Obafemi Martins is in the frame to start Wednesday’s Group C clash between the Super Eagles and the Mambas of Mozambique in Lubango.

The former Newcastle FC of England star returned to the African finals after dashing off to the United Kingdom for a court appearance and has since been showing good form at training for the two–time African champions.

”Nigeria need to get a result from Wednesday’s meeting with the southern Africans at the Tundavala Stadium to be sure of a slot in the tournament’s last eight. With the competition being governed by the head-to-head rule, it means Nigeria can no longer finish at the head of the table, ” KickoffNigeria.com said.

 

Nigeria’s super Eagles Coach, Amodu Shuaibu may be recommended to be fired by the Technical Committee of the Nigerian Football Federation, following a lack-lustre performance against the visiting Tunisian National team in Abuja Sunday.

As Nigeria’s chances of being at the first World Cup to be held on African soil hangs in suspense the Technical committee  NFF holds an emergency meeting Wednesday to amongst others possibly recommend for the sack of Amodu Shuaibu and proffer a way forward.

With two matches, outstanding, Nigeria needs decisive victory in its two outstanding matches against Mozambique and Kenya.

However the consensus amongst football buffs is that though the country had individual talented football stars, they have not been technically groomed to a world class team, and Coach Shuaibu has been blamed for this shoddy state of affairs.

Following the 2.2 draw between Nigeria and Tunisian, the mood in the Nations’ capital Abuja had been gloomy and downcast, an extreme opposite of what it was before the match from which Nigerians had high expectations.

Kaduna/Ibadan/Benin — University students have threatened to disrupt the FIFA Under-17 World Cup competition holding in Nigeria in October and November if the government would by then still remain unwilling to resolve the strike embarked upon by lecturers.

The West African Students Association (WASA) and the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) said all students at home and abroad support the lecturers because they are demanding a total restructuring of the education sector and not only their improved welfare.

In the meantime, the two unions have suspended their proposed strike planned for next week after they met the National Association of Parent Teachers' Association of Nigeria (NAPTAN) in Kaduna on Thursday.

Both WASA National President, Daniel Onjeh, and NANS President, Bashir Babanlle, said: "The government's unwillingness to honour the agreements reached with ASUU since 2001 shows how (it) is treating the challenge of educational development with levity and without recourse to the fact that education is the bedrock of national development," they said.

The unions gave the government an ultimatum of one week to resolve the dispute and restore normal academic activities in the universities, failing which they would mobilise their members for a world record protest in Nigeria.

In line with the strike, the University of Benin chapter of the ASUU on Thursday backed out of the post-UME test of prospective students scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday next week.

The boycott was contained in a statement issued by the chapter Chairman, Kashetu Ilevbarhe, who described as appalling the decision of the UNIBEN administration to conduct the test in defiance of the industrial action.

ASUU President, Ukachukwu Awuzie, stressed at the University of Ibadan (UI) that the government is not helping the situation.

His words: "This struggle is not for us. It is for posterity. So, we should not fail in this struggle. What is the essence of having a university system when the academics cannot conduct good research, when the companies can no longer come to the universities for innovations because they have more equipment than the universities?"

Awuzie said a situation where no Nigerian university is rated among the best 5,000 in the world is not good for the country.

courtesy: Daily Independent

Saint Obi was born on the 16th of November in Port-Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria. He studied Theatre Arts at the University of Jos, Plateau State and graduated with B.A. (Hons). He speaks English, Igbo, Hausa and a little of the Yoruba Language.

An athlete who had represented Plateau State in both Football and Basketball tournaments. He also enjoys body building. Saint Obi joined the Nigerian Film Industry (Nollywood) in 1996 and instantly rose to the top – a feat yet to be matched by any in the industry.

He has featured in 90 films as male lead. Saint Obi has the ambition of playing in Hollywood as a front burner as well as stimulating. In this interview, Obi looks at the problems facing the Nigerian film industry with fear: Nollywood is crashing! Excerpts:

What is going on? We haven’t heard much from you.?
Nothing much I’ve been doing lately… . I’ve been keeping quiet because I’m working on a lot of stuff…movies.

Well the problem with the industry at the moment is …. I saw it coming from afar. When I told people that having too many movies in the market would make the industry go bad…let’s try and control the numbers of films we make… If we have 60 movies coming out in a week, how many are you going to buy and how many are you not going to buy? So, it forces people to rent these movies.

So, that has resulted in the industry being choked out, in terms of the market. So, a lot of people are not making more movies after they lost a lot of money, after producing movies earlier. So, there’s a law in the market right now. But despite all that, some people are still…

But for me, I think that to start a new course for the industry is the right key, the industry is not as famous as a lot of people think. Yet, you must give it to them when they try. But at a point, greed took over. These people were not in it to make movies.

They saw it as a way of making quick money for themselves. So, what we need to do is to go back to the drawing board.
I’m not surprised at all by this but I think we need to move forward. Again, there is no science in our marketing and because of this….

Beyond the law of the business, as long as there’s money in your pocket to make films, is there supposed to be a problem with the …?

No, you see, that’s not the way forward. The problem with our country is that we like short cut. We don’t wanna build solid people. Those that initiated Hollywood, most of them are dead now. For me, I’m a visionary, without a sense of modesty, and I make no apologies for it.

I think, what is that big picture? Is it Idumota? Absolutely not. Is it Onitsha or is it Aba? Is it Kano? That is not. It’s nonsense. Nigeria is made up of 140 million people. Why don’t you make a movie that will hit one percent of that population?

But the problem is that we started from a wrong footing. That wrong footing is, instead of doing movies the way it ought to be done ,which is, you go through premiere, then through cinema screening, before it comes to the home video level.

Then you go to the TV rights. But what we do is that we leave all necessary things and go all the way to DVDs. By that you’ve lost the premiere money you gonna make, you’ve lost the cinema money, you just go to DVD. What they do is they trade by barter, give me a certain number of slots, I give you my movie. We just sell ourselves cheap and it is the problem from the people who started the industry, and that’s one thing I always say that pioneers in the movies industry have always soiled the water for others coming behind and that’s a very bad thing to do.

There need to be people who are focused for a long run, not a 100m dash.

