba gave me N50 million and then the song is crap. I want to impact souls, I want people to look back 20 years from now and remember how I impacted their lives.

But here you still feature at secular shows…

My music is message-driven. What you talk about is who you are, so, if I get a secular show that wants me to talk about a character or value or anything clean, I will go. The issue is not about the gospel, the thing is about message and me having the chance to say what I want to say. The message depicts the platform. When I am invited for a show and there are like 50 people on the bill and you want us to do like two minutes each, you don’t get the best out of me like that. You get my best when I can sing and talk because I believe it is the message your life is preaching that is most important. I turn down all those shows because I want to grace stages that not only will feel the gift and the talent, you also relate with me. I am not an entertainer, I am a minister of the gospel and you don’t condition what I say on stage. I am not about the money. I would rather go for a gig that is not paying me and I will have the opportunity to reach out to the youths because they are the future of tomorrow. Imagine when a young person thinks that the best way to dress is how Beyonce dresses or the way to talk is the way Lil’ Wayne talks. I don’t want my kids to grow up like that and since you can’t keep them away from the TV and the internet, we need people that would infuse character in their music and make you know that it’s not just about the money.

Do you see any competition from others in what you do?

In the secular world, people are running on tracks and they are all trying to overtake themselves. When they get in each other’s way, they push themselves around and it becomes rowdy and dirty, but in the world I come from, we are talking of something that people need to hear. If another person comes today to join us to talk about Christ, I will never hate or feel threatened by it because we are talking about something that needs to be heard. For me, the merrier. If anyone comes in and is talking about Christ with a genuine heart, I would recommend you for anything, even when I’m not around because there is a shortage of what I do. I am like the only female rap gospel act in the whole world. Everywhere I went, there was no female gospel rap. There were singers that could rap, but they just rap a little and go back to singing. So, if I see more people coming to do this, I will be happy because that’s the only way the job can be done.

Are you interested in getting ordained and becoming a full-time minister?

No. I don’t want to be ordained, but I want to always be ready to be used by God for anything. The thing is that I am a different kind of Christian. A lot of people put everything in boxes and stereotypes. I love God so much, I am a rapper, I am still crazy, you can see my hairstyle, but I still love God and I am still taking about Him. Some people could be ordained, but they still won’t love God half as much as I do, but we can’t judge others. It is not really about being ordained. Everybody has the same ability to teach people about God and about His goodness. If you are doing that, as far as I am concerned, you are a pastor. Even if you are not wearing collars, ordination just makes it formal and that is just a title and you are not taking the title to anyone.

Tell us about your record label.

It is called Bouqui’s Place Entertainment. It was launched last year and we are just trying to test the waters gradually. Then, there is the management arm of Bouqui’s Place Entertainment.

What are your plans for your Nigerian audience?

I have always performed here in Nigeria and since I returned from this tour, I have been performing at different locations in Nigeria. I am still here for them, but they should recognize the fact that I am a minister of God and the message I have is universal and wherever God takes me to is where I will go.

‘IT’S NOT BEEN PROFITABLE RUNNING BEN TV BUT WE ARE COMMITTED’ – DR. ALISTAIR SOYODE

Dr. Alistair Soyode is one of the many Nigerians in the Diaspora

ALISTAIR SOYODE AND KENNY OGUNGBE

doing the country proud. With his TV station, Ben TV (Bright Entertainment Network), he showcases the talents and promises of Nigeria, Africa and the Caribbean to the United Kingdom audience where he is based. Ben TV has been consistent in doing this for the seven years it has been in existence.

Last year, realizing the great promise of the Nigerian music industry, Ben TV reached a unique agreement with the Primetime Group in Nigeria to synergically broadcast Nigerian content, especially music, in the UK and Nigeria. The arrangement would provide Ben TV with a platform to reach the Nigerian audience back home and also give Primetime TV a footing in the UK.

Soyode, who is both a member of the Re-branding Nigeria Project and chairman of the Nigerians in Diaspora Organization Europe (NIDOE), talks to Notes and Tones about the arrangement and the challenges of running a TV channel with foreign contents in a foreign land…

What prompted this move and how are you going to go about it?

When you look at Nigeria as a country, you ask yourself this: “What do we sell? What do we export? What do we provide for the international community?”

In the sporting industry, we haven’t done that much in football, which we pride ourselves on. In the tourism industry, we also haven’t done much.

Then, in Nollywood, we may have the second to the largest movie industry in the world, but which Nigerian movie has been recognized at a major international award? It is in the music industry that we have received more attention lately. That is why we need to give the music industry more attention and encourage the players in that industry, give the industry more leverage and make it work better than any other industry we have in Nigeria.

Do you intend to show a lot of Nigerian music on Ben TV?

We would be showing good music videos showcasing Nigerian content and lifestyle. We will entertain people and expose the culture and lifestyle of the people to the diasporic experience. It is not just about the music, it is about the lifestyle and culture of the people. We want to put music on the platform it needs to get to people outside Nigeria. We have the music and our artists are gaining international recognition and we can’t fail them.

How come Ben TV has not done much on the home front?

We are very willing to promote Nigerian music and also come on the home front. But if you don’t find the right person or partner to work with, you might never succeed. We have just got that and you would definitely see us home. We have been promoting Nigerian music and culture for the past six years and we have done well.

How profitable is running such a venture as Ben TV in the U.K?

It is not profitable. I am selling a product, a nation, a rhythm that people have a question mark on.

Financially, it is not profitable at all and there are challenges. We have a choice to do something else, but we still choose to keep doing what we do because it is right.

Don’t you have a Nigerian community in the U.K?

We have, but they alone won’t be able to keep the station afloat. If they are, we won’t be doing some of the things we do to survive. We’re coming back to Nigeria to find business. I am promoting my country out there and my country should appreciate what I am doing and people who have business to offer me should come forward and do so. It is not like I am begging. I am not begging; I just want to be appreciated. One can run until he stops and then he would need people to pull him up.

How have you been coping?

It is not by my power or knowledge. I just give God the glory because I don’t’ know how. I have had a lot of challenges, a lot of companies and governments owe us money, but we still manage to stay afloat. Sometimes it is very hard for us because we can’t pay what we should be paying, but we are still there and would still continue to do the best we can, not just for Nigeria, but for Africa as a whole.

Is the Nigerian government in any way involved in what you do or appreciate you for what you do?

We need to give credit to people who believe in what we do and there are quite a number of those. But they need to get involved and help us achieve our dreams. Which media is international in the last six years, promoting Nigeria? It is Ben TV. Which media shows the electoral reforms and what the people are going through in Nigeria? It is Ben TV. Still not taking the credit away from other media houses, be it electronic or print, but we have been consistent for seven years. We are international for seven years.

We have represented Nigeria from the Obasanjo era to the Yar’Adua era. Who else has done that? The stations here are not international.

Some of them are now becoming international, but we have been there for long. If someone is doing something for you and you absolutely love what the person is doing, you should do something for that person.

I don’t want to believe that if we are being negative like some other media, that we would have been more recognized. Our country is good and if you give the youth the necessary empowerment they need, then things would improve.

I am a committee member of the Re-branding Nigeria Project. That’s another challenge, but the fact is that we are all Nigerians. If you run away from this country to another place, you would never feel as homely as you would feel in Nigeria.          

How did the whole idea of Ben TV come about and what were you into before then?

I was in the U.K and was always thinking of something to do because I needed money. You know when you are looking for money, you think of almost anything that would give you the break that you are looking for in life. I was into telecoms, then I was writing some programmes for some TV stations, then before you knew it, I had a TV station on my hands.

Don’t you see the need for launching a Nigerian channel of Ben TV?

It is not about launching a new station here in Nigeria, it is about bringing our station from the U.K into Nigeria. Right now, we are speaking to some of the cable and satellite companies in Nigeria to see if we can be on their package. But we don’t know why some people don’t want to have us. Maybe they see us as competitors, but we will find out those that don’t see us as competitors and work with them.

What’s the reception of a TV station with a large foreign content in the U.K?

The Nigerian community in the UK is more than a million and the African community there is more than two million. What we do is that we have programmes from as many African countries as possible.

So, we are really a centre for a variety of programmes across Africa and the Caribbean. We have Caribbean programmes on the station which are presented by their own people. We are not just about Nigeria, but we deliver the largest Nigerian content that people see as independent, free, unbiased and neutral.

What’s your viewership like around the world?

I cannot give a figure around the world because we are only tracing the figures in the UK. So, we can say that we have something like 60 percent of the Nigerian and African audience in the U.K.

What’s your workforce like? What’s the racial mixture of your staff?

Depending on the programme, sometimes I look around and I don’t see any blacks. We employ capable hands from all over the world.

How many channels do you transmit on?

I don’t believe in people doing multiple channels. My message is that of bridging the gap between everybody,  between the militants and non-militants, eastern and western parts of Nigeria, between the Africans in the diaspora and those at home, between the white people and black people, between the female and male and I can do that with one channel. So, I don’t really see the need for multiple channels.

How much do you think the Re-branding Nigeria Project has changed the image of Nigeria?

