Tuesday 23 December 2014

Celebrity Interview: I didn’t pay a dime to feature Chris Brown –Wizkid

WHAT is the most challenging song you’ve written?
I would say is Jaiye Jaiye. When I made Jaiye Jaiye, I didn’t know if people were ready to accept the song, so I needed something to pretty much make it really special because that song is really special to me. When I called Femi Kuti, and he told me yes, he’s going to do it. I was shocked because I didn’t think he would tell me yes straight away. I called him that day, we recorded the next day. So I had to go back to the studio that night to re-do the song, to make sure he’s not disappointed. I think Jaiye Jaiye is the most challenging song I’ve written.
You talked about Jaiye, Jaiye which happens to be the intro of song in your sophomore album. How would you describe the album? And what has been the reaction of people?
Talking about the album, everyone is loving the tracks. Every day, people discover new songs on that album. It feels really good because when I was making this album, I was trying to make a conscious decision not to change my style too much because many people are now having this thing in their head that because I’m working with international artistes I’m trying to change what I sound like, which is not true.
I’m never going to change what I am. I’m never going to change my music for anyone. A song like Jaiye, Jaiye for instance, mo fe ko le fun mama mi, mo de f era le fun baba mi. I’m sure everyone wants to do the same thing or have done the same thing. It’s a special song to me and that album as well.
There was a particular track in that album where you practically sang highlife. I think the track is called One Question. How did you manage to get that kind of mature sound?
Well, as I said, I work every day to build the Wizkid brand. I don’t just make music for now. A lot of people expect that, oh yeah, this young act; I should be making music about party and all that.
But I really do not. I actually make good music. I try as much as possible to pass a message across. Like Joy, in Joy I was talking about my life and I was giving advice to everyone out there. Jaiye Jaiye same thing, One Question, Ojuelegba, songs like that tell you I’m not an average type of artiste. I’m very confident about the type of music that I make and I know by God’s grace I will definitely take it global.
You went to Surulere to shoot Show you the money. Meanwhile, you have another track Ojuelegba. Why did you choose Surulere for Show you the money and where are you going to shoot Ojuelegba?
Well, Show you the money, I went to Shitta, small London. That’s actually where I grew up. So for Ojuelegba as well I’m definitely going to Ojuelegba to shoot the video. There are so many parts of Surulere that I have not even done anything about. All the streets I used to walk, all the streets I used to go perform because I used to do all the carnivals every December for every street in Surulere. I used to go do all that, to Lawanson, Brown Road and so on. I’ve paid my dues. There are so many stories that are untold. And by God’s grace if I’m here long enough I hope to pass that message and tell that story through my music.
Your one time label mate, Skales, are you ever going to work with him again?
Of course I will. He was actually in my house a couple of weeks ago. He brought a track to my house for us to work on. Do definitely; definitely I would always work with Skales.
You just released your last album with E.M.E and a lot of reviews have rated it low. Tell us, was it intentional?
Let’s take a look at it, off that album right; I have hit singles that I already put out. If I didn’t want to make an album that will actually cut across to people to enjoy, I would not put in those songs. I had Jaiye Jaiye, On Top Your Matter, Bombay, Show You The Money, Joy and I added more songs. And I’m shooting new video pretty much for all the songs in the album.
Wizkid like showing off his wealth on social media…
Yes, didn’t use to have all these things now. I hustled to get them. From where I am coming from, if I get all these things, I have to show them to motivate. You knew me in my Surelere days now; did I use to wear gold chain? Abi na lie I dey lie? No be lie now. So if I get all these type of things, you go thank God. I need to motivate boys for street. I no dey thief, I no dey do any other thing dan music.
Every now and then, people call you out. Is wizkid such a terrible person?
I tire o. I tire for the matter o. Well, people have their opinion about other people. People say you are terrible. The thing you should actually do is ask those people what exactly has this guy done to you? For four years that I was making music with Samklef, everyone knew who Samklef was; I was going up and down and saying Samklef noni, Right? You understand wetin I dey try talk. So I’m really just being me. I’m just trying to be a good person. Everyone cannot like you. And everyone cannot hate you.
Same time Samklef called you out, Seaon also was bitter that you didn’t appear in her video despite paying you a huge amount of money…
But I gave her a hit song now, I no try. My boy produced the song. I did my part of the job to record the song. So if she’s coming out and telling you …that’s not even what I charge for collabos. I dey charge some people 10million for collaboration you know. So if I did it for her for that price you should know it’s love. It’s out of love. I was busy. I didn’t even want to do it, to be honest. I won’t lie to you.
But you were once quoted to have said you don’t charge for collaboration…
