Lekinson, Yoruba Movie Actor Dies of Heart Related Illness

Popular Yoruba movie actor Lekan Oladiipo popularly known as Georgio Lekinson Amani has died . He reportedly died of heart-related illness 3 days ago. Another great loss to the yoruba movie industry. Lekinson won the hearts of many movie lovers, especially in the Yoruba movie circle in the early and mid 90's where he acted as an aggrandizer and unrelenting egoist coupled with the manner he calls names of existing and non-existing cities of the world. God rest his soul.

WEEKEND TRAGEDY ALONG OSUN/ONDO BOARDER

Two persons were feared dead in a crash which occured yesterday 28th Jan.2012 along OwenaIjesa/Akure Express road.Eye witness account indicates that the two motor cyclists that were involved in the initial minor crash were about to be rescued before a tanker fully loaded with petrol ran over them, living the two cyclists shattered
Youths of the town immediately went on rampage setting up bonfire along the expressway.As at yesterday,security presence is heavy.But no one knows if the tanker driver was eventually arrested or not.May the souls of the cyclists rest eternally.

THE LEGEND LIVES ON...............

I.K. Dairo was born in the town of Offa, located in present day Kwara State; his family was originally from Ijebu-Ijesa before migrating to Offa. He attended a Christian Missionary primary school in Offa, however, he later quit his studies due to a lean year in his family's finances. He left Offa and traveled to Ijebu-Ijesa where he chose to work as a barber. On his journey, he took along with him a drum built by his father when he was seven years old. By the time he was residing in Ijebu Ijesa, he was already an avid fan of drumming. When he was unoccupied with work, he spent time listening to the early pioneers of Juju music in the area and experimented with drumming. His interest in Juju music increased over time, and in 1942, he joined a band led by Taiwo Igese but within a few short years, the band broke up.
IK Dairo later moved to Ibadan, where Daniel Ojoge, a pioneer Juju musician usually played. He got a break to join a band with Daniel Ojoge and played for a brief period of time before returning to Ijebu-Ijesa, most the of the gigs he plays with Ojoge's band were at nights.

I.K. Dairo's musical career entered the fast lane when he founded a ten piece band called the Morning Star Orchestra in 1957. In 1960, during the celebration of Nigeria's independence, the band was called on to play at a party hosted by a popular Ibadan based magistrate. With a lot of prominent Yoruba patrons at the venue, I.K. Dairo showcased his style of Juju music and earned attention and admiration from other Yoruba patrons present, many of whom later invited him to gigs during cultural celebrations or just lavish parties. In the early 1960s, he changed the band's name to Blue Spots and he also won a competition televised in Western Nigeria to showcase the various talents in Juju music. During the period, he was able to form his own record label in collaboration with Haruna Ishola and achieved critical and popular acclaim and fame.

I.K Dairo emergence at the end of the 1950s coincided with the rising euphoria towards independence. He was seen then as a premier musician who could capture the exciting moment preceding the nation's independence and briefly after independence. The musical taste during the period had graduated from appreciation of solemn music to much more intensified sounds. The period was also one of lavish parties with musicians as a side attraction.

I.K. Dairo musical success in the 1960s, was influenced by different factors including the power and voice ability a resort to include traditional sounds, the political life of the 1950s, which inspired him and a focus on Rhythm, beats and tempo that reflected different ethnic sounds and in the process leading to his appeal rising beyond his primary ethnic group. His band experimented and played with musical styles originating from different Yoruba areas and also utilized the Edo, Urhobo, Itsekiri and Hausa language in some of their lyrics. The band's well organized and slick arrangement, Yoruba and Latin America influenced dance rhythm and patronizing lyrics on the entrepreneur pursuits of patrons were factors that contributed in his rise to the height of the Juju and musical arena in the country. He also employed musical syncretism, mixing the Ijebu-Ijesa choral multi-part sound with melodies and text from Christian sources.

In 1962, he released the song 'Salome' under Decca records. The song mixed traditional elements in Yoruba culture and urban life as major themes. The song was a major hit of his. Another song of his which was quite popular was Ka Sora (Let Us Be Careful), the song is sometimes described as predictive of the Nigerian civil war in its warning about the pitfalls of unreasoned governance. He also released other popular hits including one about Chief Awolowo, who was incarcerated at the time the song was released.