What’s wrong with the industry?
Like I said, it’s all about the big picture. So, for me, I’d rather get the industry right, because if you pay me N2million and I’m making that every two weeks, or thereabout, that’s no money on the long run.

You think you’re making money but at a point, people will stop buying and that’s what happens and the marketers who were paying you N2million will not have money to pay you next time because the movie was not able to sell well. So, from N2million or thereabout, it begins to drop.

At a point, you’d hear the guy telling you ‘ bros, take that 5k (N5, 000) or nothing else for you!’ Do you understand? That’s just an example. So, for me, I started and had to set aside and see what I could do. How I can make a difference, alright?

Ihave a project, a movie that I produced and directed in America, since 2004 (True Colour) now I’ve that movie and wanna push it out there but because the industry is perceived from Idumota point of view, when you’re talking to one of those people who also are supposed to support the venture, they don’t understand where you’re coming from.

So, I now said, ‘look, I have to set aside so that I can build that vision that can take the industry to the next level. People say, ‘well we’re pioneers, people that ’d reap from what we’re sowing now are going to be our children. But I said, ‘No, this is not 1950.

This is 2009. We have the population we have the technology to enjoy the goodies. I feel that in this dispensation, we must be part of that goodies. It’s not the one that will happen in the next one year. It should happen now. But we need to do our homework.

But the problem I have with this industry is that the actors and actresses actually sold out the rights to these marketers. Those were the ones bringing funds. So, nobody thought of looking for sponsors. The actors didn’t have much to do with it.

It has to do with the independent producers who are not marketers. Most of them collect money from marketers, that they are going to pay the actors but they won’t pay and that’s where the actors came on board. These people will now realize that these movies are actually owned by so and so marketers. They now go and complain to the marketers that this man did not pay me. These marketers will now tell them, ‘let’s come into the industry and see what we can do to amend this problem.’

So actors brought the market ers into this business?
It wasn’t the actors.

Actors complained that independent producers caused the problems.
Yeah, absolutely. It’s still a function of greed like I said earlier.

So, you are yet to identify those responsible for this?
No, there’s no two ways about it.

If a market is there for the product, you make money from it.
Yeah, they pushed the independent producers aside and started producing the movies themselves. At a point, they even started directing, cos they felt well.

Scripts which are very unprofessional….But to be fair with the marketers, they pumped money into the industry but where they got it wrong was the greed. You can’t stockpile movies. You see a marketer with five movies and they say, ‘I’d bring two this week, three next week.

They choked the market and that’s why the thing crashed. So, as I keep hammering, we must take a look at the big picture. Nollywood has an audience of about 500 million people, I mean black people in diaspora. That’s my focus.

The white community will come later. The Asian community will come later. My focus is strictly on blacks. If we capture that black market, we’re home and that’s what I keep telling people. We must get the marketers right.

So when I go to them and say this is the big picture and they don’t understand, I tell them ,you’re thinking like an Idumota person,. Titanic was made with over $300m plus and when they released the movies, it grossed over $1bn plus.

So, Nollywood has the market. That’s what you’ve to understand. But how are we going to that market to make good lives for ourselves and that’s where I’m today. So, it’s not about me jumping from one location and somebody putting stipends in my pockets and I think I’m making money . I ain’t making no money.

So, if producers want high quality movies, they should look at scripts?
I’ve always done that. I’ve always said it’s got to be the best or nothing. But sometimes you wanna help people, like some of the worst jobs I’ve done…. One movie where I had to help people, a friend. I said, let me help this friend ‘cos I’m trying to sow in his life.

People you help to make those movies, they don’t want to equally do good for the movies. So they just apply shortcut here and there and the movie comes out very poor. Nobody will understand that you try to help somebody, the person watching would now say, ‘ ah, look at that St. Obi in that stupid film, not understanding that you were actually helping somebody.

These days, I don’t help nobody no more because I learnt the hard way. So, if you wanna make a movie, you better get serious about what you want to do, you know-the hard way. Or you end up being rubbished because somebody takes a look at you and says ah, look at the kind of movie that guy is in. It doesn’t speak well, and you’re as good as your last video last year.

When did the board decide who should act, that one taking much money shouldn’t be part of a movie? Did that affect you too?

Well, I’ve gone through those kinds of stunts all through my career.

Were you affected by that border?
Well, I don’t know if there’s any order today though. But I know that when it comes to people that rate the stage, when films are concerned, I’m among the only three in the industry. You can be very sure of that. It’s me, RMD and Nkem Owoh. The three of us are the only people that rate the stage. Any other person that tells you is lying. It’s just the three of us.

Meaning you are one of the top three?
I don’t know about that. I’m talking about people who try to rate the bar, cos we truly know what our values are. Another person is Kenneth Okonkwo. So, these four people I’ve mentioned are those who have been able to help rate the bar, make the industry get to where it is.

I remember a time when the marketers called for a break, and we said the least paid actors, that is the ‘extras’ would take home a minimum of N5,000 . The big actors at that time would take home like N500,000. At that time, some of us were being paid like N250,000 – N300,000 and at the duration of that break, the marketers had their own meeting and said that if the big names don’t take N100,000 that they should take it or leave it.

When some of us heard it, we screamed, like over our dead bodies. We’re coming from almost N300,000 and dropping to N100,000 for something you didn’t do. I had made most of those guys millionaires today. So, if the industry’s going bad, it’s not because of us but because of your (marketers) own greed.

So, that’s not right. But to our greatest surprise, 98% of our people went back and collected a N100,000. So, those of us that didn’t collect were now the bad guys. They surprised us.

So, that made you go back to collect N100, 000?
Never, I never did that kind of stuff .

None of those guys that were with you?

No, like I told you 1,2,3 of us said, no and we stuck to our guns.

And that’s how you became a director and producer?
No, no, no! But the point is this, a point, when they got tired of using those that collect N100,000, they came back to us but instead of meeting us at N300,000 like before, they met us at N600,000.

That’s what they had to pay us. And then, these other people that were collecting N100,000 , when they saw that we were collecting N600,000, they protested and they started earning up to like N400,000. What I’m driving at now is that the industry is full of people who are ready to sell you for any thing.