Yes now, I don’t charge people I love for collaboration. But when someone is on your neck every day, they want to make a song and they want to pay for it. If I don’t collect the money now and make the song, they will say I’m a terrible person. So I’m just trying to be a good guy.
A lot of top artistes have been on the bill of Hennessy. You are there this year, how would you describe the experience?
Well, I feel really blessed to be a part of Hennessey this year, especially because Tuface is a part of it and Tuface is a legend in the Nigerian music industry. He’s like a pioneer. He paved the way for every young artiste doing it right now. So it’s just a great feeling doing it with Tuface. I feel really blessed. Hennessy is a big brand. And the Wizkid brand as well is growing everyday so we just keep working at it. I’m just thankful to God, that’s all.
For the first time, you did collaboration with Tuface, courtesy of Hennessy. Why did it not happen before Hennessy contacted both of you?
Well, Tuface and I have actually been in the studio four times before the Hennessy Company contacted us for the event, but we’ve never finished anything. We would work on something but we just never get to finish it. Tuface is a very busy person and me too I’m always just on the road. We actually never finish our tracks and putting it out. So, it’s like it’s a great feeling, to be honest.
What did it take to build the Wizkid brand?
Building the Wizkid brand pretty much took me all my life because before I went into making music, I had the picture of what I wanted to be in my head. I had a concept of how I would love the journey or my journey to be into the music industry to be like. So I definitely knew I wanted to build a brand, not just a name. A brand people would want to affiliate with and I work endlessly, day and night to make sure the brand Wizkid is here even when I’m not here.
Even when I leave, I want to live a legacy that people will follow. And I’m not just building Wizkid as a brand alone. I’m also building Star Boy for every young artiste out there, every young producer out there. I want to create a platform for them to push out their music. We just started in like a year now; and already my boys are getting nominations as well as producing for all the top acts in Nigeria. It’s a great feeling. I just feel really blessed.
Why do people think Wizkid is arrogant. And does it bother you?
It really does not bother me. But to be honest, I don’t even hear that because every time I go out, I get love from my fans. I show them love. And I do my thing. As I said, not everyone is going to like you. I don’t have any problem with that because I don’t like everybody. I’m going to be very honest with you; it’s not everybody that I like.
So I don’t expect everybody to like me. I make mistake like every normal human being. I’m very normal. I’m a young boy, I’m growing. It’s not that I know everything. I’m bound to trip and fall. I’m bound to learn from them. So I’m just growing, men.
Expecting any child soon?
Expecting ke?
No wedding on your card?
There is nothing like that.
Is Wizkid single and searching?
Wizkid is just a star boy, having fun and mingling things (laughs).
How many shows does Wizkid play per week?
It depends on the demand. Sometimes I do three, four and sometimes one.
What are your targets?
I’m pretty much just working on the Wizkid brand. I’m just trying to expand. And I’m trying to just take my music global. I’m just working on music, that’s pretty much it.
Talking about investment, where are you sinking your money?
Properties and jewellery… I don’t spend money on stupid things. I just try as much as possible to do me. I’m a grown man. I have problems too. I have a child I’m taking care of. I have responsibilities too, believe it or not.
You talked about doing a song with Chris Brown, when is it dropping? And did you pay for it?
Yeah, yeah I have a song with Chris Brown. Done actually; we are shooting the video in about two or three weeks. It’s going
to drop early next year.
Did I pay to do it?
No, no payment at all. I don’t pay anyone for collaborations men. I’ve never paid for collaboration because I’m confident of the type of music that I make.
What’s your five years’ plan for Star Boy?
Yeah, we are working on the first Star Boy album now. We are shooting a video for all the songs. I’m pretty much trying to create a platform and just help as many talents as I can. Just put a lot of young people on. There are a lot of talented to do me. I’m a grown man. I have problems too. I have a child I’m taking care of. I have responsibilities too, believe it or not.
You talked about doing a song with Chris Brown, when is it dropping? And did you pay for it?
Yeah, yeah I have a song with Chris Brown. Done actually; we are shooting the video in about two or three weeks. It’s going to drop early next year. Did I pay to do it? No, no payment at all. I don’t pay anyone for collaborations men. I’ve never paid for collaboration because I’m confident of the type of music that I make.
What’s your five years’ plan for Star Boy?
Yeah, we are working on the first Star Boy album now. We are shooting a video for all the songs. I’m pretty much trying to create a platform and just help as many talents as I can. Just put a lot of young people on. There are a lot of talented young people in this country but the platform is not there for everyone. So I’m going to try in my own little way to help young people in this country but the platform is not there for everyone. So I’m going to try in my own little way to help.

