On social media, a predictable furor has been generated by the
NBC’s action. Fans and friends of the concerned artists have been
expressing their angst over the ban with some asking what yardstick was
used in placing such a ban. As amusing and sometimes annoying one finds
some of those comments, which I think stem from an emotive viewpoint
rather than logical, I have to pity such commentators because I believe
they actually are the ones the songs have corrupted in the first place.
In Today’s entertainment sector, sex is king. The more sex the
music videos suggest, the better for the artistes, music video directors
and even the stations. I have repeatedly screamed at various
interactive music fora that these days, when watching the Nigerian
television channels either on terrestrial or satellite bouquets, one
cannot differentiate between the lewd music videos and soft porn!
It is also alarming and befuddling that many of the musical acts getting
brand endorsements here and there are nothing to write home about when
it comes to the lyrical content of their songs or the moral appropriateness of their music videos! These young Turks sing blatantly
about sex without giving a hoot about the most important audience of
all; the children.
If they don’t know it, they should be told that children are quite
impressionable and what goes into a child’s mind visually can either
distort that child’s moral progression or improve on the child’s human
development as time goes on. But do SOME of these repressed reprobates
in the music sector care? Not in the least!
The more raunchy the music videos are, the better for the rascals.
Just to buttress my point, have you guys seen the way most Nigerian
kids dance to some of these songs at children’s parties? It’s all about
winding their waist and even twerking much to either the amusement or
amazement of their parents. Yes, thanks to these accursed music videos,
we are breeding a new generation of morally bankrupt youths who just
need a little prod in their subconscious minds to become the future
terrors of the New Republic of Sexual Nigeria! Mark my words.
And I won’t lay the blame on the artistes alone. The radio and
television stations which fight over themselves to broadcast those songs
and videos are as guilty in this regard. Perhaps too, the music video
directors who come up with such concepts.
The NBC too is as hypocritical with these bans as it is sometimes inept.
I would suggest a total overhaul of their monitoring unit, if my
opinion is asked. I mean, why would they wait for months after such
songs must have gained heavy rotation on radio and television before
they use their hammer? What kind of crass dereliction of duty is that?
The relatively new Director-General of the NBC, Mr
Emeka Mba,
is well known to me. He just assumed duty a few weeks ago and I believe
he should make it his duty to clean up the airwaves. And please, no
double standards! There are worse American and even African music videos
and audio tracks ravaging our airwaves which the NBC don’t know jack
about! Some radio On Air Personalities take delight in playing some lewd
songs with the ‘F’ word bleeped at times. A few months back, I was driving in the same car with a Reverend Gentleman and we had one of those FM stations on the car radio that afternoon.
Akon’s
song with the chorus ‘ I wanna f**k you…f**k you out on the
floor…’assaulted our ears. On radio? I had to join the shocked Reverend
Father in making the sign of the cross even though I had switched to
Pentecostalism years ago! Such was the shock.
We all have witnessed how
Wizkid slyly came into the scene
a few years ago. I use the word ‘slyly’ because his first single ‘Holla
at your boy’ was a neat teen-pop track which was family friendly and
won him a huge fan base across continents. Having achieved his aim, his
next couple of singles introduced the lyrical direction of his debut
album. ‘Tease me’ was a daring post-pubescent song which extolled his
plea for sexual freedom and also a blatant praise of his mojo. ‘Na me be
the bad guys’ he crows. The accompanying video to that track was as
suggestively lewd with pole-dancing girls doing some randy stuff. The
clean boy image of Whizkid took a back seat and thereon his handlers and
producers tried to sell him as a post-teen sex symbol.
So, it was no surprise to the discerning ones amongst us when his
new singles were laced with overtly raunchy suggestiveness. Let us
examine the lyrics of the banned single in question; ‘Back to the
matter, open and close, touch your toes, oya baby..,’.! May your
children grow up in the ways of the Lord.
I have nothing against the hard working Whizkid, in case some
puerile minds begin to think in their usual template that ‘what’s
Novia’s own?’ Or ‘He’s just jealous of Whizkid’s success’ which is a
usual conclusion when critiques like these meant to correct an anomaly
raise some dust.
I actually enjoy most of the young man’s clean songs as much as I
abhor his lewd ones. This is basically a call to him and others of his
ilk to go inwards and re-engineer their lyrics. Better still as
Gbemi Olateru Olagbegi of Beat FM tweeted, they should go the extra mile in producing clean radio edit versions of some of their songs.
Phyno is one interesting rap artiste I have been studying.
He joins the league of rappers who rap in native lingo, following the
footsteps of his artistic heralders,
2Shotz and
Dat NIGGA Raw.
Phyno understands the essence of showmanship and personal branding,
what with his unique Mohawk hairstyle and his style of dressing. I don’t
understand Igbo very well but I have listened to the banned song ‘Man
of the Year’ for controversial or lewd lyrics as well as his other
songs. Here are some words I found; ‘Okereke okereke.. My guys no
abaleke… N’ekperem ekpere Sika m fepu ka chekeleke Si mu kuwa k’elekera
Na ezem k’ekelebe Ebughim otu mana m ga n’egbu ha ebelebe …)Something
wey don enter don enter but if e nor gree enter, make you rub vaseline’)
Please someone explain a bit to me about the meaning of some of
his suggestiveness in those words? I think that is why the NBC banned the
song.
In any case, Phyno is one act to watch. I don’t really rate him
as a fantastic emcee but he’s commercial and would go far…somehow.
There are some Nigeria music videos which I would personally recommend
for non-broadcast and I hope the NBC takes note somehow. This
recommendation is without fear or favour and I must state too that it
does not in anyway detract from the amazing talents of the artistes who I
give props to for raising the bar in their chosen field. However, while
they are raising the bar, I and millions of concerned parents are
raising our kids so please ‘make una nor spoil my blues with una razz
ragga’. Shikena.
Wande Coal’s ‘KICK’ video should be banned off the
national television space. Seriously, have you seen the ladies shaking
their bums in that video? For the pious and piety men reading this, I
would advise you not to bother checking it out. Especially if you just
came out of a spititual fasting regimen like I had just done when I saw
the video. Needless to say I resumed my fasting with more vigour after
that. If
Timaya’s ‘shake your bum bum’ video was sexually provocative, Coal’s ‘Kick’ video gave a double provocation with two bum-shakers.
Olamide is a great musical act who is making waves at present. We
all have watched his gradual ascent for the past couple of years and he
has succeeded in filling a void left open by the late
Dagrin. I
have my reservations about his latest video ‘Durosoke’ but that is not
the video I’m recommending for non-broadcast. There’s one he calls
‘Stupid love’ which I believe promotes alcoholic inebriation; which I
presume to be against the broadcasting rules.
In the video, Olamide in almost every cut is seen clutching a
green bottle suggestively filled with either rum or brandy or some
strong coloured spirits. He takes deliberate swigs from the bottle and
even chants at a point in the song about feeling ‘high’. This video gets
massive airplay on national stations. I think it should be yanked off.
Oh yes, some may argue that there’s no proof that the contents in that
bottle is alcohol. Balderdash! Why don’t such people argue that the
‘yanshes’ they see in some of the music videos I mentioned above are
harmless to the psyche of the children? And not only children too, come
to think of it!
There are quite a few more I could recommend but why would I do the
NBC’s job for them? Isn’t that one of their functions as a Commission?
It is high time we cleaned up the airwaves. Let those who
wish to listen to lewd songs or watch raunchy music videos do so on
other media. It is a sin the way we corrupt the minds of our children in
the name of artistic licence.
>This guy actually made some sense, but are they really going to ban these artistes?