Nigeria is a very big product to sell. The project is not about changing our green and white colours, it is about making Nigerians realize the need for change and convincing them to embrace it. We do not have all the basic amenities of life, but we are on our way to getting them. It is the people involved that matter; it is Nigerians that matter. It is about Nigerians realizing that we are the ones to turn things around for ourselves. We should begin to look at things positively and working towards achieving our dreams.

What was the process of the election that got you the position of the NIDOE chairman?

The election was conducted by an electoral commission of the European body in Paris, with representatives from the 17 chapters in Europe. Some Nigerian ambassadors and High commissioners were in attendance.

What are your responsibilities as the chairman of NIDOE?

Some of the responsibilities are to oversee the entire collective interests of Nigerians in Europe towards Nigeria’s development, co-ordinate issues and matters affecting Nigerians in the diaspora, working with the government in bilateral relations with Europe, using and coordinating the expertise and skills of Nigerians to achieve mileage back in Nigeria.

NIDOE has contributed to many issues and discussion on the positive development of Nigeria. We do hope that as many states as are seeking for experts in health, medicine service delivery and various other areas can partner with us. We have these professionals who are willing and able to help. Our will and mandate is towards national development for and in Nigeria.

Any views on the absenteeism of our president and the broadcast through the BBC?

The president, we heard, is recuperating well in Saudi Arabia. We do hope that we will be able to provide the video/TV interview which is sought by Nigerians.

COMPLETE STORY OF THE EXPERIENCE 2009

THE EXPRIENCE 2009

IT is very ironic that the best show of the year, so far, is a free show.  Yes.  But this is not for the first time. Since its inception four years ago, The Experience, has consistently lived up to its billing as the biggest, most encompassing and most organized concert in Nigeria, and possibly in Africa.  And this is saying a lot.

Organised by Pastor Paul Adefarasin of House on the Rock, The Experience, parades the best gospel musicians the world can boast of.  They converge in Nigeria by this time every year and in one night give children of God an overdose of the gospel.  Last year’s edition was partially disrupted by rain, but this year’s went on smoothly.  This is an account of how it happened…

THE TAFAWA BALEWA SQUARE

Apart from being a symbol of national unity, having hosted our post-independence celebration parades and other state functions during the time of Lagos as the nation’s capital,  The TBS, has been the home of The Experience since it debuted in 2006.  It took close to two weeks to get it in shape for this year’s edition and the results of such elaborate preparations were evident on the night of Friday, December 4, 2009.

The seats in the main bowl were carefully and beautifully arranged in convenient patterns to cater for the heavy traffic of people that descended on the square.  There were two sections, the VIPs and the popular stand.  Then, there were the bleachers.  These places were completely filled up and the crowd still spilled over to the cricket pitch where events were transmitted through giant screens.  There were also giant screens placed at strategic positions in the main bowl to further transmit the event to the very large crowd.  With banners and flyers everywhere.

ATTENDANCE

Even though The Experience is primarily a Christian show, attendance was not restricted.  People from all denominations and backgrounds were warmly welcomed into the presence of God.  This year’s attendance should be in the region of almost half a million, an almost 100,000 increase from last year’s edition.

Among the notable attendees were Governor Babatunde ‘Isaac’ Fashola of Lagos State (the consortium of religious leaders present collectively changed his middle name, Raji, to Isaac).  His wife, Mrs. Abimbola Fashola was also present.  Former Head of State, Retired General Yakubu Gowon, Minister of State for Petroleum, Mr. Odein Ajumogobia, SAN.  Actresses Monalisa Chinda and Stephanie Okereke were also among the notable faces seated at the VIP section.

THE COMPERES

Resplendent gentleman, Mr. Femi Segun, was assisted by Muyiwa Olanrewaju, who came in from the UK.  Comedians Gordons and MC Abbey; radio hosts, Yaw of Wazobia FM and Freeze of Cool FM, were the comperes of the night.

While Mr. Segun kept on announcing the arrival of special guests, Mr. Olanrewaju introduced the acts.  Freeze and Yaw also introduced the guests, but remained in the background while Gordons and MC Abbey provided comic relief. It was a well worked out arrangement and there was never a dull moment throughout the proceedings.

THE STAGE

The massive well-lit stage had The Experience written all over it.  The background was a range of cascading lights which also spelt out the name of each performer.  The lighting was excellent and the sound carried into the outside Lagos night.  Particularly of note is the fact that at no point did the stage, lighting and sound system experience any technical hitch.  Everything was seamlessly coordinated and everybody heard and saw the word of God and His servants in action, crisp and clear.

CLINIC AND LAB

For an event of such magnitude, emergency services were very visible.  Members of the Nigerian Red Cross Society were at very vantage positions, looking out for the crowd.  There was also a clinical stand on the premises.  Here was where any accident, which was of a very negligible number and mostly minor, was taken.  There was also a medical laboratory that offered various tests, free-of-charge, to any interested member of the audience.

OUCH! T-SHIRTS

Young designer and The Future Awards 2009 Entrepreneur of the Year, Uche Nnaji, who is also a member of the Household of God, had specially designed The Experience T-shirts on sale.  There were six different designs out there, but they all had the same loud message.  The number ’4′ was also ubiquitous because this was the fourth edition.  Though the majority of the sales were made prior to the event so that people could wear them to the show, a few were still sold for N4,000 at the venue.

THE VUVUZELA AND WHISTLES

A Bible verse reads, “Make a joyful noise unto the Lord!” People obeyed this to the letter on December 4, 2009.  since the last FIFA Confederation Cup in South Africa, the plastic trumpet popularly called Vuvuzela in South Africa, has become a part of our sport supporters’ paraphernalia.  The Nigerian own is a shorter model, but seemingly makes as much noise as its South African counterpart.  They were everywhere at The TBS on the night of the event and the people dutifully used them, together with all the other kinds of whistles on sale.

SERMONS AND PRAYERS

Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor and Bishop Tudor Bizmark, from Harare, Zimbabwe, delivered the sermons.  There were also a couple of prayers for Lagos (done by Rev. Akinboboye) and another for Nigeria by the duo of Pastor Sam Adeyemi and Pastor Richardo Watson from South Africa.  They prayed for God to displace bad leadership and enthrone leaders who have the people at heart in power.  Other ministers of God and leaders of various congregations present were Bishop Mike Okonkwo, Bishop Obi Onubogu, Rev. Victor Adeyemi and so many others.

SPEECHES

There were a couple of speeches from Mr. Ajumogobia and Governor Fashola.  Ajumogobia commended Pastor Paul Adefarasin for putting together an event of such magnitude.  Fashola’s speech was also in the same vein but it took quite a while for the crowd who were excited at having their popular governor with them to quieten down and let him speak.

AUDITION FOR BLACK ENTERTAINMENT TELEVISION (BET) USA

Midway into the event, Muyiwa Olanrewaju, announced a competition.  Singing youths who are not below 21 years of age were invited to Eko Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos, on Sunday, December 6, 2009, to audition for a chance to travel to the USA and appear on The Sunday Show, hosted by Kirk Franklin.  There is only one slot available, but they said they are open to appearances of not less than 1,000 people.

THE PERFORMANCES

The Experience 2009 properly kicked off at 7.30 p.m.  The first performers were the in-house choir of the House on the Rock, the Chosen Treasure with Lionel Peterson.  Then, Sammie Okposo came up with the handkerchief and Wellu Wellu dance.  He recently reconciled his differences with Pastor Adefarasin and his first performance at The Experience is an attestation to this fact.  He raised the spirit of the people before Lara George came and got them speaking in tongues.  Some people cried while others just marvelled at the delivery of the mother of one.  Her song, Mu Mi Dele is one of the deepest songs to come out of this country.

Timi Dakolo, winner of the first Idols West Africa, was also a beauty to watch.  After his song, Let It Shine, he went into a medley of some of the very popular gospel tunes around. His vocal talent was very evident, but some members of the audience felt he needs more original songs.  Next was the beautiful Chevelle Franklin.  She and her back-up singers had dresses made with the Jamaican flag and another one in the background.

At 9.30 p.m, Evangelist Ebenezer Obey Fabiyi, brought in a traditional flavour to the proceedings.  Backed up with Gan gan drums, the Commander dished out some of his evergreen tunes for almost 30 minutes.  It was very fulfilling to watch such an old hand happily singing to God’s glory and carrying everybody along.

10.00 p.m was the turn of Mike Aremu.  The gifted saxophonist was at his vintage best while dishing out saxophone gospel tunes and leading the audience in a dance session.

10.30 p.m saw the petite but energetic Nikki Laoye ascend the stage.  A combination of excellent rap skills and well synchronized choreography session with her dancers earned her high marks from the audience.

11.00, multiple award winning Fred Hammond climbed the stage and took the crowd through varying emotions.  There was serenity when he went slow but his Holy Ghost Party accelerated things.  He even had to borrow an extra two minutes before he could conclude his planned performance.

The Rooftop MCs have gone completely rocky.  This was the exclamation on a lot of people’s mouths when the duo of Adeyoola ‘Soulsnatcha’ Adekunle and the new father, Olaitan ‘Sokleva’ Hughes, climbed the stage.  Their rock rendition of their songs introduced a new flavour into the night showed their versatility as musicians.  Phil Briscoll and Lara George did the national anthem, a verse apiece, after them.