Tuesday 9 December 2014

Billionaire Ayiri Emani Gifts $350,000 To BBA Hotshots Nigerian Rep – Tayo Faniran For Losing

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Nigerians have been crying foul since Tayo Faniranthe Nigerian rep to the jut concluded BBA Hotshots lost out on the win to Tanzanian Idris, who was crowned winner at the live finale on Sunday, losing out meant Tayo also lost out on the $300,000 prize money.

But while we were all here upset that Tayo didn’t win and Tanzanian fans were going in on Davido and his family, Billionaire businessman Ayiri Emami gave Tayo $350,000!!!! Yes $50,000 more than the winner Idris got!

Beware: 28 Internet acronyms every parent should know

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Internet has affected virtually every aspect of human lives. But the increasing way at which teenagers immerse themselves in this trend has brought up new challenges, especially for parents who will have to keep up with the constantly changing internet/mobile technology and its lingua – Parenting has never been this difficult.
Imagine this scenario, your daughter is sitting beside you on the coach and she’s sex texting without you having a inkling of what she’s doing – even when you can view her SMS. Would you be able to interpret this message if she writes,
Therefore, parents need to get acquainted with the language used by their children to be able to succeed at parenting, particularly, in our climes where good family names are held in high esteem.
Read the list, it will redefine how you monitor your teen’s conversations with his/her peers.
  1. IWSN- I want sex now
  2. GNOC- Get naked on camera
  3. NIFOC- Naked in front of computer
  4. PIR- Parent in room
  5. CU46 - See you for sex
  6. 53X- Sex
  7. 9- Parent watching
  8. 99 -Parent gone
  9. 1174′- Party meeting place
  10. THOT- That hoe over there
  11. CID- Acid (the drug)
  12. Broken- Hungover from alcohol
  13. 420- Marijuana
  14. POS- Parent over shoulder
  15. SUGARPIC- Suggestive or erotic photo
  16. KOTL- Kiss on the lips
  17. (L)MIRL- Let’s meet in real life
  18. PRON- Porn
  19. TDTM- Talk dirty to me
  20. 8 -Oral sex
  21. CD9 -Parents around/Code 9
  22. IPN- I’m posting naked
  23. LH6- Let’s have sex
  24. WTTP- Want to trade pictures?
  25. DOC- Drug of choice
  26. TWD- Texting while driving
  27. GYPO- Get your pants off
  28. KPC- Keeping parents clueless