That’s not right and that’s why I think that we have to put our act in order. The other day, we were at what was going on at the secretariats and all that. It’s a function of the industry not having its focus right. This is an industry of too much, we are one of the highest employers of labour, what we contribute to the economy is so huge.

I think we’re third on the line after oil and telecomms . If we get the industry right, we might even go higher than telecomms.

Is government doing the right thing?
The government is not. The stipends they give to the censors board is nothing. What they did to the film cooperation in Jos is nothing. The government understands what it has. The clamour for alternative way of making money for government, this (movie industry) is one clear way of making that money. They don’t need to depend on oil to make money. It’s a way of taking youths out of the streets.

Particularly, as we’re talking about re-branding.
Absolutely! I’ve said this in so many forums that government needs to build multi purpose centres across Nigeria, 36 states and Abuja build. Build them in viable local government areas. lt will reduce urban migration and employ a lot of youth. When they build these centres, they should lease it out to people and they’ll see the kind of money they’d get out of it. When you release a movie, it has a chain.

Every actor that features in that movies will pay tax to the government. Every exhibition has government’s share in it. But people are not seeing these things. Sometimes, when I talk, I wonder, is it that these people don’t understand who are the people speaking for us? Why is it that they can’t see what’s going on there? All over the world, film’s a big revenue earner.

It’s also a huge PR tool. Hollywood is America’s biggest propaganda weapon. Same thing with Bollywood. When you see Arnold Schwarzenegger or Sylvester Stallone in a movie like ‘Rambo’ going into a town, because his boss was captured somewhere, me and you know it’s not humanly possible.

But when America builds your subconscious, don’t mess with America because one of us can take all of you out and you begin to believe it at a point. Until 9/11, people thought America was invincible and that’s the picture Hollywood is able to print and that’s why when we’re talking about re branding, I feel very sad. It’s all about lip service.

I know the Honourable Minister has good intentions. But I look at myself, I have a project that started long before Heart of Africa came, let alone re branding Nigeria. If I had been on this journey long before re brand Nigeria came, don’t you think you should embrace me first because I’m somebody who’s genuinely interested in changing Nigeria’s image. I went in 2004 to shoot a movie that would address this issue, to change the image of my country men and women. I developed a couple. I also designed to find a way to change our image locally and internationally.

If you have that kind of scenario and you have a government that says it wants to re brand and you have people who have genuinely contributed…. When you say you’re re-branding and you have somebody. I know I’m not the only one. I know there are a couple of people who have the same zeal for Nigeria, I think people like that should be called upon, because I’m not trying to enrich myself. I’m trying to find out how we can work together.

Who could be called re-brand Ambassadors?
Yes . Unlike people who are there today trying to give you proposals because you’re trying to initiate something new. No, I’ve this genuine intention. I want to spend my money, put my money where my mouth is. I think when you’re part of people who have genuine intentions, you’ll also inspire others coming from the back.

You’ll also make people wanna volunteer in other areas of life, because Nigeria is our own, whether we like it or not. I mean, no matter what you do, you can only be a stranger in America. You and I only have Nigeria to build.

Vanguard News

Dr. Reuben Abati is the chairman of the editorial board of Guardian Newspapers and Banky W...well, he's a popular figure. The former wrote an article about the Nigerian music industry, to which the latter responded.

There is a lot to learn from both articles which I've pasted below:

A Nation's Identity Crisis
By Reuben Abati
You may not have noticed it: Nigeria is suffering from an identity crisis imposed on it in part by an emergent generation of irreverent and creative young Nigerians who are revising old norms and patterns. And for me nothing demonstrates this more frontally than the gradual change of the name of the country.

When Flora Shaw, Lord Lugard's consort came up with the name, Nigeria in 1914, she meant to define the new country by the strategic importance of the Niger River. And indeed, River Niger used to be as important to this country as the Nile was/is to Egypt. We grew up as school children imagining stories about how Lugard in one special romantic moment, asked his mistress to have the honour of naming a new country in Africa. Something like: "Hello, sweetheart, what name would you rather give the new country that I am creating?"

"Let me give it a thought? ....Awright, how about Ni-ge-ria darling?"
"That would do. That would do. How thoughtful, my fair lady? You are forever so dependable"
And the name stuck and it has become our history and identity. But these days, the name Nigeria is gradually being replaced by so many variants, that I am afraid a new set of Nigerians may in the immediate future not even know the correct spelling of the name of their country. For these Nigerians whose lives revolve mostly around the internet and the blogosphere, the name Nigeria has been thrown out of the window. Our dear country is now "naija" or "nija". What happened to the "-eria" that Ms Shaw must have thoughtfully included?

The new referents for Nigeria are now creeping into writings, conversations, and internet discourse. I am beaten flat by the increasing re-writing of the country's name not only as naija or nija, but consider this: "9ja". Or this other name for Nigeria: "gidi". There is even a television programme that is titled "Nigerzie". In addiiton, Etisalat, a telecom company has since adopted a marketing platform that is titled: "0809ja." Such mainstreaming of these new labels is alarming.
This obviously is the age of abbreviations.

The emerging young generation lacks the discipline or the patience to write complete sentences or think through a subject to its logical end. It is a generation in a hurry, it feels the constraints of space so much, it has to reduce everything to manageable, cryptic forms. This is what the e-mail and text message culture has done to the popular consciousness. Older generations of Nigerians brought up on a culture of correctness and compeleteness may never get used to the re-writing of Nigeria as "9ja". Language is mutatory, but referring to the motherland or the fatherland in slang terms may point to a certain meaninglessness or alienation. What's in a name?