12.50, Ron Kenoly, who it was later revealed was turning 65 the next day, was next.  We are virtually all familiar with his music and the crowd happily joined him to do song after song.  Phil Briscoll followed suit and his happiness at serving God was there for all to see.  He sang, talked and trumpeted till Tom Brooks joined him on the stage.  Pastor Adefarasin, later joined them and they sang, He’s Alive Again, together.

When Don Moen appeared at about 3.00 a.m and wanted to leave about an hour later, the people were loath to see him go.  Such is the power and appeal of this great man of God that after performing at all the editions so far, he still tops the list of those requested by the audience to come again.

The siblings, Bebe and Cece Winans, are also another every year visitor to The Experience.  It was graceful to watch members of the same family fully dedicating their lives to the service of God.

It was when Donny Mclurkin came that the spill-over crowd in the adjoining cricket pitch was asked to make some noise.  And they did and those in the main bowl heard it loud and clear.  Donny’s songs are also very popular among the Nigerian Christian populace and they showed this when they sang with him song after song.

KIRK FRANKLIN’S SHORTCOMINGS

Last year, the rains deprived Kirk Franklin a performance.  This year, he was made the headliner of the event, so he was coming on last.  He brought in some special equipment for his performance and while they were being fixed, there was a lull.

Yaw, who was appearing on stage for the first time after having operated from the background for most of the evening, teamed up with MC Abbey to provide comic relief.  They did such a good job that Kirk Franklin joined them on the stage.  And they took on him.

The high point of it came when MC Abbey, who though short, said he’s a shade taller than Kirk.  He then referred to Kirk as having ‘shortcomings’ because of this.  This really hit the spot with the crowd and they couldn’t stop laughing for quite a while.

KIRK FRANKLIN’S PERFORAMNCE

As the last performer, Kirk Franklin, revealed that he had been given a free hand by Pastor Adefarasin, it was already dawning by this time. But a large number of the audience who had been standing all through the night were still very willing to sing and dance.  Those in the popular area began scaling the short iron fence used to separate them from the VIPs and the guards and bouncers who had maintained perfect watch all through the night had to let them be.

Kirk demanded to be taught some Nigerian dance steps and there were a number of volunteers.  Prominent among them was MC Abbey whose genuine dance steps makes a complete entertainment package.

When Kirk finally stopped, Pastor Paul Adefarasin invited back all the performers to the stage and they sang ‘Happy Birthday’ to Ron Kenoly.  Ron also took the mic to do a Yoruba song to the admiration of the audience.  They then spoke about their happiness to be part of The Experience 2009 and promised to come back for more.

FINAL BENEDICTION AND SEVEN HALLELUYAHS

The seven Halleluyahs were used to end the show and those that had given their lives to Christ were invited forward for a little chit-chat session while the rest were dismissed at exactly 6.30 a.m, Saturday, December 5, 2009.  It was exactly 11 hours of non-stop Godly entertainment, not counting the hours that a large number of the audience who arrived the TBS in the morning of Friday, and those that came in from a different states spent to be in the presence of God.  And all was for free.

9ICE’S 20-MONTH OLD MARRIAGE CRASHES!

9ICE & TONI PAYNE

9ice’s marriage has crashed.  The union, with Toni Payne, which was solemnized on Thursday, July 17, 2008, officially hit the rocks as a result of irreconcilable differences.  A statement made available to the press on Friday, January 8, 2010, by his publicist, stated that, “The couple have agreed to go separate for a while, even though they continue to remain good friends and business partners.  Their baby, Zion, will reside with Toni for now.”  An unconfirmed source, however, told s that the lady became domineering and unmanageable at some point.

9ice (real name, Abolore Akande) met Toni in 2006 at comedian Gbenga Adeyinka’s 10th anniversary celebration held at Lagbaja’s Motherlan, in Ikeja, Lagos.  They started dating and in July 2008, at the Surulere Marriage Registry, Lagos, exchanged marital vows.  Their only child, a baby boy who they named Zion, was born on December 4, 2008.

A DELAYED TALE

Towards the end of last year, the story of the alleged break-up of 9ice’s marriage had filtered to ENCOMIUM Weekly.  We made the necessary calls to 9ice’s close pals who should be in the know, but they all denied it.  His publicist equally denied having any knowledge of such then.  His producer and close friend, ID Cabasa, again claimed ignorance of any rift or signs of one.  His actual reply to the said phone call then was: “I haven’t heard of any problems between 9ice and his wife.  In fact, 9ice just left my place now and he never showed signs of having any marital problems.  Let me call him and get back to you.” Cabasa, expectedly, never got back to us.

The suspected reason for the alleged break-up then was that the couple were having disagreements over 9ice’s management arrangements.  Toni wanted to remain in charge of her husband’s affairs while 9ice wanted to outsource that.

9ICE’S DWINDLING FORTUNE

Even though there has hardly been any report of an excellent showing by 9ice on stage, things have largely worsened lately.  His performances at the shows he featured towards the end of 2009 were just short of tragic.  He never impressed on any and even had to cut some of them short when things got very bad.  Of particular note was The Ovation Red Carol where he didn’t even finish singing Gbamu Gbamu, before abruptly quitting the stage.  Though the sound system paraded at the event was bad, 9ice was singing some beats slower than his CD which was being played by the DJ.  All of which could also be as a result of his marital problems.

PROBLEMS WITH DJs

About his albums, Tradition is the third.  His first was Certificate (2006), which failed to launch his career, but Gongo Aso (2008), brought him fame, wealth and exposure.  The latest album, Tradition, has not lived up to its billing.  There are even reports of some radio DJs blacklisting it.  We got across to a number of DJs and some of them confirmed the story while others said they know nothing about it.

Three DJs at Raypower FM, DJ Neptunes, Xcris and Kaysmith, all stated that they had no problems with 9ice.

DJ Neptunes said: “I don’t know about it.  Anytime I am on radio, I play his music.  There’s no wahala on our side.”

For DJ Xcris: “9ice has no problems with us at Raypower.  I play his music.”

And DJ Kaysmith: “I don’t know about any problems with the DJs.  But I play his music.”

DJ Rexy, who is with UNILAG FM, acknowledged having heard about the issue.  “It is true that he has some problems with some DJs, but 9ice is like a brother to me.  He has been nice to me and no matter what happens, I will play his music.”

DJ Vinnie who works at Radio Continental and Primetime out-rightly rejected the story.  “It’s not true.  I play his music.  9ice has not done anything to the DJs.  But there had been a case when an artist was blacklisted by the DJs.  An example is Terry G, when he offended one of our senior DJs, we stopped playing his music and he had to apologise.”

But DJ KLM, who is at Rhythm 93.7 FM, noted that there was something wrong in the relation of 9ice and the DJs.  “Nobody actually blacklisted him, but the way he is going about the promotion of his current album is not good. When Gongo Aso came out, we supported him and the album became a success.  When he was struggling, he was very humble and related with us, but these days, he doesn’t give a damn about anybody. He is now a ‘big boy’ and that’s not right.”

And DJ Humility concluded it thus: “9ice’s management is not good.  He doesn’t have a good management.  They are busy going about their own business and there’s no good rapport with the DJs.  Their PR network is the problem and nothing else.  I am sorry about his family breaking up, it’s not a good start for a young man.”

SOFORTE’S REACTION

Soforte Entertainment is an entertainment marketing outfit owned by singer, Lara George and her husband, Barrister Gbenga George.  They are the ones marketing 9ice’s Tradition and we sought their reaction to the development.

Barrister George, the CEO, had this to say with regards to the separation story.  “I have been trying to get in touch with him since I heard the story without any success yet.  Whatever happens, it is not a good development and I am not happy about it.”

On the progress of the album.  “We have pushed out 1.6 million units and the album is doing well in the market.  We have not even started proper promotion for the album because it came out during the festive period when everything was tight.  We don’t even have a video yet and we are still doing well in the market.

“What happens is that a lot of people are not giving the album the chance to grow, they are immediately placing it side by side with Gongo Aso and that is not right.  Gongo Aso was a monster hit and Tradition is barely two months old in the market.  I have sampled a lot of opinions and they are basically balanced on the street.  Some people like the album while others don’t.  The album is a typical 9ice album.”

About the DJs blacklisting the album.  “I have heard of it, he continued, “and I know that it is not every DJ that supports it.  I know a lot of them are playing the songs and a lot of people keep hearing them. I don’t even believe that any DJ would intentionally stop playing a good song.  Most DJs support 9ice.”

SILENCE FROM 9ICE, ALAPOMEJI AND CODED TUNES

Though the initial press release stated that the couple would not be granting any interviews at the moment on the issue, we still made attempts to talk to the parties concerned and hear their own sides, but met with little success.  9ice remained incommunicado.  His manager also refused to talk to us, but redirected us back to the publicist.  “I am not in a good mood to talk about the issue at the moment.  Please, talk to Mr. Ayeni Adekunle,” and he supplied a couple of Ayeni’s numbers which we already had.  When contacted, he referred us to their press release.

About five of ID Cabasa’s numbers which we called never went through.

2Phat, another member of Coded Tunes, who is the second in command to Cabasa feigned ignorance of the development as at Saturday, January 9, 2010, when we called him.  “I just got back into the country yesterday and I haven’t been in contact with anybody,” he said.