Monday 8 December 2014

FINALLY: REAL REASON WHY INI EDO'S MARRIAGE CRASHED

It is no longer news that top actress Ini Edo’s marriage to Philips Ehiagwina has collapsed. So much has been written mostly by writers relying on third party sources as to why the marriage failed.
The widely speculated reason has been the issue of infidelity that the husband alleged.
But was that the main reason the couple went their separate ways? According to a source close to the couple and was there when the romance started in 2008, and remained close to the now divorced couple, the media has been scratching the surface of what indeed was a story of irreconciliable differences the actress endured for over six years of her marriage to her estranged husband; and why she gave her all to sustain the marriage. It is a story as told by an insider who knew the couple way back from New York, where Philips once lived, before moving to Texas, then to Atlanta and now Ghana.
“I think Ini Edo was badly in love. Philips was a charmer and, as a human being and deeply in love, she followed her heart. It is so sad that a woman blessed with such a good heart could be treated in such a hurtful manner. Most people may not know, but Ini Edo is a dedicated and totally committed spouse any man could hope to have. That’s why she endured all she did, for six years without letting the world know the pain she was going through in her marriage,” the source stated. “Most people do not know that Ini Edo gave up a lot of acting jobs to be with her husband in America and, unlike the widely peddled story that the actress was involved in romantic relationships with other men, for the six years that Ini was married to Philips, she never cheated on him.  Ini Edo adored and loved Philips; she was very fond of him, cooked his meals personally, and was practically splitting her time between two continents, all in her efforts to be a good wife.
“ There is no doubt that Ini was madly in love with her ex-husband. In a 2009 interview she had with my newspaper, The Diasporan Star in New York, she effusively declared her fidelity to Phillips and debunked all the stories of her liaisons with other men. “I am usually at a loss when I read stories about my sexual relationships with phantom figures and personalities. It is really astonishing when people just manufacture stories, give them legs and let them fly when they know the stories are absolutely false,” she had said.
“It is perfectly legitimate for men to have designs and desires on stars. I was recently voted by the public as Nollywood’s Sexiest Actress. So it comes with the territory that men would want to date me. The question then becomes: do you fall prey to every man that comes your way? The answer is absolutely “no”. I was raised well by my parents and I have always been a one-man lady. All the sexual shenanigans that the media have associated me with are all false. The problem with our journalists is that if they saw you at a coffee shop with a man – just any man – even if that man is your cousin or brother, they will automatically assume that that is your new lover, and without asking questions, will rush to publish that you were seen at a coffee shop with a new lover.
“I have lost count of the number of such innocent outings with family members, friends that the media misconstrued that I was dating. What the media failed to understand was that I had not allowed stardom and celebrity to becloud my values. What they did not realize was that I wanted to be married, and start a family, and that the notion that I was some kind of a sexually crazed hormone raging young woman, was totally false and a bad reading of who I am.
“Did I have friends in the past? Of course, just like any other young and single woman out there, I had friends. Did that make me an out-of control sexual goddess? Absolutely not! It has been very painful for me each time I read all the stories written about me, stuffs that are patently false. I have, however, come to accept it as part of the price you pay for stardom. I just wished they could do a little investigation before rushing to publish.
“One story that pained me a lot is the notion that I snatched Philips from his ex-wife – Ruth Okoro – while she was recuperating from cancer treatment. Nothing could be further from the truth. The ex-wife said I was callous and mean-spirited to have done so. Initially, I had wanted to ignore what she had said about me. But I would like to use this medium to state that I did not take Philips from Ruth Okoro.
“When Philips came into my life, he was a single man, with no marital encumbrances. ••••
Philips was divorced from Ruth at the time we began seeing each other. So, I do not understand what she is talking about. I remember asking Philips to come clean with me, and tell me everything that had happened between him ‘and his ex-wife. I demanded to know if he was still married to her, and Philips said “no” and produced a divorce paper to back up his claim. It was after that that we began dating.