The band made use of an amplified accordion, which was played by I.k. himself, and he was the first high profile musician to play the accordion. Other musical instruments used by the group includes, electric guitar, talking drum, double toy, akuba, ogido, clips, maracas, agogo(bell), samba([a square shaped drum]).


Dairo's stay at the top in the Nigerian music scene was short lived, by 1964, a new musician in the person of Ebenezer Obey was gaining ground and by the end of the 1960s, both Obey and King Sunny Ade had emerged as the popular acts of the period. However, Dairo continued with his music, touring Europe and North America in the 1970s and 1980s. He was also involved in a few interest groups dealing with the property rights of musicians. Between 1994-1995, he was a member of the Ethnomusicology department at the University of Washington, Seattle.He died Around April,1996.

EBENOBEY

This is my hero of all times.Evangelist Ebenezer Remilekun Aremu Olasupo OBEY-Fabiyi.God bless him real good.

ELECTION AFTERMATH CLAIMS CORPERS' IN BAUCHI

They were among the youth corpers killed in Bauchi State during the post-election violence on Sunday night.
This makes one so sad. I can't believe they would do this to innocent people....why?
Ukeoma Aik(Pic below), rest in peace.
Obinna Okpokiri(pic Top) like Ukeoma was dragged out of his corpers lodge, beaten, butchered and set on fire on Sunday April 17th by those CPC fanatics in Bauchi State.
Can you wish this kind of death on your worst enemy? Can you even begin to imagine the terror these corpers would have faced minutes before their brutal murders?
To think Obinna left London to do his NYSC in Nigeria.

These young men can't die in vain. Their killers must be brought to book. Knowing the way our government operate in matters like this, their deaths
will probably be swept under the carpet...just like others in the past...so how do we ensure that this doesn't happen this time?

This is not enough but there is a petition for the immediate withdrawal of Youth Corps members from trouble-prone states.


What else can we do as youths of this country?
Is it a crime to go to school in Nigeria?Is it a mistake to honour the compulsory national youth service?What consolation is for the victims' parents?Like Late Lucky Dube sang,'we are the victims everytime' and it could be anybody anytime.

$200M GRANT FOR NIGERIAN ENTERTAINMENT:DIFFERENT STROKES FOR DIFFERENT FOLKS.

Last November, President Goodluck Jonathan was reported to have released a $200m (N30bn) stimulus to help the Nigerian entertainment industry. While most practitioners in the industry commend the president for this gesture, others are worried about how to access the fund, while some others have set agenda for how the fund should be spent, reports SAMUEL AWOYINFA

To discerning observers, the Nigerian entertainment industry has not been experiencing the best of times. The major problem being that of piracy, which has continued to rubbish whatever gains that should accrue to original owners of creative works.

President Goodluck Jonathan perhaps saw this and offered to support the industry with a stimulus package. To achieve this, last November, Mr. President promised the stakeholders a $200m stimulus at the 30th anniversary of the Silverbird Group in Lagos. The fund, report has it, would be accessed through the Bank of Industry, supported by the Nigerian Export-Import Bank.

However, there is still a cloud of controversy hanging over the money. Stakeholders in the entertainment industry have different ideas on how the money should be spent, while others are still at a loss as to how they could access the fund.

For the immediate past President of the Association of Nigerian Theatre Practitioners, Prince Jide Kosoko, the President’s gesture is a good one, but he maintains that there is the need for splinter groups in the acting world to come together under one umbrella body.

While he says that he is still studying the situation because he did not attend the last stakeholders’ meeting held with President Jonathan, as he was away to attend the burial of Alasari, a member of the Association of Nigeria Theatre Practitioners, he advocates the formation of the Motion Pictures Council, which has been on the card for some time now.

“I served as a member of the committee which worked on the need to have the Motion Pictures Council, which will be the umbrella body for all practitioners in the film industry. But it is unfortunate that this has not come to reality. We made our recommendations to the National Assembly, but up till now, nothing has been done,” he tells our correspondent.

