Where Are These Musicians Who Were Making Mega Money?

As the world last Friday marked the world music day, not a few stakeholders

have noted that music afterall as been said to express that which cannot be put into words and that which cannot remain silent. Music has created an avenue for all and sundry to have a reason to be happy at all times.

But when music stars disappear from the radar, it gives music lovers reasons to wonder why…
Olusola Olujide Ayodele of Leadership takes a look at some music acts who made waves in times past but are becoming less visible on the Nigerian entertainment stage.

Bigiano
Gabriel Bablalola, known as Bigiano joined Peter and Paul Martins in 2001 to form a group named Triple B. however, in 2004, the centre could no longer hold and Bigiano went solo. In 2008, Bigiano made a compelling appearance on the music scene with themonster hit track, ‘Shayo’ and went on to become more popular than his early group members. He was involved in several shows based on the commercial success of the ‘Shayo’ song. He released a few more songs which made waves so to say. But ever since then, little has been heard of him music wise. His former group members in an interview said they knew he wasn’t going to last in the music scene because he allowed little things get into his head and would be unable to handle fame. Could that be the reason why he has gone into oblivion? He however said, his absence from the scene was deliberate, as he wanted to spend more time with his family.

Tony Tetuila
Anthony Olanrewaju Awotoye better known as Tony Tetuila is known for these songs ‘My Car’ and ‘E go better’. He was a former member of the Remedies, along with Eedris Abdulkareem and Eddy Montana. He broke out of the group and went solo. He was hugely successful when he went solo and sadly, he hasn’t been able to live up to the super star tag put on him. It is a known fact that he is struggling to regain relevance as he has been appearing in few musical videos. He still maintains cordial relationship with people like Tuface and regularly seen at the ever bubbling places in Lagos. He was one of his groomsmen during Tuface’s wedding. Rumour has it that he impregnated a young lady living in the United Kingdom. Datz all!

Alariwo
After the passing of Afrobeat legend, Fela Kuti, the only other acts representing for that genre of music were his sons, Femi & Seun, Lagbaja and maybe Dede Mabiaku. That was until Alariwo burst on to the scene with “Yawa Go Gas”. Despite multiple efforts, it’s been quite difficult for the crossover king to have the same amount of relevance he managed with his debut.
Dekunle Fuji
Adekunle Oloyede Michael Olalekan better known as Dekunle Fuji was once a toast in the music industry especially the gospel genre. He had some beautiful songs that ruled the airwaves at some point in his career. We can all recall the popular track with”lelelelele, mo like Jesugan, monife Jesugan” lyrics. He performed at shows, notably the international acclaimed gospel show, ‘The Experience’. It looked like music wasn’t in for him here in Nigeria as he was no longer getting shows and had to relocate to the United States. The gist now is that he is now a certified nurse, though he still performs there.
Deebee
Deebee, a Bariga-bred artiste burst into the music scene with a monster hit song ‘Collabo’ in 2008. He was the cynosure of all eyes as almost every DJ played his songs. In fact, the song was very successful, commercially. As expected, he released a few more songs after and just like those before him, he went dark totally. Nothing has been heard from him ever since then. Probably, he is in collaboration with some other pressing matters.
Ashionye
She started out as a member of girl band and then went solo like the Plantashun Boiz and Destiny’s Child. Her song “Dance for Me” dominated airwaves for a bit. The accompanying video was heralded for its dance moves and also for being very colourful. In an industry where there has always been a dearth of female acts, Ashionye showed a lot of promise.Alas, it was not to be. These days, she’s more of an actress, and even had a brief stint on TV show ‘Tinsel’. Her reason for her long absence from the music scene was because she was pregnant and had to take time out to raise him.
JayRu
Featuring Wizkid on your song is almost a guaranteed formula for success. That formula definitely provided a solution for JayRu. He sang ‘Familiarity’ featuring Wizkid. The song was a success probably, due to the fact that Wizkid was featured. “Ye ma form familiarity” was what the people were shouting, until JayRu went silent, and everybody also stopped forming familiarity. He has tried to release songs into the market but sadly, they have not been commercial hits.