In Africa, names are utilitarian constructs not merely labels. Even among the Ijaw where people bear such unique names as University, Conference, FEDECO, Manager, Heineken, Education, Polo, Boyloaf, Bread, College, Summit, Aeroplane, Bicycle, Internet - there is a much deeper sense to the names. But the name Nigeria means nothing to many young Nigerians. They have no reason to respect the sanctity of the name. They don't know Flora Shaw or Lord Lugard, and even if they do, they are likely to say as Ogaga Ifowodo does in an unforgettable poem: "God Punish you, Lord Lugard." Eedris Abdulakarim summarises the concern of young Nigerians in one of his songs when he declared: "Nigeria jagajaga, everything scata, scata"

The post-modernist, deconstructive temper of emergent youth culture is even more manifest in the cynical stripping to the bones character of today's Nigerian hip-hop. It is marked by a Grunge character that shouts: non-meaning and alienation. On my way to Rutam House the other day, I listened at mid-day to a continuous stream of old musical numbers from 93.7 Radio FM. Soulful, meaningful tunes of Felix Lebarty, Chris Okotie (as he then was), Mandy Ojugbana, Christy Essien-Igbokwe, Onyeka Onwenu, Sony Okosun, Alex O, Ras Kimono, Majek Fashek, Evi Edna-Ogoli, Bongos Ikwue, Veno Marioghae, Uche Ibeto, Dora Ifudu, Mike Okri, Dizzy K. Falola, and Tina Onwudiwe. Onyeka Onwenu sang; "One love, keep us together". Veno Marioghae sang: "Nigeria Go Survive". Even in the romantic offerings like Chris Okotie's "I need someone, give me your love", or Felix Lebarty's "Ifeoma, Ifeoma, I want to marry you, give me your love" and Stella Monye's "Oko mi ye, duro ti mi o", or Tina Onwudiwe's award-winning "Asiko lo laye". there was so much meaning and polish.

This was in the 80s. That generation which sang music under its real names, not abbreviations or slangs, was continuing, after the fashion of T.S. Eliot's description of "Tradition and the Individual Talent", a pattern of meaning that dates back to traditional African musicians and all the musicians that succeeded them: S. B. Bakare, Victor Olaiya, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, Sunny Ade, Ebenezer Obey, Dan Maraya of Jos, Osita Osadebey, Ayinla Omowura, Victor Uwaifo, Geraldo Pino, Rex Lawson, I. K. Dairo, Haruna Ishola, Yusuf Olatunji, Inyang Henshaw, Tunji Oyelana, Bobby Benson, Tunde Nightingale, and even the later ones: Shina Peters, Dele Abiodun, Y.K. Ajao, Ayinde Barrister, Kollington Ayinla, Batile Alake, Sir Warrior, Moroccco Nwa Maduko, Orlando Owoh, Salawa Abeni, KWAM I (Arabambi 1 and please include his disciples- Wasiu Alabi Pasuma et al), Oliver de Coque (Importer and Exporter...), Ayefele, Atorise .... But there has been a terrible crisis in the construction of music.

The children, grandchildren and great grandchildren of these ancestors have changed the face and identity of Nigerian music. As a rule, gospel musicians, given the nature of their form, sing meaningful lyrics, but the airwaves these days have been taken over by the children of "gidi","naija", "nija", "nigerzie" and "9ja". I listen to them too, but everyday, I struggle to make meaning out of their lyrics.

Music is about sense, sound, shape and skills. But there is an on-going deficit in all other aspects except sound. So much sound is being produced in Nigeria, but there is very little sense, shape and skills. They call it hip-hop. They try to imitate Western hip pop stars. They even dress like them. The boys don't wear trousers on their waists: the new thing is called "sagging", somewhere below the waist it looks as if the trouser is about to fall off. The women are struggling to expose strategic flesh as Janet Jackson once did. The boys and the girls are cloaked in outlandish jewellery and their prime heroes are Ja-Rule, Lil'Wayne, Fat Joe, P. Diddy, 50 Cents, Ronz Brown, Chris Brown, Sean Kingston, Nas, Juelz Santana, Akon, Young Jeezy, Mike Jones, T-Pain, F.L.O-RIDA, Will.I.am, Beyonce, Rihanna, Ciara, Keri Hilson, Jay-Z, Ace hood, Rick Ross, Birdman, Busta Rhymes, Cassidy, Chamillionaire, Soulja Boy, Young Joc, Kanye West, R. Kelly, Kevin Rudolph, T.I.P-king of the South, Ludacris, Plies-The real goon, The Game, Young Rox, Flow killa, Osmosis (2 sick), Flow-ssik, Raprince, Bionic, Fabulous, Jadakiss, Nas, Swiss Beatz, Dj Khaled, Maze, Yung Buck, Maino, MoBB Deep, Lloyd Banks, Olivia, Lady Gaga... Well, God Almighty, we are in your hands.

And so the most impactful musicians in Nigeria today, the ones who rule the party include the following: D'Banj, MI, Mode Nine, Sauce kid, Naeto C, Sasha, Ikechukwu, 9ice, Bouqui, Mo'cheddah, Teeto, P-square, Don-jazzy, Wande Coal, 2-face, Faze, Black Face, Dr. Sid, D'prince, K-Switch, Timaya, Dj-Zeez, Dj Neptune, Banky w., Big bamo, Art quake, Bigiano, Durella, Eldee, Kelly Hansome, Lord of Ajasa, M.P., Terry tha rapman, Weird MC, Y.Q., Da grin, kel, Roof-top Mcs, Pype, Niga Raw, Ghetto p., Kaka, Kaha, Terry G, Ill Bliss, Zulezoo, Pipe, Dj Jimmy jatt, X-project, Konga, Gino, Morachi... Well, the Lord is God.

These are Nigerian children who were given proper names by their parents. Ikechukwu bears his real name. But who are these other ones who have since abandoned their proper names? For example, 9ice's real name is Abolore Akande, (what a fine name!), Tu face (Innocent Idibia), Sauce Kid (Babalola Falemi), D'Banj (Dapo Oyebanjo), Banky w. (Bankole Willington), P-Square (Peter and Paul), MI (Jude Abaga), Timaya (Enetimi Alfred Odom), Sasha (Yetunde Alabi), Weird MC (Adesola Idowu). But why such strange names? They don't sing. They rap. Most of them don't play instruments, they use synthetic piano.

At public functions, they mime. They are not artists, they perform. They are not necessarily composers, they dance. The more terrible ones can't even sing a correct musical note. They talk. And they are all businessmen and women. They are more interested in commerce and self-advertisement, name recognition, brand extension and memory recall! They want a name that sells, not some culturally conditioned name that is tied down to culture and geography. But the strange thing is that they are so successful. Nollywood has projected Nigeria, the next big revelations are in hip hop.