TONI BUSY ON FACEBOOK

But Toni has been quite busy on her Facebook page.  As at press time, we had observed three different ‘Status’ posts.  The first one which was posted at noon of Friday, January 8, 2010, read, “Mo lenu bi pon pon pon.”  About six hours later, she had, “My God is faithful…Who God has blessed…”  And at about noon on Saturday, January 9, 2009, we read, “My Zion, My Love, My son…Same way I watched you take your first steps, I shall watch you grow into an outstanding man we can be proud of.  Amen!  Everyday of my life, I thank God for the most precious stone we laid in Zion…”

She also got various reactions.  Some of them read:

‘Toni, stay strong and calm.  A woman that have (sic) gotten to your level and still fell in love with a nobody, and now that nobody done become somebody come dey misbehave!  Fame never last (sic) and cannot give everlasting happiness.  At the end of the day, every man NEEDS a woman that loves him for whom he is and not what he has.  Letting little popularity sidetrack u means u weren’t even worth it to begin with.  All the sexcapades, flatteries, ego-boasters, parties, ‘acquired friends’ etc that come with fame will fade ‘cos fame never lasts…and at the end of it all, whom will u return home to?

May God be ur strength.  Take care of Zion and may God give us courage during these trying times!

PS: Word of advice…steer clear of long distance relationships if possible…It could work rarely, but not most of the time.  God bless u!”

Another comment read:

“Don’t tell me it’s real Payne, I nid answer plus u guys are good 2geda don’t damage Zion’s future pls.”

Yet another one was:

“Mrs. 9ice, better half of 9ice, d only woman created 4 9ice, I come against evr spirit (sic) of Hollywood in u guy’s marriage.  Mama ZI, want u 2 knw dat d devil kns d plans God ve 4 ur family dis yr so pls dear don’t give devil a chance ok!  Am (sic) praying 4 u guys n u be strong too is (sic) going 2 be better dan (sic) it use (sic) be.  Cheers.”

COLLEAGUES REACT

GBENGA ADEYINKA 1ST

Comedian Gbenga Adeyinka 1st, who they met at his 10th anniversary celebration in 2006, was very sad.  “It’s a shame they’ve broken up.  While they were together, I was happy for them; I felt very privileged at the fact that they met at my event and that their marriage always had a reference to me.  I was very proud of them.  But now that they have broken up, I feel very sad.  I was a family friend to them and I feel this is something they can work out.  If I were them, I would work it out, even if for nothing else, for their child’s sake.”

RUGGEDMAN

Rapper, Ruggedman, told us that he was actually the one that introduced them to each other at the event.  He said he met Toni Payne some years back when he was still promoting his first album.  “I knew her when I was promoting my first album.  She was just a blogger then and I wanted to get on the internet.  When she got back to the country, we met and she helped me towards the promotion of my work, both on the internet and overseas.  She told me she likes 9ice’s music, so when we met 9ice at Gbenga Adeyinka’s event, I introduced them to each other and they took it from there.  It is a very sad development for the industry. I pray they resolve it amicably.  Even if they don’t, let them be mature about it.”

LORD OF AJASA

Lord of Ajasa who is a very close pal of 9ice had very little to say.  “I am trying to get to him, but his number doesn’t go through.  I am very shocked at the news because he is my brother and if anything happens to him, it affects me too.  His wife has been abroad since and I don’t know how they managed to get to this point without my knowledge.  I am very sad.”

ELDEE THE DON

The ‘Big Boy’ whose wife gave birth to a baby girl last year was more expressive.  “It’s a very disheartening development for the industry.  Only God knows what could have happened.  We don’t know what could have caused it.  It is not encouraging.  A lot of people are marrying and divorcing and that’s not good for one’s image.”

We also asked whether 9ice’s celebrity status could have caused it.  He disagreed.  “No matter who you are and what you do, as soon as you enter your house, all the celebrity aura about you goes off and you are just an ordinary husband to your wife or father to your children. I can bet you that Jay Z and Beyonce are just ordinary people to themselves and you can’t get many more celebrity couples bigger than that.

“What has happened to 9ice’s marriage is just a case of something not working out anymore.  Friends quarrel with each other and marriages go sour at times and this is just what has happened.  But it’s quite unfortunate,” he concluded.

ABOUT 9ICE

Born Abolore Akande on January 17, 1980, he hails from Ogbomosho in Oyo State, but grew up in Bariga, Lagos.  He attended Abeokuta Primary School and CMS Grammar School, Lagos.  He later proceeded to Lagos State University, Ojo, to study Law but dropped out to concentrate on his music.  He has featured in the songs of a number of artists including Lord of Ajasa, 2Shotz and Ruggedman.  He released his debut album, Certificate in 2006.  Gongo Aso followed in 2008 and last year, Tradition came.

9ice is one of the top artists in Nigeria.  He has won numerous awards for his music, including a MOBO (Music of Black Origin), MAMA (MTV Africa Music Awards), Hip Hop World Awards and so many more.  He charges between N2 million and N3.5 million per show.  And has properties in Abule Egba and Lagos Mainland.  He has a studio in his house at Abule Egba.

9ice is also the CEO of Alapomeji Records which has artists like the Ajayi Brothers, Seriki and Kayefi, on board.

ABOUT TONI PAYNE

Toni studied Video Digital Arts at the California State University, USA.  She is based in Los Angeles, USA and is the CEO of Toni Payne line of cosmetics and clothes.  She also publishes an online magazine named the Nigerian Entertainment Magazine.  And conceptualized the design of 9ice’s Gongo Aso album.  She is rumoured to have dated a number of top Nigerian musicians, prior to meeting and marrying 9ice.

BRACKET WAS MY INVENTION (Bistop, Third and abandoned member of the group) - Also claims ownership of “Yori Yori” and most other songs on the album.

BRACKET

Every music loving Nigerian and even some non-music loving ones have heard the song “Yori Yori” and appreciated the group, Bracket, who gave us the song. The young men, Obumneme Ali, aka Smash and Ozioko Nwachukwu, alias Vast, have become pop stars and have performed at some of the biggest shows in the land and even outside. The song itself is one of the biggest songs of year 2009 and the young men have smiled to the bank.

It is also common knowledge that Bracket used to be three in number and their third member, Amobi Igwebuike, aka Bistop (Business Top), left the group after their first album, HAPPY DAYS, proved to be a commercial failure. In an interview Bracket granted to NOTES AND TONES back in April after the release of their album, LEAST EXPECTED, they stated that Bistop left the group in order to go back to school and concentrate on his education. They also stated their openness to welcome him back to the group if he ever wished to rejoin them.

All those statements have now been discredited by Bistop. He appeared a couple of weeks back with his own side of the story. Starting from the beginning, he told NOTES AND TONES about his meeting with the other members of the group and how he formed the group.

He met Vast at a barbing salon in the university town of Nsukka back in 1998. They were introduced to each other by the barber who noticed that they both had a flair for music. They then started out musically as a group with the name, Furious B.V.

In 2002, they auditioned for STAR QUEST, but did not make any headway.

Smash joined in 2003 and they first changed their name to SOUTH BRACKET before finally settling on BRACKET.

In 2004, they concluded the recording of their debut album, HAPPY DAYS, and he took it to Nwachukwu Mamah, aka Big Nis, who had the resources to finance it. Mama is the son of transportation giant, Igwe James Ogbonnaya Mamah , owner of IFESINACHI TRANSPORT LIMITED. Mama, who was a novice in the music business, was very interested in what they had. He backed them up and went on to form APE PLANET RECORDS, on whose imprint they released their album.

In 2005, they released HAPPY DAYS, but never made any money from it.

In 2008, they started working on their second album, which came out as LEAST EXPECTED. According to Bistop, he wrote most of the songs in the album, including “Yori Yori.” “Infact, we were about 90% into the production of the album when I was betrayed by my colleagues,” he says emotionally. “I had gone back to school to write my exams and we continued communicating. But after a while, they stopped picking my calls or replying my text messages. When I finished my exams, I went to Enugu to meet Big Nis, but he snubbed me and asked me to go back to wherever I was coming from. I was shocked.”

But there was nothing he could do about it. He went back to where he was coming form and in no time started hearing “Yori Yori” on radio. “I was heartbroken,” he says. “I bought the album and except for “No Time” which they did with P. Square and “Ada Owerri” with J. Martins, all the other songs on the album were mine. I was totally confused and didn’t know how to go about it, so I just went back to school to continue with my studies and also work on my music.” He is still a student of Electronic Engineering at the University.

Sometime later when Vast, who lived in Nsukka with his family, returned, he visited them but Vast dodged him. When he was finally able to corner him, Vast told him that it was never the intention of him and Smash to leave him out but that it was Mama that forced them to do so.

Bistop admitted to having had some problems with Mama. “I am a very outspoken person and as the leader of the group, whenever we were not comfortable with his decisions, I was always the one to speak to him about it,” he said. They had also accused him of embezzling their money at some point. All this he felt could have led to the decision to drop him. “I also sent some people to help me beg Mama to let me rejoin the group, but he refused. So I was left stranded.”

