Just when most music lovers have given up on him, reggae star, Majek Fashek, is set to perform at a major concert aimed at celebrating the life and works of the legendary Bob Marley, in Lagos on Friday (today).
Majek, believed to have finally won a prolonged battle with drug addiction, will most likely be the object of attraction at the concert, which he has put together alongside his friend and fellow award-winning reggae musician, King Wadada, in collaboration with the management of the Duban International Hotel.
Tagged African Rock Reggae Night, the event is scheduled to hold at the premises of the hotel in the Ogba area of Lagos. It will feature a line-up of popular ‘old school’ music stars, such as Victor Eshiet of the Mandators, Orits Williki, Ras Kimono and Black Rice; as well as the likes of Tuface Idibia, Judy Ranking, Righteousman, Wizkid, African China, Blackface and General Pype, to name a few.
Although reggae musicians all over the world celebrate Marley on May 11 every year, the date of the concert was shifted by the organisers for the purpose of logistics.
Beyond celebrating the Jamaican music icon, Majek and Wadada plan to use the concert as a platform to win more converts to reggae, which has clearly lost many of its followers in Nigeria to the new wave Afro-hip hop.
“With the concert, we hope to correct some of the things that have gone wrong on the Nigerian music scene. There is an urgent need to review the content of the music produced in this country nowadays. These younger artistes only sing about sex, romance, money or booze and other mundane things. They really haven’t got good messages to pass on to the people. This is why we want to draw the attention of music lovers to reggae music once again,” King Wadada says, in an interview with our correspondent.
Dismissing the notion that reggae is dead in Nigeria, he blames its waning influence on inexperienced radio and television presenters, whom he accuses of deliberately playing down its importance in favour of Afro-hip hop.
He says, “Those who think that reggae is dead are in for a big surprise. What they don’t know is that a lot of Nigerians are waiting for this kind of move. I have also heard some people say that reggae cannot sell in Nigeria again. Soon they will eat their own words. The truth is that many people are ready to buy reggae anytime, any day.”
The absence of the right messages in today’s music, he argues, explains why the Nigerian society appears to be sliding further into moral decadence, the incidence of corruption is getting worse and there is so much immorality in the country.
King Wadada has lately been involved in some efforts aimed at helping reggae artistes to regain their pride of place in the entertainment industry. A few months ago, he played a key role in ex-Mandator, Victor Eshiet’s comeback gig held at the National Stadium Complex in Lagos, as well as in Orits Williki’s much-publicised birthday concert in Warri.
For him, the African Rock Reggae Night event, which is the first in a series of anticipated collabos between his company, Wadada World Class Entertainment, and Majek’s Underground System Records, is a big deal and a necessary prelude to the return of reggae music.
Lamenting the dearth of genuine music promoters in the country, the dreadlocked musician explains why new artistes are turning their backs on reggae.
“Reggae takes a lot of time and money to produce. It could take one month to lay just one track in a whole album and that could cost a lot of money. Only few recording companies in the country have the financial capacity to foot such bills. But the truth is that there are no real records labels in Nigeria any moment. This is why many artistes, especially the younger ones, are left with no better options than to do it their own way,” he says.
Yet, a few observers suspect that underneath King Wadada’s motive for the concert lies the desire to help his friend and kinsman, Majek Fashek, revive his music career. Both stars are currently working on a new single titled Omnipotent God, which Wadada describes as loaded with powerful messages that will “shake the country” and encourage many people to change their ways. They plan to release it soon.
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