Despite the identity crisis and the moral turpitude that we find in Nigeria's contemporary hip-hop, the truth is that it is a brand of music that sells. Nigeria's hip hop is bringing the country so much international recognition. All those strange names are household names across the African continent, so real is this that the phrase "collabo" is now part of the vocabulary of the new art. It speaks to an extension of frontiers. In Nigeria, it is now possible to hold a party without playing a single foreign musical track, the great grand children of Nigerian music are belting out purely danceable sounds which excites the young at heart. But the output belongs majorly to the age of meaningless and prurience. The lyrics says it all.

Rooftop MC sings for example: "Ori mi wu o, e lagi mo". This is a very popular song. But all it says is: "my head is swollen, please hit it with a log of wood." X-Project sings: "Lori le o di gonbe (2x), e so fun sisi ologe ko ya faya gbe, ko ya faya gbe, file, gbabe, se be, bobo o ti e le, wo bo nse fe sa hale hale niwaju omoge, ha, lori le odi gonbe, .....sisi ologe ki lo di saya o, so fun mi ki lofe, o wa on fire o...." Now, what does this mean in real terms? But let's go to Naeto C: "kini big deal, kini big deal, sebi sebi we're on fire", or D'Banj: " my sweet potato, I wanna make you wife, I wanna make you my wife o, see I no understand o, cause I dey see well well, but dey say love is blind, see I never thought I will find someone like you that will capture my heart and there will be nothing I can do....". Yes, we are in the age of sweet potato. And so Art quake sings: "E be like fire dey burn my body, e je ki n fera, oru lo n mu mi. Open your hand like say you wan fly away. Ju pa, ju se, ka jo ma sere, alanta, alanta."

And here is Zulezoo, another popular Nigerian musical team: "Daddy o, daddy, daddy wen you go for journey, somebody enter for mummy's house, person sit down for mummy bed, person push mummy, mummy push person, mummy fall for bed yakata, daddy, o daddy, the man jus dey do kerewa kerewa...kerewa ke" And Dj-Zeez: "ori e o 4 ka sibe, ori e o 4 ka sibe, 4 ka sibe, 4 ka sibe". And MI: "Anoti, anoti, anoti ti, anoti titi." And Konga: "Baby konga so konga, di konga, ileke konga, ju pa pa, ju pa, konga, ju pa pa, ju pa, sibe".. And 9ice: "gongo a so, kutupu a wu, eni a de ee, aji se bi oyo laari; oyo o se bi baba enikan, kan, i be double now, aye n lo, a mi to o, gongo a so, oti so o, e wo le e wo enu oko..." Or Tony Tetuila: "U don hit my car, oyinbo repete, u don hit my car o". Or Weird MC: "Sola lo ni jo, lyrics lori gangan, awa lo ni jo". Sheer drivel. So much sound, little sense. Is this the future? Maybe not.

Most of the music being produced now will not be listenable in another five years and this perhaps is the certain fate of commercial art that is driven by branding, show and cash. But we should be grateful all the same for the music, coming out of Nigeria also at this time in the soul, gospel, hip, hop genre: the music that is of Femi Anikulapo-Kuti, Lagbaja, Asa (there is fire on the mountain/and no one seems to be on the run/ there is fire on the mountain now..."), Ara, Sam Okposo, Dare, Sunny Neji, Infinity (now a broken up team), African China, Alariwo of Afrika.... We suffer nonetheless in music as in the national nomenclature, an identity crisis. A country's character is indexed into its arts and culture, eternal purveyors of tones and modes. Nigerian youths now sing of broken heads, raw sex, uselessness and raw, aspirational emotionalism. A sign of the times? Yes, I guess.

I find further justification in the national anthem, many versions of which now exist. I grew up in this same country knowing only one way of singing the national anthem: from "Nigeria we hail thee" to "Arise o Compatriots". The singing of the national anthem is supposed to be a solemn moment. Arms clasped by the side, a straight posture, and the mind strictly focussed on the ideals of patriotism and nationalism. Stillness. Nobody moves. And the national song is rendered in an unchanging format. But not so any longer. There are so many versions of the Nigerian national anthem these days. Same lyrics but different musical rhythms.

I have heard the national anthem sung in juju, in fuji, in hip hop, in Ishan's igbagbolemini, in acapella mode, even reggae. I attended an ocassion once, the rendition of the national music was so enthralling, people started dancing. Even the photographers and cameramen danced with their cameras. For me that was the ultimate expression of the people's cynicism. The prevalent mood is as expressed by Dj-Zeez: "ori e 4 ka sibe, 4 ka sibe": an epigrammatic, onomatopoeic, market-driven diminution of language as vehicle and sign. What kind of people are we? A dancing nation? Dancing and writing away our frustrations and caring little about sense, in this country that is now known as "naija", "nija", "9ja", "nigerzie," "gidi"?

Banky W's response
My response to Mr Reuben Abati's article in The Guardian Newspapers
This is my response to the article entitled "A Nation's Identity Crisis" that recently ran in The Guardian Newspapers. It was written by Mr Reuben Abati, a well respected name in Nigerian Journalism.

Please try and read the original article before commenting on my response. As Mr Abati has stated his opinion, I felt it neccessary to state mine. If anything I'm sure both pieces are at least food for thought.

Dear Sir,
In the immortal words attributed to P.T. Barnum, "I don't care what the newspapers say about me, at least spell my name right." My name IS Banky W, full name being Olubankole Wellington. Not Willington, as you stated in your article entitled "A Nation's Identity Crisis". I read the piece repeatedly, and found that misspelling my name wasn’t the only error. At it's worst, the article seemed like an attempt to discredit and slander an entire generation of artistes and consumers, and at best it came across as having some valid points but being grossly misinformed, prejudiced, and hypocritical; definitely not what we would expect of a highly regarded publication as The Guardian, or from a person in Mr Abati's position.