“ There is no way I would have dated him if he was still married to Ruth. My values would have been in conflict with that. There is no way I would have dated and agreed to marry Philips if I knew that he had abandoned his wife in hospital while she was recuperating from cancer treatment.
“ That would have been a huge turn-off. The Philips I met and got married to is a perfect family man – a dependable, God-fearing man who treasures his family. Philips was there for his ex-wife throughout her hospitalization, and she knows it. Let me also add here as a piece of advice to our fellow women: If you had a home, one that you truly love and appreciate,  treat that home as a prized possession. Treat your husband well.
“There is nothing to gain if you maltreat your husband, and make his life miserable. Men do not like that. I hope Ruth understands and appreciates the depth of what I am saying here. That will be my response to everything she has said about me – all the negative things she has written and caused to be written about me. “Philips and I met during one of his many visits to Nigeria, and I realized I had met the man of my dream. When that special person who excites the passion in you comes along, you begin to do things that are out of range – you begin to be consumed by his thoughts – you begin to send text.
messages, call him all the time and just feel so much in love. That was the way I felt when Philips came along. I knew that he was the man for me.“I realized that we had the same outlook about life, that I could start a sentence and he would finish it for me, and would convey the same thoughts I had in mind. When I took him to see my parents, they wholeheartedly accepted him, even though he is not from my part of the world -that is a testament to Philips’ humanity that is very, very transparent. “Philips and I have the same ideology, and I am excited and happy to be his wife. Our attraction is mutual, our focus is interlocked and what a great family man he is! Philips calls my family even more regularly than myself. He would just call to find out how they are doing. He has such good heart and kind spirit that is just a beauty to behold.
“That is the man I met and agreed to marry. All other depictions are borne out of malice and hate, and we do not even want to dignify their hate with a response. Our marriage is a celebration of love borne out of deep sense of mutual attachment, trust and abiding companionship. The machinations of the naysayers will not hold”. Perhaps one should ask, what happened to a marriage that appeared to have been made in heaven as attested to by Ini Edo in her interview. Our source stated that the marriage began to experience challenges months after the wedding that took place in Houston, Texas.
“Philips financial stability was still a work in progress but as a dedicated wife, Ini was determined to support and encourage her husband. She wanted him to be more frugal and to invest whatever resources he had in things that will yield some dividends. But things did not quite work out, “ the source said.
“ Ini Edo is very industrious and wanted combined efforts from her husband to get things done. Eventually fights began to occur. The last straw that broke the camel’s back was the house Ini bought in Lekki, a beautiful edifice.“Philips wanted it to be a joint property, but Ini vehemently said no, that she would have none of that. Philips was said to have threatened to move out of their home if Ini refused to put his name on the deed. She stood her grounds and Philips also made good his threat. He moved out of the house and took up residence with another lady in Accra, Ghana which has been his home for the past six months.  All entreaties by family members for Philips to return home were rebuffed; he wanted his name on the deed or no marriage. For three months, Ini Edo did not set her eyes on her husband and he had started flaunting his new girlfriend to spite Ini. Scheduled appointments by her father in-law to resolve the issue amicably were rebuffed by Philips and Ini was shocked.
“ There is no truth to the story that was peddled that Ini Edo was involved in extra-marital affairs. It was Philips who actually did not respect the sanctity of his marital vows. While still legally married, he left his matrimonial home and moved in with  another lady in Ghana”. When I contacted Ini Edo and asked her to conform what our source had told us, she said she was done with that chapter of her life and was looking forward to new possibilities.
“Ekerete, you were there when we started dating and eventually got married. Does anything that has been written about me, remotely resembles who and what I am about? I wish Philips the best in life”, she said. Efforts to contact Philips were not successful, but we hope someday to get his own side of the story
Written By Ekerete Udoh and culled from Vanguardngr