Kosoko, who spoke with our correspondent on the telephone, further argues that even if the government should inject N500bn into the industry, and the distribution network is not strengthened and improved upon, the artistes would find it difficult to get adequate returns on their investment.

“I believe the money should be channelled into improving the distribution network to ensure effective distribution of our works. Currently, there is a limit to which our marketers can go. If I produce a work and there is a good distributing network for it, I will recoup the money invested on the job. At least, we are a country of about 150 million people; if a movie could sell one million copies for a start, such a producer will make money,” he states.

Besides, he says, the incidence of piracy is a global phenomenon, and he called on government to reduce it to the barest minimum so that the lifeline the government is putting into the entertainment industry would not go down the drain.

On his own part, the President of the Actors Guild of Nigeria, Mr. Segun Arinze, says he has heard about the $200m lifeline but that he is waiting for the money to come. “Until the money manifests, that is when we can start talking about it. But now, it has not yet manifested,” he states.

Ace cinematographer and film producer of such works as Saworo Ide and Arugba, among others, Mr. Tunde Kelani, says he’s aware that the money is with the Bank of Industry, and stresses that accessing the money would depend on some modalities and bureaucracy attached to such funds, while he believes that such bureaucracy could discourage those who should benefit from it.

Kelani agrees with Kosoko that the seed money should be channelled towards infrastructural development so as to lift the industry out of the woods and make it more vibrant. He posits, “For me, I believe such money should be used to build cinema houses across the country. If we shoot a multi-million naira movie and there is nowhere to show it, it is useless.

“I don’t think the money is easily accessible, because nobody really knows what is going on. For now, it’s more like the more you look, the less you see.”

Commenting on the stimulus, a rap artiste, Sola Idowu popularly known as Weird MC notes, “I think for once that we should be positive. I think it’s a good thing for the industry. It’s a blessing. I just hope the money gets into the right hands, especially the up and coming acts.”

The former president of the Association of Core Nollywood Producers, Mr. Alex Eyengho, while reacting to the stimulus, was quoted to have said that, “It’s no doubt a boost to the entire Nigerian entertainment industry. However, as members of the Association of Core Nollywood Producers, we hope this is not a mere policy or political statement.

“In terms of utilisation, the Nigerian entertainment industry must first be properly defined. Nollywood’s share of the gesture should be deposited in an escrow yielding account until an umbrella body of practitioners is put in place. The fund should not be handed over to any individual or group of self-serving individuals in whatever guise, masquerading as representatives of the entire Nollywood practitioners.”

However, to access the fund, according to official sources, there are some basic requirements that should be met. First, a ‘bankable proposal’ must be prepared, which will show how the money would be spent; and what would be the return on investment.

The promoters of the fund says that the Lagos Business School has been contacted to help those who want to access it prepare or train them in proposal writing, among others.

Apart from the incidence of piracy, the Nigerian entertainment industry, precisely the movie and music scenes in Nigeria, has been bedevilled by lack of infrastructure and leadership tussle.

The Performing Musicians Association of Nigeria, Actors Guild of Nigeria and the Association of Nigeria Theatre Practitioners have, at one time or the other, suffered leadership tussle. Currently, the movie marketers do not have the logistics that could ensure that movies released get to the nooks and crannies of the country at the shortest possible time. The same obtains for their colleagues who handle musicians’ works.

Again, cinema-going culture needs to be rekindled among Nigerians, through massive infrastructural development in building modern cinema houses in each local government across the country, among others.

FOREMOST THESPIAN,ASHLEY NWOSU PASSES ON.

Nollywood lost yet another talent, Ashley Nwosu. The well-loved actor cut his acting teeth in the Nigerian Television Authority tele-movies and soap operas, before having his real break in the phenomenally successful Day of Reckoning in the early 90s. Nwosu died without actualising My Third Eye, an NGO, he hoped would help government monitor how governance was imparting on the citizens at the grassroots.