In the very least, the article warrants a well-informed response. I have little doubt in my mind that it will generate a slew of responses, positive and negative, and as one of the many subjects that was mentioned in the write-up, I feel compelled to voice my opinion (with all due respect) on some of the issues that were raised in your piece. What I'm going to attempt to do is to directly address issues that stood out and resonated most with me. The writer asked "What's in a name?" and went on to honor a "...generation which sang music under its real names, not abbreviations or slangs"; this would have been a valid point if he had not himself mentioned Greats like King Sunny Ade (real name: Sunday Adeniyi), I.K. Dairo (Isaiah Kehinde Dairo), and Ebenezer Obey (Real name: Ebenezer Remilekun Aremu Olasupo Fabiyi- Wow!!!). We could also point out other legends like Ras Kimono and Majek Fashek as others who, for creative or other reasons, saw it fit to have stage names that happen to differ from what's on their passports.

Shortening of full names and/or the crafting of stage names is not something new from our generation of artistes that "lack the discipline or the patience to write complete sentences" as you said; rather, it's the creative right of an artiste to go by whatever moniker he sees fit. And if we want to talk about the names of today, we can highlight a few: Eldee - actually L.D. which stands for Lanre Dabiri, similar to Isaiah Kehinde Dairo's transition to I.K. Dairo. Naeto C and Banky W are simply short forms of their full names. In my case, my father's nickname among his friends is actually Banky as well. Furthermore, on the topic of Names and abbreviations let's set a few things straight. Nigerzie is actually spelt Nigezie and is not an abbreviation for Nigeria. It's a TV Show, much like Soundcity or Hip TV, except they choose to incorporate "representing Nigeria" in their name. It's like the "United Colors of Bennetton", or DKNY, both companies that choose to represent their locations or origins in their name. Also, for the record, Gidi doesn't mean Nigeria either. It's a term for Lagos... coined from "Las Gidi". And as far as the popular term "Naija" goes, who remembers Shina Peters singing "♫ Naija lo wa yi o o o, wa jo, afro juju lo gb'ode ♫" I hate to point out that our generation did not come up with that term... the "golden age" that you long for did.

As an editorial head of a National Newspaper, you owe it to your public to at least do proper and accurate research before printing an article. The risk in not doing so, is you might unknowingly mislead your readers, and you might actually come across as being ignorant or out of touch. A quick look at all the reference names of artistes and songs mentioned in the article goes to show that the author was sadly way off base in his accusations and examples. For instance, to make a point on how today’s Nigerian artistes lyrics are meaningless and prurient, he referenced the Rooftop MC's song "La Gi Mo". What he failed to realize or crosscheck, is that the said song is probably one of the most meaningful and important songs that have been released in the last few years on the Nigerian Music Scene.

The Rooftop MC's are actually a Rap Group that leans to the Gospel or at least Socially Conscious side of music, and their songs always have a positive message. That song itself talks about the errors we make by trying to take God's glory for our success... getting caught up in the limelight and asking God to bring you back to reality to know that HE deserves the praise for where you are. The author mentioned other songs like D'banj's "Fall in Love", and doesn't realize how hypocritical he sounds by attempting to ridicule some of our most popular love songs. Felix Liberty sang "Ifeoma, ifeoma, I want to marry you", D'banj sang "Omo U don make me fall in love" and Banky W sang "Till my dying day, I'll love you". Barring a difference in musical styling, are these songs not cut from the same cloth?

Why can't someone in Mr Abati's position be proud of the fact that at Nigerian and African Weddings nowadays, couples are choosing these songs to mark their first dances instead of previous choices like “Endless Love”? Why can't we appreciate that the days of going to Nigerian Parties and clubs and celebrating to foreign music “all night long” are long gone? Despite these facts, you still see International festivals and concerts being held in Nigeria where the foreign acts are paid 30 to 40 times what some of our biggest stars are allowed to charge. I have to disagree with the author's views.

We are not all one and the same, but we ARE artistes. We may sing, rap, dance, mime, perform, play instruments or whatever else; but we are artistes. And Composers. And musicians.
We may not all play the piano or the guitar, but neither does Michael Jackson, arguably the world's greatest artiste/entertainer. That's why he teamed up with producer Quincy Jones to create some of the best music anyone had ever heard.

We have our own producers that have shaped Nigerian sound...people like Cobhams Asuquo, Don Jazzy, I.D. Cabasa, Dr Frabz, Tee-Y mix, Eldee, Terry G etc. That list goes on. These music minds are no less credible than those of Mr Abati's time, like the great Laolu Akins. Far be it from us to claim that we are perfect and flawless in our art... we know that we are still growing and have lots of areas to improve, but the truth of the matter is we have worked very hard to create the industry we have now, and some people choose to criticize and lambaste most of us, instead of helping and teaching us.

That is unfair. Yes, some artistes sag their jeans... however, a glance at the pages of THISDAY style or the recently concluded awards shows will show you very clearly that others wear three-piece suits and traditional attires just as proudly, myself included. This music industry that you have very clearly disapproved of has partnered with and given rise to the fashion industry in Nigeria as well. Just ask Designers like Mai, Babs Familusi (Exclamations Couture), the Okunorens, Muyiwa Osindero and countless others. Everything from the t-shirts and jeans rappers wear, to the shoes and suits are made by young Nigerians, where in previous years people preferred to shop in London.

The youth-driven industries in Entertainment and Fashion have teamed up to thrust Nigeria into the world's positive spotlight, when for many years our dear country was mostly known for corruption, lack of infrastructure, and security issues. Our country has not yet given us steady electricity, adequate education, safety from armed robbers or standard healthcare, yet artistes have risen like the Roses that grow from Concrete... and these very artistes love and represent their country proudly on a global stage.

This music industry has given hope, jobs and income to countless youth of today. We are Rappers, Singers, Producers, Sound Engineers, Managers, Promoters, Marketing Consultants, Record Label Owners and we will not apologize for making the best of our circumstances; and all this in spite of the fact that we have Marketers that exploit but refuse to pay for our Musical pieces, Royalties and Publishing income that hitherto has been non-existent, a Government that is just now very slowly starting to enforce anti-piracy laws, and Event Organizers that would rather pay 50 Cent One Million US Dollars than give D'banj or P-Square 5 Million Naira.