“But why did it take you this long to come out? I asked him”

“I took a while to dawn that there was a way I could come out and tell my story. I was finding things very hard. I had sold off my laptop and so many of my valuables in order to pay for my studio sessions  while Smash and Vast had gone on to become stars with my sweat. I also wanted to have something to show to the world. I didn’t want to be just a bitter person who wanted to latch on to another people’s success. I wanted to be coming out on my own.”

“So what do you want done; what do you want Bracket to do for you?”

“I want full credit for my contributions to the album and to the group. Everything about the album came from me. Starting with the name, LEAST EXPECTED to even their own monikers. When I met Vast, he was bearing “Sheri Koko”, but I saw that the name would never fit into my ideas of a contemporary and progressive music group, so I suggested Vast. Smash was known as “Ali Okpa,” before I changed it for him.”

“Was any part of your deal with Nwachukwu Mamah and APE PLANET RECORDS documented?

“No, but we had a gentleman’s agreement that we would share any profit 40-60. 60% would go to him and APE PLANET RECORDS, while 40% would be for Bracket.”

That was Bistop’s story and since there are always more than one side to any story, NOTES AND TONES contacted the other parties involved to get their own sides of the story. Bracket acknowledged that Bistop was a member of their group but refused to go further than that. “It would be unwise for us to join issues with him in public,” Smash said. If he has any issues with us, let him contact us personally and not on the pages of newspapers and magazines.” Big Nis also refused to comment on Bistop’s story. But Dekumzy, the producer of the hit track “Yori Yori” was more forthcoming. He admitted that Bistop was deliberately removed from the scheme of things when they found out that his association with the group was drawing them back.

“Bistop was misusing most of the money of the group that came to him. He was doing a lot of bad things behind their back,” he said but refused to elaborate. “We simply had to cut him off from the songs so that the group could make progress,” he concluded.

‘Why I am coming back home’-KUNLE AYO

Kunle Ayo, the jazz guitarist and TV presenter, is coming back home. He has been in South Africa for the past seven years and has also released four albums, entirely for the South African market. He is now ready to explore the Nigerian music market and has almost completed his homecoming album. He recently had a very successful outing with his show “An Evening of Jazz with Kunle Ayo” at the Lagos Oriental Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos. It was a gathering of the ‘who is who’ in the society and music loving Nigerians. In this interview, he talks about his stay in South Africa and his reason for finally making up his mind to enter the Nigerian market…

KUNLE AYO

Tell us some things about Kunle Ayo.

I lived in Nigeria all my life till 2002 when I relocated to South Africa. I have been there for seven years now. I have a KORA Award and a Channel O Award. I am an accomplished guitarist and I am a known TV presenter. My TV programme is called Africa Awakes.

How busy have you been musically?

I have been recording for some years now, but unfortunately, my records have been released in South Africa. Unfortunate in the sense that I have got four albums and all of them were released in South Africa and none in Nigeria because of contractual issues. We have not been able to agree on a way to go about it in Nigeria. There is no industry in Nigeria and the challenge of not having a system here in Nigeria affected me and my partners. We have a problem with coming down to Nigeria. What happens in South Africa is that when you release an album and you want to go to another region, you go through an industry. The album would be registered and distributed through a channel. The airplay is monitored and royalties are paid accordingly. But in Nigeria, there’s nothing like that; the reverse is the case as artists pay to have their songs played on radio. That’s the system in South Africa and that’s why we have found it hard to enter the Nigerian market.

But you are coming back now…

Yes. We are working on a new album now for Nigeria because we can’t keep staying away and saying that we can’t come until it gets better. Music is getting better in Nigeria and we are almost ready to get into the Nigerian groove. I have just dropped a video entitled, “I Want You” in Nigeria and the album would be released, hopefully, next year.

What are the peculiarities of the album?

I am a jazz guitarist, but the current musical situation in Nigeria involves a lot of dance. There’s hip hop or the afro hip hop and I have tried to infuse jazz into it. One cannot be an island and it is necessary to infuse certain influences garnered over the years into our music to make it more interesting. That’s what I am doing with the album.

What makes being a jazz guitarist different from being an ordinary one?

If you are an ordinary guitarist, it is likely that you only play particular music genres, like highlife. Highlife music is limited to some particular kind of chord and musical notes, but jazz incorporates all the 12 notes of music, which means that I can do any and everything with my music. Even in the context of highlife songs, when I improvise or when I take a solo, I can use all the 12 notes of music in the way that I want. Sometimes it makes sense to people and sometimes it doesn’t. Because the vocabulary of a jazz guitarist is very large, he can function successfully in an environment. When I am on a foreign stage, I can do certain things that people will appreciate and when I am home, I can also adapt to the system here.

What kind of music have you noticed that Nigerians appreciate?

Nigerians like fast music, Nigerians like to dance. But the slower songs, when you add pidgin English, people are happier. People also like it when the music is strictly English, but you find out that in mainstream music, it is either you put in some pidgin or you make it a bit fast so that people can dance. In South Africa, it is the opposite. People prefer more of the slow songs,  while in Nigeria, when you make more than four songs slow in an album, people get bored.

So, which is more aesthetic?

You can’t say that one is better than the other. As a musician, you just try to understand the dynamics of both markets and cater for them accordingly. When I play for South Africans, I try to add more melody to my music and I also introduce them to Nigerian rhythm so that they will know where I am coming from. And when I play for the Nigerian audience, I try to give them more rhythm and I also try to introduce what I have learnt there.

Can you say that the South Africans have a more developed sense of music than Nigerians?

Yes, I can say that. From the content of their harmonic structure, yes, I can say that. We are more choral in our harmony while they are more western. We can’t really score our songs, we can’t score for a big band, but in South Africa, they do. Our people are more conscious of what they are saying than taking time to do the job.

Are you now ready for this Nigerian system?

Yes, I am a Nigerian and I have got rhythm in my body. I am born to love what I hear. I am just saying that I will add a little bit of what I have learnt there. My sojourn in South Africa for the past seven years has taught me a lot of things which I am going to bring into my music.

Why did it take you as long as four albums before deciding to try out the Nigerian market?

No. I don’t do anything if I don’t feel it. It was just a matter of time. I never planned going to South Africa, it just happened that I needed to be there and I decided to start living there. My coming back is because things have started falling into place for me. My life has always been dictated by God and I believe my coming back now is still part of his plans for me.

Are you fully back in Nigeria now?

I am not going to live in Nigeria everyday. I am going to be coming in regularly to promote my music.

Since you are bringing out an entirely new work for the Nigerian market, how are we going to access the four which you had already released in South Africa?

Unfortunately, because of my contracts, I can’t release them in Nigeria. However, I am going to re-do and re-record most of those materials. In South Africa, unlike any part of the western world, when you release an album through a company, you don’t hold the master of that album. The company owns it because they paid for it. You own the song or album, but not the recording. So if you leave the contract, then you have to re-record the song if you like it a lot.

Can’t you buy if from that company?

You could, but what they might be asking for might be ridiculous. So, why go buying it when you can re-record it? It’s your song. It doesn’t really make commercial sense for you to go and pay people for your own song. So, you can re-record the song and then own the master.

So, would you do that for your previous albums?

I could if I want to, but because everyday there’s a new song, there is no need to go back to the old ones.

Let’s go back to the guitar. Where can one learn how to play jazz guitar in Nigeria?

There is no particular place where you could go to learn it. I have been playing the guitar for a while. I started working with Chief Ebenezer Obey. Then, I worked with the Compassion Band in Ilupeju, before I went over to Daniel Wilson and so many other people before I worked with Lagbaja. In all those times, I felt a need to grow and jazz provided that platform for me. Jazz is a form of music that provides one the opportunity to express himself. Lagbaja gave me room to be myself. It was a fantastic experience. It was while I was with him that the opportunity came for me to move to South Africa and I took it. I learnt through this period, I didn’t learn it in any particular school. I was virtually self taught.

One grows according to the surrounding environment, how did you learn jazz guitaring when it is not very prominent in the society?

When you start thinking about something, you will start noticing it all around you. What you think about expands. If you want something, you will definitely find it. I went out of my way to discover where it is. One of the reasons I left in the first place was because I felt it wasn’t viable for me in Nigeria to practice the art, but I have found out that I can do a whole lot of things with what I have and I am going to explore that option.

What actually made you leave Nigeria?

I was traveling with Lagbaja to Brazil and we went through South Africa. I love it there, so when we got back from Brazil, I visited South Africa again and my music was played there. The people at Universal Music loved it and they signed me on.

How did hosting the TV programme come in?

It was a fluke, just like my music. I never knew I was going to be a TV presenter. I have a studio in South Africa and two of my friends borrowed it to audition some girls for a TV programme. At a point, they needed a guy and I suggested myself to them because I had been on TV in Nigeria. I used to present a TV programme on Studio 10. They tried me out, when they took it to Africa Magic, they loved it there. That was it.

Tell us a bit about your family.

I have a wife, kids are on the way and she is back there in South Africa.

Tell us more about your album.

I featured Paul Play and a few upcoming artists. I am producing it myself, but I still work with some other people. There are about eight songs in the album.

I’M NOT COMING BACK TO NIGERIA TO SELL – Alexander Amosu

ALEXANDER AMOSU

It’s a rather curious move for one to be opening shop and not be intending to sell. But that is basically what Mr. Alexander Amosu, erudite businessman and designer of some of the world’s most expensive luxury products is about doing. He is launching the Alexander Amosu line of luxury products in Nigeria without the primary intention of selling them or making profit.