After battling with a chronic liver disease which left amiable actor, Ashley Nwosu hospitalised at the Military Hospital, Yaba, Lagos, for close to one month, the Umuahia, Abia State born actor is dead! He passed on the morning of April 21 after slipping into a coma that lasted roughly two days. The unfortunate incident has inadvertently thrown Nollywood into a mood of mourning, confirming the depth of relationship he shared with his colleagues while he lasted. Palpable anxiety over Ashley Nwosu’s life became noticeable in Nollywood on Tuesday, when some artistes who visited him at the Military Hospital, confirmed that he had slipped into a coma, assuming a darker skin tone. “He was in a bad shape on Tuesday. He was dark and unconscious, with his mouth hanging open. Nose catheters were all over him. In fact, he was in coma, but the doctors were optimistic that he would make it, but the situation got worse on Thursday morning.

On Wednesday actually, series of text messages were being passed around, asking colleagues in the industry to say a word of prayer for the actor, but it is unfortunate that he could not make it”, said an industry source. Already, the whole of Nollywood has been paying tribute to Ashley Nwosu for leaving indelible marks in the industry.

National President of the Actors’ Guild of Nigeria, AGN, Segun Arinze told us that his death was a great loss to Nollywood in particular and the nation in general. “We have lost yet another fantastic actor. We are going to miss him definitely, because he represented a bundle of talent. It is a rather unfortunate incident. Aside Nollywood, the entire nation will also miss him”, Arinze said. Bond Emereuwa, the National President of the Directors’ Guild of Nigeria, DGN, in his tribute called Ashley one of the most amenable personalities in Nollywood.

“Working with him was a delight. I tell you Ashley Nwosu was one of the people you will work with and pray that the opportunity to work with him again presents itself. He was one of the amenable personalities in this industry. Many film directors who worked with him will also tell you that. Ashley would work with you without giving you any problems at all. He was a professional to the core”. Paul Obazele, the National President of the Association of Movie Producers, AMP, said he was commiserating with the entire industry and Ashley Nwosu’s family over the irreparable loss.

According to him, Ashley conducted himself in a manner that attracted so much respect for him, which made him one of the actors most producers loved to work with. “We will definitely miss him. I am in fact short of words to describe him. He was respected among his colleagues, because of the way he conducted himself”, he said. T

he duo of Aki and PawPaw, Chinedu Ikedieze and Osita Iheme, who starred alongside Ashley in countless Nollywood home videos, said the news came to them as a huge surprise. According to Osita Iheme, (Paw Paw), he got the news shortly after it happened and was left speechless. “I was shocked and speechless when I got the news this morning. I just could not come to terms with the fact the he was no more. In fact, as I am talking to you now, I am on set with Chinedu at Enugu and the whole artistes here are mourning, everyone is missing Ashley already. He was a nice man.

My experience with him on many sets where he played my dad was memorable. He was the kind of person who would not give you hassles. He did his job like a professional and was always punctual on set. I cannot recollect any incident where he had to hold other artistes up. I am in deeply pained”. Ashley Nwosu starred in many movies including Glamour Girls (1), Power of Love, Prisoner of Love, Expensive Game, and Passion and Pain amongst others. Besides acting, Nwosu had a hidden passion for music as he revealed before his demise, “Yes I have a very big passion for music. I would say acting was a second talent because when I was 10 years old, I used to entertain people in my community through music”.

Another top actor, Emeka Enyiocha, who was also shocked, regretted Nwosu’s sudden exit. He called on stakeholders and relevant government agencies to immortalize the late Nwosu, whom he described as a “big brother and uncle.”

Also mourning, Mr. Paul Obazele, the national president, Association of Movie Producers (AMP), who worked and collaborated with the deceased thespian on many laudable projects, stated that he was devastated by the news. He said the late Nwosu was a dedicated and committed entertainer, whose good works in the industry would surely outlive him.

Donald Okoli, another highly-rated producer in Nollywood, who worked closely with the late thespian, when he produced and later premiered his debut movie, “Shield of Faith,” at the Silverbird Cinemas, Lagos, in 2010, said that Nwosu’s demise had left a big vacuum in Nollywood. “I knew he was ill, but did not know he would die this early. We will forever miss and mourn his painful exit. Adieu, big uncle,” he lamented.