You were right on some counts. We ARE businessmen and women, and we ARE interested in extending name recognition and brand extension. You were also right in that we look up to people like Jay-Z, who took their music and created multimillion-dollar empires. Since when did ambition and desire to succeed against all odds count against a person’s moral character? Shouldn’t we be encouraged to pay more attention to the business side of “Show Business”?

Shouldn’t we want this music industry to provide for our future and the futures of our children? We know we have a moral responsibility when it comes to our Creative works. Some of us pay more attention to it than others, and there is lots of ground to cover up. But how about a little appreciation and help, instead of trying to tear us down and discredit us? Time will tell whose music will last and become evergreen, but it is not in anyone's place to judge; and for the record, can we just accept that fact that hip hop music is an artform that is probably here to stay... I mean for goodness sake the Grammy's has!! Instead of fighting the change, we should learn to embrace it. I thank God for people like the great Adewale Ayuba that have reached across to our generation to collaborate with, bridge the gap, and help us improve.

We want to learn but your generation has to teach. We want to read but the Government must provide libraries. We want to go to school but the lecturers keep going on strike. We want to travel but previous generations messed up so they won’t give out visas. Most of prefer having our own live bands but the income needed to support that is not forthcoming.

You speak of meaninglessness and prurience, identity crisis and moral turpitude. You praise Legends like Fela Anikulakpo-Kuti and you ridicule us. 9ice does not drink or smoke. eLDee is married to one wife. Olu Maintain does not drink. Naeto C is currently obtaining his Masters’ degree in England. The ironic thing is, we look up to and praise your generation too.

You seem to forget that Baba Fela had 27 wives, smoked marijuana in public, was himself half naked at shows (as well as the women around him) and allegedly died of HIV. However we look past what some may consider shortcomings and respect and emulate the immense contributions he made to our history. We are in awe of him despite personal choices that some may or may not agree with. All we are asking for is to be appreciated and afforded similar tolerances.

You danced to Shina Peters. Let us dance to our music. And for the record: for every "Anoti" by MI, he has a "Crowd Mentality" or a "Talk about it". For a Naeto C's "Ki Ni Big Deal", he has a "The Devil is a Liar". Just because an artiste uses a particular song to promote his album for commercial reasons, doesn't mean they should be judged on that alone. Anyone that is familiar with the cost of promoting an album (videos, press, etc) would know that it you end up making hard decisions in terms of what you have to push and promote, for your best chance at success.

I suggest that you buy whole albums and look at the body of work. Listen to the entire CD’s. I think you'll find that more often than not, Nigerian artistes are doing a pretty good job of representing this great Country of Nigeria. Naija Till We Die. Yes Boss.
Sincerely,
~ Banky W.

Actually I'll play saint in this case - I mean both of them have managed to highlight valid points! What do you think?

Nigeria music superstar, D’Banj is here with something new, Popularly known as the ‘Koko Master’, D’Banj in a collabo with HiTV is presenting ‘Koko Mansion’, a TV Reality Show

It comprises 12 girls who will reside in a state-of –the-art mansion in Lagos City, while living lavishly as any Kokolette should. During these weeks, the young women will be groomed and tested in various Diva tasks and activities in order to determine the one with the greatest Koko Virtues.
Don’t get it twisted! A Kokolette is a “Fully endowed woman with intellectual property” likened to the “Betty Irabor’s” and “Nike Oshinowo’s” of today.

The show will exclusively portray the true lifestyle of the principal Character – D’Banj as a celebrity with a lot of razzmatazz.

The Kokolette who emerges as the winner will win:
• A Chris Aires Diamond ring,
• A brand new convertible car and N5million
• Most importantly, the winner will be D’Banjs Kokolette for one full year and will be his companion at public events both within and outside Nigeria.

Read more on this Facebook Group

Mode 9 happens to be top of charts when it comes to Hip hop acts here in Nigeria. As a fan of Super lyricism its obvious Mode is got what it takes to be on top. His 1st and Sophomore Album can easily be called classics in this clime. Will the Paradigm shift be remembered as one? Well we wait and see.

1.The Intro -
is aggressive and steps up my adrenalin even more. A ferocious yet comedic warning to his adversaries of the battle that lies ahead and an assertion that he’s gonna win. This intro kinda reminds me of “Stillmatic” the intro on Nas’s classic album “Stillmatic”. Made we wonder is this some kinda response album? The lyrics and rhymes were tight except for “Hey pal you not a dot on ma radar now feel the pain like a skinny chic in labour” not feeling that! However, he quickly redeems himself in another line “You better pick new recruits, cos im ahead of my time like silver suits, laser gun flow kill your troops, underground status still yielding fruits. Classic Intro got my mouth watering already.

2.Big Boi –
The track is a fusion of hip hop and jazz and attempts to get you in matured mood as Mode takes you on a victorious lap as Naija once again rules hip hop again in the hiphop map with Mode the anchor man. The production is flawless and the delivery expected of Mode. The jazzy feel is gotta be pioneering in Naija! I like the way they let the beat exit giving us a chance to appreciate its creativity.

3.Talking to you –
This hit me like ballistic missile!!!! The delivery is spot on and the beat off the hook! Mode rips this track apart and takes full control of the beat!! It’s hip hop at its best and reassures us that hip hop can co exist with RnB without sounding like a love song. The lyrics tight, flawless and once again makes Mode untouchable. “You got intellect myopia so when a –dis- a-ba ba its not Ethiopia”! Thats the shiz. Special mention to Banky W for his impressive rendition. The kids got game!

4.Spartans –
Well we all know Mode 9 is a super lyricist. However I wasn’t sure how he could last on a battle field. Well I got my answer. A brave and ferocious fighter mirrored by the medieval Spartans in the movie 300. Mode takes his gloves off and tells his enemy “I’m a fighter not a lover”. The chorus is also weaved perfectly with Mode responding to the “Spartan Question”. This is looking like a classic album already.

5.Your girl –
I was wondering if my mp3 player had skipped to the R n B section of my playlist ,as is frequent with some of this gadgets, when this track filtered in!! “your girl”?? On further listening I reckoned this was mode showing he can be a casanova as well as a super lyricist. I’m not sure if this track blends in but I could accept it if he is trying to show his adversaries that he can take on their girls as well as their mics. After all 2pac also showed us that you gotta be able to fuck your friends’ wife. The delivery is smooth and the beat reminiscent of the Tribe called quest at their best!!