What type of profit could he really make in Nigeria after designing the world’s most expensive suit and blackberry which are worth 70, 000 pounds and 140, 000 pounds respectively and getting listed in the GUINNESS BOOK OF WORLD RECORDS? Yes, what kind of profit could he really make in a country where the Naira equivalents of the mentioned products (approximately N36, 500 000 for the suit and N60, 000 000, respectively)? What is the rationale behind such a move when he can boast of clients among the richest and most glamorous people in the world?

 Alexander is coming home. In case you haven’t noticed, his last name is Amosu and that is a Nigerian name. He is a Yoruba from Abeokuta. “My father is from Abeokuta,” he tells me in a thick British accent, “and my mother is from Ikorodu.” He was born in London and has never been to those places before. His last visit to Nigeria was in 2008 during the TV Reality Show, DRAGON’S DEN, which he had a stake in. This was after a 16-year absence.

“I am coming home to establish. I need to connect with Nigerians,” he says excitedly, but his tone almost immediately falls. “There are a lot of successful Nigerians in the UK that can’t come to Nigeria,” he states matter-of-factly. “They say that there are a lot of bad things happening in Nigeria; that there are armed robbers, kidnappers and that there’s no safety here. They hear all the negative things people are telling us for us not to home back but I believe that the more we come back home with the exposure, experience and wealth, we have garnered from around the world, the more we’ll be able to make Nigeria better.” Picking up enthusiasm again, he continues: “I am coming because I want to celebrate the fact that I am successful all over the world and I am selling to international stars and I want Nigerians to be able to say that this is one of their own.”

“So when I meet people in the UK and they tell me that Nigerians are fraudsters, I will tell them No! We don’t do fraud; we are doing successful things. Go and check for my name in the GUINNESS BOOK OF WORLD RECORDS. Do you see any fraud there? Nigerians are doing successful things all over the world and we have to start coming back home. I am hoping that if I am here, people would say that if Alexander Amosu can be there, then I too can be there. Why would Nigeria not be like or even better than London?” he asks. We need to come back and build our own country and the way to start is by each of us coming back and saying that this is what I have done.” Then picking up the thread of the suit again, he adds: “I don’t need to sell my suit here. People are buying my stuff all over the world and I don’t need to sell it here. Moreover there are just four of them in the world and I just want to bring it to Nigeria and show my people that this is what I have done.”

 But there are so many other things in his line of luxury products. The bespoke world’s most expensive suit is just one of them. The suits start from 3, 500 pounds and there are a range of other luxury products including belts, ties, shirts, cufflinks and so on. But what makes this one suit so special that it has to sell for that price? “The suit is made with gold and platinum thread. It is made from rare materials such as Vicuna wool, which can only be shorn once every three years from the South American camelid, and Qiviut wool, gathered from the Arctic muskoxen,” he explains. “It takes a minimum of 80 hours to complete each suit and this will include over 5000 individual stitches. Our professional tailors, each with no less than a 21-year experience visit the client wherever he is in the world to take his measurement after which work would commence. An Alexander Amosu suit is not just a suit, but a lifestyle: the purchase of the suit includes a 1-hour flight by private jet to anywhere in the world by Cloud9, 1-year free wealth management from Cheviot Asset Management and a 24 hr Global Concierge service.”

Being just 34 years old and placing a demanding a minimum requirement of 21 years experience from the tailors of his suits, I asked him why and he replied thus: “Because you are dealing with the world’s most expensive suit, you cannot afford to make any mistakes. And who says there are no spaces for the young and talented?” he asked. They are the ones that provide most of the ideas and vision which the tailors work on. But I’m not gonna risk having a rookie tailor ruin such a job. There are spaces for the youth but first, I have to build my brand, then develop the younger generation through different projects and ideas and when they are ready take over from the older ones, they move in. But on this particular job, there are no spaces for mistakes and we don’t take unnecessary risks.”

Then I again asked the reason for only making materials for the rich and not producing cheaper ones to sell to a larger number of the masses. To explain his reason, Alexander asked for my phone, a NOKIA 1202, which he placed beside one of his diamond encrusted blackberries. “For argument sake, let’s say your phone is worth ten pounds and mine 5000 pounds,” he tells me. “How long do you think it would take me to sell your phone at its price to get to 5000 pounds?” he amusingly asks me. “How many of your phone do I have to sell to get to 5000 pounds?”

 “500,” I answer.

 “So you mean I should be bursting my head to sell 500 units of a phone when I can sell one phone to one person and make the same amount without losing any sweat; do you want to work 500 times harder to make the same amount of money?” But I insisted that there was still the need to necessary products like phones to the average person but Alexander refused to budge.

“That’s their choice,” he states. “If they decide to spend a whole year to sell their products, it’s their own call. Why would I do that to myself? You have to be an entrepreneur; you have to think like a visioner. People work for money, but I make my money work for me. There’s the big difference. You could spend working really hard or you could work smart. It’s your own decision. I made my decision long ago and I’m happy making my money the easy way. The person trying to sell to everybody would be running around the whole day like a headless chicken while I would sit in the comfort of my office and make my own sales.”

 “It’s so much easier selling things to rich people. They don’t haggle; they just want the best and they are prepared to pay for it. Trying to sell to poor people is so much hard work because they haggle. If you are selling to them for ten pounds, they’ll still ask for a discount. If they do, I will slap their ears with the phone. You have to understand the psyche of the rich people, they want the best things and they are prepared to pay for it.” I was going to continue the argument, but the mention of slaps made me switch to this question. “If you are making so much money, you should be playing hard.”

 “Why would I do that?” he asks me incredulously. “I am a responsible person; I have a family. (He is married to a Nigerian lady, Tayo and they have two children). I can easily blow a million pounds in a day but what would I gain from that? I haven’t arrived yet. Bill Gates and Richard Branson didn’t get to where they are today by playing. I haven’t got to that level yet. When I start rubbing shoulders with the likes of Richard Branson, then I would go and play. Before then, all I do is work.”

 Coming from a very humble beginning, Alexander was brought up by his grandmother who couldn’t afford the luxuries that a youth needed to “belong” with. So he got his first job at 12 as a paper delivery boy in his neighbourhood and earned 10pounds a week. By the time he got enough money to buy himself a NIKE trainers and wear it to school, he was overwhelmed by the kind of attention he received and thus started a quest to make more money. He ventured into event organizing in school and diversify into various jobs. He had a cleaning company by 19 years which he sold at age 24 when he accidentally stumbled on ringtone creation. By 25, he made his first million. And from then on there’s no stopping him.

Alexander was awarded Young Entrepreneur of The Year at the Institute of Directors by Black Enterprise Awards 2002, Africa’s Best Award at the GAB Awards 2003, also receiving London African Caribbean Entrepreneurs Award 2004. For a second year in a row, Mr. Alexander Amosu is on the top Britain’s 100 most influential black Britons. He is now in Guinness World Records books for creating the world most expensive suit. He was also awarded with the honorary degree of Doctor of Business Administration by his old university London Metropolitan University. He is also interested in Charities and is the first person to create a Free Ringtones Day and donated the proceeds from over 75, 000 orders in one day to the Teenage Cancer Trust.

He is back home to launch his line of luxury products with the support of MTN who say they are identifying with him because his success story is similar to theirs. According to Mr. Kolawole Oyeyemi, General Manager Consumer Marketing, MTN, “MTN believes in achieving the dreams of its customers and this same desire is also what drives Mr. Amosu. He is an example of a true Nigerian and we are proud to be associated with him.”

Alexander Amosu Collections and the world’s most expensive suit would be unveiled at a secret location in Lagos on December 5, 2009 and even though he has already stated that he is not here to sell, Nigerians have always risen to any challenge and nobody, least of all a son of the soil, has ever brought in quality products into the country without making a sale.

NAIRA.COM LIFTS THE GLOOM WITH ASA IN CONCERT

In these uncertain times, with bombers targeting planes, the President missing in action and the Super Eagles fumbling

ASA

as usual, we need something to radiate some light and lift the gloom. Asa comes with her mellifluous voice to put off the fire on the mountain. Asa on the Green, packaged by Quirk & Glee in conjunction with naira.com will take place at fast growing entertainment fun spot, Coral Reef at 10A Ikoya Avenue, off McPherson Ikoyi Lagos on Friday January 22, 2010.

Tickets to the show can be purchased online at www.naira.com for N10, 000 and early birds will get autographed and original copies of Asa’s Live in Paris CD/DVD. There are also free tickets up for grabs. The night will begin with a cocktail reception from 7-8pm, after which soul singers Bez and Dipo, who represent the future of Nigerian soul and r&b will kick start things. Naira.com, which commenced operations in December 2009 is a one stop transaction portal where you can buy an endless variety of items as well as concert or air tickets. You can also order food and pay for air time and other services.

23 year-old Nigerian Singer Weds 62 year-old American Grandmother

SK MODE AND AMELIA ADIMIKE

YOU might have heard or read about men and women who marry across age, culture and distance but this particular story may sound a bit intriguing.  Mrs. Amelia Felix Adimike, as she happily introduced herself to me, is a 62 year-old Columbian-American widow, who came all the way from the US to marry her new heartthrob, Mr. Victor Somkenechukwu Adimike, a.k.a SK Mode, a 23 year-old upcoming Nigerian musician.  She was married to an American Air Force officer for 39 years and that is exactly the same number of years with which she is older than Victor.

