Coming To America 2 & The Rebirth of Legends: Could Nigerians Do More To Support Their Older Artistes?
Recently, Paul Play Dairo made an interesting observation about how older American musicians are revered compared to the disposable manner in which Nigerians treat their icons.
His quote:
While watching COMING TO AMERICA 2, which to some people is a weak movie., I realised something. African Americans always cherish and honour those who have done it. They see these legendary actors and musicians as their heroes and pioneers who over the way for them. I was in school when SALT N PEPA were doing it; GLADYS NIGHT? That was my primary school days. JAMES EARL JONES, knew him since I was a child. These guys and others I must have omitted to avoid long story are on my TV Screen.
If there’s anything that would make he hate this movie, It’s gone now. ARSENIO HALL reminds me of the good old days of his rib breaking comedy. I’m happy this historic movie was birthed in my lifetime.
Nigerian creative industry has continued to rubbish pedigree and the people that dared to start. Way back in Winnis Hotel when Nollywood started, People called them jokers. They went through decades of struggle, and today I feel very entertained watching KING OF BOYS, SHUGA RUSH, LIVING IN BONDAGE, and I feel proud to be a Nigerian. Nollywood still recognizes and respects their pioneers.
I can remember more than two decades ago; you only get to listen to 2 Nigerian songs out of 50 in the club. I remember some of the naysayers in NITESHIT NIGHTCLUB in Ikeja telling us we will never develop a new sound aside from Fuji, Juju and highlife.
But we are here today Nigerian artistes are loved all over the world.
My message to an upcoming artist is to study the history and recognise those that went through the rough times to lay a foundation for the millions of fans they control today.
Some people may say rubbish to make my point look like a personal grudge.
I am fine, cause luckily, I’m one of the few who are still loved. But I wouldn’t be selfish and refuse to admit the neglect and disrespect meted out to some of my colleagues. Some of these embarrassing stories will be told someday.
Some event companies, Radio stations and some corporate organizations also contributed to this poor management of talents. Let’s learn from COMING TO AMERICA 2 and do the right thing. At least most the fans of these people you write off as old school are still ALIVE!!
Thanks!
There are many layers to this argument, each requiring careful consideration.
Firstly, it’s worth considering the audience and access. For years, American music fans only consumed American music. Today, while fringe fads such as Afrobeats and Latin sounds have now become a mainstay on American playlists, the billboards’ core remains chiefly American.
When we had a similarly singular focus, our artistes were revered too. Names like King Sunny Ade, Ebenezer Obey, Oliver de Coque, and Paul’s own father – I. K. Dairo – were massive, had star power and drew large audiences.
Somewhere in the mid to late 70s and 80s, America and the Caribbean’s sounds crossed over, which led to a wilderness for
our musicians for decades. Any artiste hoping to make it had to either has dreads like Bob Marley or Jheri curls like Michael Jackson. We consumed more Commodores and Earth, Wind & Fire than we did Orits Wiliki or Onyeka Onwenu. Red “Thriller” style jackets just seemed cooler than Ankara dresses. Today, it is probable that Chaka Khan would sell out a concert in Nigeria faster than Mike Okri would. It’s not treachery; it’s simply a case of what people grew up listening to, what they consider to be the soundtracks of their youth and their lives.
The only indigenous genre that seemed to thrive despite the international onslaught was music sung in native languages – which is why King Sunny Ade and Sir Shina Peters started – and remain – legends today, even selling out concerts in the East. Traditional music is incomparable and irreplaceable. The unrelenting beat calls to your ancestors, and it is your soul that responds, not your understanding of the language.
A second factor is management and marketing. American music agents understand that the young people who are used to “push it” to Salt N’ Pepa are, today, the middle-aged people who have the buying power to spare $65 to go to a concert and relive their youth. The agents continue to pound on doors and get gigs for their clients. A residency in Vegas. Cross-table collaborations with other older artistes to leverage off similar fanbases. Reality shows and talking head
opportunities. Americans don’t remember their artistes because of some Stars n’ Stripes loyalty. They remember them because the artistes stay top of mind. Dionne Warwick has an active Twitter page. Salt n’ Pepa just released a Lifetime biopic of their journey to stardom. Ms Patti Labelle is now a celebrity chef with a range of pies and other foods.
Eddie Murphy did not produce a film as a montage to his favourite artists. Eddie created a film about a particular age, time and music, and the relevant artistes got on board. What’s more likely to have happened is that word got around Tinseltown that the movie was about to go into production and the respective agents got in touch, positioning their clients, negotiating scenes and wages.
Yes, many American artistes have fallen by the wayside. If those in the movie did not stay top of mind, they would be assigned to the history books too, with their unfortunate passing being the only event bringing back fond memories and YouTube replays. To be honest – when last did you think about Blackky? When last did you see Blackky?
Finally, we come to our modern-day interaction with music. Technology undeniably affects our attention span, and nowhere is this more prevalent than in music. Where listeners used to listen ardently to every song on an LP or cassette, rewinding, re-listening and committing words to memory, today, the world is literally our musical oyster. From grime to Xhosa to rap and back to Afrobeats, we hope from one fad to the next, one killer song to the next. Artistes have to work harder and harder to stay fresh, churning out singles over albums, searching out collaborations and dabbling in film, reality TV and other media to stay current. Today’s Thunder Fire You soon becomes yesterday’s Shakiti Bobo. Reverence is becoming ever more elusive, and artists have to intentionally push themselves to the forefront of the public’s consciousness; otherwise, they are relegated to the white noise that is Instagram models and cat pictures.
There will come a day where we will talk about wealthy Africans seeing creative work as investment vehicles with the same potential for returns as anything else in the markets. We will even talk about Nigerian artists trying to cross over with international collaborations at the first sign of fame and then wonder why their home-grown fans don’t come out to their concerts.
But today is not that day.
Today, the lesson must be: the buying public have limited funds and an attention span as skittish as a cat on a hot tin roof. But give them a reason to remember you, and they will.
Lastly, stay up to date with all you need to know about African music at SOA, right here.
Coming To America 2 & The Rebirth of Legends: Could Nigerians Do More To Support Their Older Artistes?