6.Kick You –
“One line of mine messes with your whole album” that line once again gave me the chills. Once again the flow is tight as mode effortlessly moves form hip-hop to raga. The only down side to this is the beat. Could have been better.

7.Follow your heart –
This seems like a self tale about a super lyricist who’s not getting the paper he deserves. The message is clear and easy to understand however the chorus does no justice as it sounds like a grave yard plea to by a friend to his dead comrade to come back alive. Mode, you gotta realize if you’re gonna get your paper in hip hop then tracks like this is gotta have intensity in its beat and impact in its delivery. It doesn’t fit in for a rapper who is raging war on his opponents to come and start talking about not getting his paper. More like advocating diplomacy in the battle front of a war. You gonna get blown out Mode. I kinda like the rhyme “cashless with no dough like a broke baker” typical Mode.

8.Hip Hop -
This is sound like a good message being delivered by the wrong messenger. The track is dull and smacks off a jealous artist enviously of his less talented but more successful contemporaries. Mode’s gotta realize in hip hop we will always have legends like Rakim & KRS 1 and millionaires like Lil Wayne and TI. “That’s the irony of hip hope dawg get used to it”.

9.Imperial –
In this track Mode reasserts himself as an artist who has come to stay and be known. He is king and will rule as long as he wants. Another gallant rendition. Super delivery!!

10.Fiyah Burn –
Kinda like the only commercial material thus far!! A classic fusion of dance hall and hip hop. Mode is not the lead role here but he however compliments the raga with a majestic flow that makes me wanna climax. Phat track.

11.My Skin is Black –
Another impressive delivery. This politically inclined track engages the word “black” metaphorically as it depicts various meanings that can be attributed to that word. Mode 9 at his best.

12.Bush Girl Tush Girl –
Hardcore amidst comedy. Now working for me man! This track just found its way to my sewar. A complete mismatch. Half way now on my review and this is struggling to be a classic album.

13.Forbidden Love –
Sound like a typical P Square track name. Sounds like Cannibus trying to be LL Cool J. How can? Good story but the beat is amateurish.

14.A Hero Comes Home -
Another brilliant use of word play as Mode stylishly brands himself as a hero “Optimum 9” who has come to save hip hop from a scene already dominated by whack MC’s with DJ Whack Mix as the bad character. A “superman” like delivery in its rendition and “Transformer” of some sort in its battle ways. Only down side is the beat, doesn’t do justice to a creative song.

15.Nine –
Another battle rap but with the same flawless delivery. Mode is gotta be feared now as he’s got his adversaries on the ropes. An underground type flow that’s probably got no place in a commercially stifled audience of hip hop listeners. If this track was made like some 10 years ago it’ll go down as masterpiece.

16.Crazy –
Not sure what he was trying to achieve on this track but I must admit I admire his bravery and courage to take on a raga rendition. An average track but as mentioned strictly belongs to the underground.

17.Mathematical Sege –
If this album has got any chance of being a classic then this track just blew it. I guess Modes thirst and desire to always want to use metaphors in his expressions or message must have guided his thoughts for this track. This time its just a joke. Would Nas rap about Kareem Abdul Jaber? Or Jay Z rap about OJ Simpson as a sporting Enigma? I think not as they will rather rap about Marley Marl and African Baambaata. This is way below average. The producer is gotta take a smack for this track

18.Green Passport –
This track bring to the purview what we face every day as Nigerians travelling outside our shores. I just wonder why it’s gotta take Mode and Sound Sultan to tell us? Songs like this will be better done by Ras Kimono or Majek Fashek. Not one for Hip hop.

19.The Game Needs me –
The Game just started Mode and no one is leaving yet. Feels like the sun setting in the Morning. I don’t get it. Tries to sound like Jay Z on this one but not near the Legend.

20.Still Love you –
Mode once again states his disdain for those who loathe his kinda rap. He lyrically takes them to the cleaners. The only flaw on this is that the message clould have been told in “Nine” or “Spartans”. The beat is equally weak and uninventive.

21.Outside –
An insight into how an hip hop enigma called Mode 9 evolved. Kinda like a tribute to his success as a super lyricist overcoming pain and challenges in a society who just won’t embrace talent and creativity. The beat equally gave him the latitude to come clean and allowed his voice dominate the airwaves.

22.Death Blow –
If there is one battle rap I rank high up then it’s gotta be this one. This got me punching my fist in the air. Mode simply took Rugged to the cleaners here tearing him up like a piece of foil paper. Rugged Man is gotta sit back and wonder how he is gonna come up with another “eh he”! Even though it’s not in the class of “Ether” it’s definitely better than what Cannibus can ever spit. Mode rapped non- stop for over 4 minutes. “Your track with 9ice was nice cos 9ice was on it” To much spitting for Rugged. He surely knocked him to coma on this one.

Final thoughts
On getting this album I expected a classic delivery of hip hop Naija way. The Intro made me yearn and got my adrenalin pumping. At the end I must say I was a bit disappointed as I expected more. Obvious flaws were as follows;

1.The sequence of the tracks was not optimally selected. Too many dry songs in between the good ones. As the name of the album depicts a "Paradigm" Shift has gotta have a systematic arrangement of tight tracks and not tight and not so tight.

2.The Album was just too long. I would have done away with about 8 tracks here which will even still put the track listing at 14.

3.He has gotta be creative in selecting his beats that’s what distinguished 2pac from the others. Seemed too monotonous at a point.

4.I thought mode should exploit his word play to his full ability as he has got it in him. Battle rapping sometimes makes you sound like Hitler. I expected a bit more storytelling and adventure in his delivery. Like tongue twisting or voice engagement. That’s the level you should be attaining in your 3rd album.

5.A classic is gotta be a list of flawless tracks etched in the memory of the listener forever and one to stand the test of time. This for hip hop is indeed hard to achieve. This album could have been if it aint for the trashy on it.

Album High Points
Intro, Bigboi, Talking to you, Spartans, Imperial, Fiyah Burn, My skin is black, Nine, Outside, Deathblow
In my humble opinion, I rate this "3 MICS" out of a possible "5".