Her first child is 40 and her youngest is 33.  Throughout this interview, she never for once called her new love by his name.  It was always: ‘My husband.’  For a match made on the internet and quickly formalized in an Ondo, Ondo State registry, you may scream, ‘Yahoo Yahoo,’ but think what you may, talking with the young man and his wife might change your perception of the concept of love and marriage.  Just read their story and find out.

Excerpts…

Tell us, how did this start?

I became a widow on July 3, 2007.  I was married to a United States Air Force man. I never thought I would remarry, it wasn’t my intention but after a year, I started to feel very lonely in a big house without my husband.  A friend of mine, Caroline, kept telling me: “Amelia, go online, list your profile you might be lucky to get somebody through the internet. She got a husband from Haiti through the internet.  I had my misgivings about the internet because I’m a Christian, I had never been an outgoing person.  Within two days of getting online, I had a storm of men that wanted to meet me. I didn’t know what to do with so many people.

Did you limit your search to a particular geographical area?

No. I just said that I did not want to deal with any scammer and anybody that was under 56 years old, because I thought the age bracket that would suit me would be somebody that is closer to my age.  But all the men that got in touch with me were in their 20s.

How many matchmaking sites did you register on?

US Search, Yahoo and eHarmony. My husband found me through US Search.

Why didn’t you try Facebook? That’s one of the most popular sites in the world at the moment?

I never heard of it.

How many people came through US Search?

From US Search, there were seven men that tried to get in touch with me. Three of them had children and I screened everyone of them by asking them questions.  Some of them didn’t answer the questions so I totally eliminated them.  The only one that answered all the questions was him (pointing at her husband).

What were some of the questions on your questionnaire?

I was looking for a man that is caring, a man who has a sense of humour, a man who is not lazy; I didn’t want a man who would be a couch-potato in my house while I work for him.  I wanted a man that is hard working, that has talent, that has ambition.  I was looking for a man close to what my first husband was.  But then Caroline said to me: “Amelia, you can’t expect to find a man who is exactly the way your first husband was because when God made your husband, he broke the mould.  So you better look for a man that fits other criteria that your previous husband didn’t have.”  So, I built up my questionnaire based on some of the things that my previous husband was and some of the things that he didn’t have. I also wanted somebody who didn’t have some of the abilities that my first husband had which I had, I wanted someone that is musical, loves to dance and loves the theatre, because those were the things that I liked and he (pointing at her husband) was the one that fit the bill.  He was the only one that did not try to take advantage of me. One of the questions I asked him was: “If I came home from work and I was tired, would you demand that I cook you a dinner right away or would you demand that I pay your needs before I take care of my needs.  And he was the only one that gave the answer…(Victor interjects here smiling, what answer did I give) that he would massage me (both laugh heartily), treat me to a dinner and allow me to rest before taking care of his demands.

Has he been doing that?

Yes and more.  Another question that I asked him was if he would take me to the theatre.  I told him that I was looking for somebody that would be my companion whenever I wanted to go to any place; he wouldn’t be ashamed of going with a woman of my age.  I did not know his age at that time because we spoke about so many things and we found out that we had so many things in common.  One of the things we have in common is his birthday which was the first thing I asked him because I wanted to find somebody that was astrologically compatible with me.

Do you believe in astrology?

Yeah, I believe in astrology because I was astrologically compatible with my first husband and our marriage lasted 39 years. I happen to be a Leo, Leo women have a very powerful character.  They need to have a man that is sensitive, caring, not over-powerful so that they can be happy.  My husband is a Virgo which is astrologically compatible with Leo.  We are opposites and opposites attract. He happens to be born in the year of the tiger in Chinese astrology and I was born in the year of the boar, Chinese astrology.  We are opposites in Chinese astrology.  People that are too close in character are always fighting each other; people that are opposites in character have better communication and we have very good communication.  Whenever he has a problem, I tell him: “Discuss it with me.”  Because how am I going to know that he has a problem except he tells me? I don’t read the mind.  So, we have made an agreement that whenever we had a concern, we would discuss it and so far we never had a bad argument.  We know what to talk about, we know what to say to each other, we know what to do to settle ourselves and we got married.  We talked to each other only for six months.  The first time we started talking was on June 26, 2008.  From that day, he interested me so much that I used to run straight from work to the computer and he was already waiting for me.  And he would say something like, “Welcome home my wife” (laughs out loud).  He started calling me his wife even before we met and I would tell him, but ‘I’m not your wife, I’m just your friend.’  We talked for a long time and he was aware of my age all along because it was on my profile.  His wasn’t on his profile and I never knew that he was a recording artiste. I did not know who he was before we decided that we wanted to look at each other on the web.  Each one of us got a webcam and we saw each other.  The first time that I saw him, I started to cry. I cried because when I saw how young he was, I had second thoughts because I never believed that the person I had been talking with all this while could be that young.  But I felt an attraction for him that I could not understand and I said: ‘Why do I feel so attracted to this man.’  That was when I knew that I had to meet him in person so I could confirm if the same attraction I had for him online was the same with what I had for him in person.  For eight days, we didn’t talk to each other because I told him that I had a difficulty dealing with the difference in our ages –because I have children that were older than him.

How many children do you have?

I have four children and they are all older than him.  My oldest daughter is 40 but she looks like she is still 20.  She is a divorcee with one child.  The second child is a son.  He is an artiste in New York and he is also a nurse.  He clocked 38 on August 26, he has three children.  The third child is another son, he is also an artiste.  He has two children and would be 36 in December.  My youngest child is a daughter.  She is a nurse and she is 33 years old.  She would be 34 on September 16, the same day that he (pointing at Victor) has his birthday.  She is also married and has a stepdaughter. I have six grandchildren.

Did you do this with their consent?

No, but they had knowledge of it but only one of them, my youngest child agreed with my decision.  She is the one that has been communicating with us, she is the only one that seems pathetic to our cause.

Were your children aware of your intention to remarry?

Yes, but my eldest daughter gave me a hell of a time when she found out that I was coming to Nigeria in September. I had made plans to meet him in September, 2009 and I didn’t tell my children anything because I know they would not support me.  So, I bought a ticket for Delta Airlines, I had everything planned to just tell them I was going on vacation because all my life I have always travelled alone.  But there was a show that Oprah Winfrey had where she was depicting Nigeria as a country of scammers and my children became apprehensive.  It was a show of how a young woman was ripped off by somebody and she came all the way from the US to Lagos and the person never showed up at the airport to claim her.  My children were afraid that the same thing would happen to me.  And I think that’s the reason why the American embassy is always reluctant to issue visas to Americans that were marrying Nigerians.

Please, tell us more about the problems you faced with your children?

When my oldest son also found out about it, he showed up in front of my house and between him and my oldest daughter, they plotted to lock me in my bedroom to stop me from picking a flight that would take me to Nigeria.  They had me sequestered in my own home and I gave them such a hard time that I almost had a stroke.  He (pointing at Victor) was worried because he was expecting me.  So, I tried to let him know that I would not be coming because I did not want him to come all the way from Ondo State to Lagos to pick me and not find me at the airport.  So, my daughters agreed to communicate with him.  They had an argument online, they exchanged words and my daughter called him all sorts of names, she even called him a terrorist-claiming that he wanted to kidnap me.  My daughter was so upset that she called the police and tried to get the police to arrest me so I wouldn’t come to Nigeria.  But the police told her that she did not have any proof that Victor was a terrorist.  So, they couldn’t do anything about it.  When I was able to communicate with him I told him that I had gotten Bell’s Palsy because of all the problems and I couldn’t go to work. I couldn’t even type very well and my daughter tried to blame him for all the problems I was having, while in reality, she was the one causing all the problem.  She got hold of my personal email ID and password, got into my box and emailed all my intimate conversations with him to all my other children.  So, all of them were aware of what was happening between me and him.  My daughter tried to book me on a flight to Columbia instead because I’m originally from Columbia and she said that if I ever wanted to meet anybody I didn’t know, that it would be in Columbia. I had to sneak to talk to him because my oldest daughter took charge of all my things. She made my life miserable and even threatened to put me in a nursing home.  She even took me to an attorney and tried to get him to sign over all my assets to her so that she could control them and I said over my dead body.  Behind her back, I rebooked my flight for November 22, 2008 with Delta Airlines. I arrived Nigeria on November 23 and he was there at the airport waiting for me.  We drove the same day to Ondo State in the evening because the car broke down on the way and we had to wait for somebody to come and fix it up before we could continue our journey.  When we got to Ondo State, the reservation he had made for me had expired and we had to find another hotel.  We made love the very first night that we met and we got married two days later at the registry in Akure South Local Government Area. I returned to the States on the 29th.

Are you happy with your decision?

I am, even though we have spent practically eight months trying to get a visa appointment at the embassy, I am happy.

What happened when you went back to the States?

I went straight to my lawyer the following Monday and submitted all the paper work to him. He told me it was going to be a bit difficult because of the 39-year difference in our ages but that it was possible.  He told me all the documents we needed to make a successful visa application and I got them.

