By Charles Okogene
I became very close to King Wadada in his Holy! Holy! days. An album he released on Harry Mosco’s record label. The album did catch some fire those days as it ruled the few airwaves and some churches’ dancefloor in Nigeria then. Let us us fast forward a bit.
Then I was the showbiz/editor of Mayor Akinpelu’s Global Excellence magazine. Let skip details of that again.
I fell in love with that song that goes like this ‘ Holy! Holy! Holy Alleluyah… Praise Him, Praise Him.. ‘ because I love praise songs be it of Christian or Muslim genre.
My friends like Bamidele Temitope Johnson, Harry Iwuala, Emeka Alex Duru, Edward Dibiana and Wale Adenaya can all atest to this my claim that I am a very pious man. Let us leave that for another day.
So I took Wadada to Enugu to receive award from O’Neal Val/National Awards. That was the biggest award event coming from the orient in those days. O’Neal was then based at 16, Marcus Garvey Avenue, New Heaven in the coal city. It was organised by Mr. Okpara Nelson (O’Neal). That year’s award was sponsored by LietNuel and Diamond Bank and featured artistes like Tony One Week, Chief Zebrudaya, Chris Odor, Blacktops Band, Chris Odili (Snake), A.B. Cowboy and D. J. Tiko. It was there, I met some of the big boys in the city like the late first son of Jim Nwobodo , Ifeanyi, who was commissioner for sports in the state then in the heady days of his father’s differences with Ebano. Again that is not the crux of this write up.
I have lost touch with O’Neal now; though, I hear he is now a big mall owner at Jabi area of Abuja. Only Oscar Igusi of ‘out of sight’ can help me re-establish contact with him.
As I was saying before the diversion, Wadada and I arrived Enugu a day before the show in a night bus, Chisco, visited some radio stations that my friends like Jika Attoh, Chris Odili (snake/agwo), D.J. Tiko and others were in charge of, to hype Wadada and his Holy! Holy! Holy! song and to inform Ndi Enugu that he was holding it down at O’Neal that night. .
That done, Wadada, with my help, as a member of the award committee for that year, won the best new act of O’Neal Val/National Award that year. He won an NB Plc travelling bag, N10.000 cash prize and got N30,000 as spray money from the big boys that watched his live performance that night. People like Eucharia Anunobi (UK Gold) who was on top of her game as Nollywood actress then, Onyeka Onwenu who was musically too hot to handle those days and others also went home with awards on that day.
Wadada smiled home with the diadem and the prize money, the following day, he left Enugu for Benin City to see his family and I returned to Lagos three days after; however, this is not the story.
The gist is that two weeks after, I got a call from the late Harry Agada (Mosco) the leader of the defunct Funkies Band who is also known for ‘Sugar Cane Baby’ song, wanting my presence at his Abbah Johnson, Adeniyi Jones Avenue residence/studio immediately.
Pronto! I raced off to the place. On getting there, who did I see? Wadada; he had come visiting to demand for sales of his record proceed because he won an award in Enugu meaning that his song/album had sold so much to merit an award not knowing that I was the one behind the award. He forgot that his song was only popular on the radio airwaves not in the record stores. Though, such was the relationship between musicians and record companies/labels of those days. So Wadada’s behaviour that day was not unexpected.
“Enyi, see what you have brought on me with that award,” Mosco started. “Your boy has come to ask for several thousands been what I owed him as record sales/royalty since he has won an award meaning that the song is selling well in the east and I ‘dey chop him money,'” Mosco said in his studio.
I felt so bad that day but after my intervention, Mosco agreed to buy the master tape of that song for some thousands of naira.
I have gone this long route to narrative my relationship with Wadada. Years after, he is still burning the stage with songs like ‘… Yahoo, Olofofo’. Big up Wada… boy.
… Watch out for an interview with him soon.