What’s your lawyer’s name?

His name is Robert Sheldon.  This was the first time he would be taking on a case from Nigeria.  He told me that he had heard that dealing with Nigerian spouses was not an easy task.  He asked me if I was sure this was what I wanted and I told him I was.  I am a teacher and I can tell from the way a person writes what type of personality the person has.  A teacher always knows the personality of all her students because of the way they write and express themselves. I knew the kind of personality he has.  The very first day I heard his voice on the phone, I asked him, ‘Do you sing?’  And he said, ‘How do you know that?’  And I told him that I see that from his voice.  I sing too and I could tell if a person could sing or not.  I also deal with astrology.  I have a very sharp sixth sense.  When I am in front of a thief or a bad person, I get a bad vibe, when I’m in front of a person who is honest, I get a good vibe (at this point I asked her: ‘What kind of vibe are you getting now?’  When she replied that she was very comfortable with me, we continued).

How did you learn these vibes?

I had a very sensitive grandmother who always told me, ‘If you are in the middle of making a decision and your left hand gets hot, don’t sign!  If your right hand gets hot go ahead and sign’ and I have always followed my intuitions.  That’s why I signed that marriage certificate. I am not going to tell you that our love was instantaneous because that’s impossible, but our love grew through the conversations that we’ve had over time.  I realized I loved him before I even came to Nigeria, but I wanted to confirm it, that’s why I came to Nigeria.  I don’t believe in everything people say about Nigeria, I believe in finding out things for myself, I didn’t even find out everything about him myself. It was my daughter-in-law that went into his website and called me to tell me that he’s a singer.  It has been an ongoing process that we have had. I wasn’t back in Nigeria before now because my lawyer kept asking me to wait for the visa appointment before coming.

When did you apply for his visa?

It was in the first week of December 2008, after I went back.  I decided to go through a lawyer because I figured that a lawyer would know exactly what I would need. My lawyer told me I needed $85,000 in order to get him here. I asked him why?  And he said it was because I wanted to bring in somebody from Nigeria and Nigeria had more stringent rules than other places. I had to have that kind of money in the bank and I felt that was horrible because I knew another woman that had claimed her husband from Nigeria and she never needed that much.  According to my lawyer, I was supposed to be in the visa interview room with him, but they refused.  They told me he was going to be in there alone and that my lawyer didn’t know Nigeria.  The first date was August 20 and they wouldn’t let me in into Nigeria on July 29, 2009.  I think he should take over from here now.

(Here, the focus of the interview shifts to her husband) Let us start from the beginning, tell us your story.

I am from Oru West LGA in Imo State but I live in Ondo State with my family. I have three sisters and I am the only boy.  My parents have been living there before I was born and I have lived all my life in Ondo State.

Where are your parents now?

They are in Ondo State.  My dad is a pharmacist and my mum owns a boutique.

What are your educational qualifications?

I had my secondary education at St. Thomas Aquinas College, Ondo State.  After that, I went on a training for video directing and editing.  I can shoot a good video and I am a musician.  I own a record label called Modebeats Entertainment. I am popular in Ondo and the neighbouring Yoruba towns.  I do hip-hop and R n B. I released my album immediately I finished secondary school in 2008.  I released it in June before I met my wife.  The album even got me a contract in New York, someone is waiting for me in New York now to do some collabos with me.

You didn’t get to the university?

No, I was helping to train my sisters through my music but I intend going to a more professional school of art very soon.  One of my sisters have graduated from the university now and we are both helping to train my other sisters.

How many matchmaking websites are you on?

I was on Singlesnet, US Search, MySpace and Facebook.

Amelia says her objective for getting online was to find a husband, what was yours?

It wasn’t about marriage at first. I was just looking for someone that could help me to promote my music outside the country but I met my wife and fell in love with her. She included in her profile that she needed an artistic person as a husband.

How did you find her?

I was designing my website and surfing through the net when I saw her profile. I never though it would be possible for me to meet her because of the enormous age difference but something kept pushing me towards her.  Some Nigerian guys were also on to her at that time; some scammers were on to her by then, but I saved her from them (Amelia laughs heartily).  I gave her some questions to ask, I asked her if their number shows when they call her and she said no.  they didn’t give her their numbers but they kept calling her, claiming they were in the States.

What really attracted you to her?

The way we chatted was very interesting and we were always laughing.  She usually said things about me which nobody knew. I was intrigued with the fact that she could tell so much about me even without seeing me.

Didn’t you consider that your parents and society might be opposed to the relationship?

My parents don’t have a right over me. I had to work for myself to get to where I am today.  My CD cost me close to N1 million and I funded it myself. I became a man myself, my parents cannot stop me from making my choice because I have my rights. In the first place, they never even supported my music and I have succeeded so far with it. Now they are fully behind me.

(Amelia interjects) They told me that I was the best thing to ever happen to him because he was on the way getting mixed up with the wrong crowd.  He even had people that were after him. But I have saved him from them and he is very happy now.

(Victor continues) I didn’t need to marry in order to get a visa. I already have an invitation from a musician in New York who wants to collaborate with me in my music and I believe that her invitation letter and the fact that I can sustain myself would have got me a visa.  My passport has been ready since and I have been saving for a trip to the States.  My wife has been very worried about me because she really wants me to be with her.  Ever since she left we exchanged calls daily.  There are phone bills to prove this and I really care about her.  People at the embassy really acted funny because they really think we are not honest but we love each other very much.  We have a second visa appointment this month and I believe this would be the final because since she cannot stay permanently here, I need to go with her to be with her.

Don’t you think this marriage would affect your relationship with your family in future permanently with the level of opposition you have so far received from them?

I am their mother and I know them better than they think they know themselves. I know they love me and they are more concerned about what the media says.  They are afraid that I might give away all their inheritance to him but their father was a very smart man. He left a trust before he died for each of them. He also said that should anything happen to him, everything he had should go to my kids.  He left a Will.  The Will left everything to me and they will only get it when I die. He gave them their own inheritance while he was still alive.  He gave each of them enough money to buy their own homes.

What do you think about the fact that you are marrying outside your culture and somebody that is young enough to be your grandson?

I understand the implications. I know he would need to continue his family name in the future and I am already 62 years old. I had my 62nd birthday here in Nigeria and we celebrated it together at the Soundcity Urban Music Blast. I am okay with the facts on ground.

So, what do you think about Nigerians?

I think Nigerians are very friendly people.  Nobody has tried to scam me here except the police (laughs).  They have always stopped us to collect money whenever they saw us together.  There are still good Nigerians.

Now that you are probably not going to have children together, what is your plan?

I realize that because of my age, I cannot give him physical children so we are going to adopt Nigerian children.

What do you think about your husband?

He is very caring and romantic.  When I came, I was sick because I ate something and I was vomiting and he was there for me throughout. I have conditioned myself not to eat anything after six o’clock and I forgot that when it is six o’clock here, it is actually 12 midnight, so I got very sick and he took good care of me.

What is the sweetest thing that he has ever told you?

One of the major things that made me to come was that he told me that he would take care of me till I was old.  Not even my own kids take care of me.  That mattered much because I told him I am going to live to be 106 years.  I am planning to beat one of my grand aunts who lived for 103 years and she was not even as fit as I am.  She was fat, she had diabetes.  The only good thing about her was that she never got angry with anybody, she would just sit outside her house and greet everybody that passes by.  She was very sweet.  I am very fit, I exercise and my doctor told me that my cholesterol level was ok.  He gave me a clean bill of health before I came.

Are you still working?

I work part-time. I am a substitute teacher in Florida. I take virtually all courses ranging from physical education to music and even working with special children because I have a Masters in Human Service Administration from the Metropolitan College of New York and a degree in Business Administration from there also.  I used to work as a realtor before this part time job.

What kind of music do you do?

I sing in a church, I sing in mostly Spanish. I belong to a Latin-American church in Florida and I am the music director.

How many languages do you speak?

I can speak Spanish, English and a bit of French.  My dad taught me a bit of French when I was a child and a few words of the Igbo language like Dim.

What is your beauty secret because you really look much younger than 62?

My name is Amelia which means ‘loyal’ and ‘to make better.’  I always try to live by my name. I do not prostitute myself, I was married to one man for 39 years and I never prostituted myself even though he was a military man and was away most of the time. I didn’t miss him as I would have if I didn’t have my four children. I took care of my children and still went to work everyday. I try not to have evil thoughts. People that have evil thoughts age very fast.  If you try to maintain a positive attitude, stay away from gossips and keep your marriage together, you would be fine. I only get angry when I have a real reason to do so.

What would you love to change about Amelia?

She is perfect so far but she talks a lot. She can talk from morning till night.  (Amelia speaks) I have such an attraction for him that he has to constantly remind me not to touch or kiss him in public.

Have you ever had a plastic surgery?

I have, but not a beauty surgery.. I had a corrective surgery after my last baby. I had a surgery to prevent me from having another baby after my last baby and the doctor left an imperfection on my navel and I didn’t like it. I had a corrective surgery for that.

What are your final words?

I do not believe that immigration or the embassy has the right to decide peoples’ lives based on the difference of age.  Because men from all the generations have always married women young enough to be their children and women have the right to do the same.