tansali paparazzi

Omawumi's highly anticipated album, wonder woman is out and its blazing hot, it contains tracks like, "In the music", "today na today", "chocolata" ft Naeto C, "Mafi misere" ft Eldee, when breez blow, "Love it" ft Shank etc.. Its sold online at http://www.notjustok.com/2009/11/11/buy-omawumi-album-wonder-woman-for-4-99-nov-11-18/. You can also listen to snippets from the whole album. This is sure a good work and am sure getting mine. I am most definitely buying mine..... nigeria's ultimate diva!

Ibiyemi’s vocal is like the evening breeze – soft, smooth, tempting, and nostalgic. You feel like you’ve heard it before; but still has its touch of uniqueness. Born in San Francisco, California; Ibiyemi might not be your sexy ready-to-stride-in-lingerie kind of singer; but she’s got her singing on a high with a kind of music she calls, Urban Soul. Ibiyemi’s sounds are cerebral, and her lyrics are a little more elaborate than the run-off-the-mill stripper drone we are used to.  

She started singing professionally in 2003, and has been influenced over the years by great musicians like Marvin Gaye, Mary J Blige and our very own, Asa. If you sense a similarity in vocals and lyrics of both artistes, you are not too far from the truth. There’s a connection, and yet, a detachment as both women still manage to sing with individual voices which earn distinct respect. This is good for Ibiyemi; as she paves her way through a growing industry.

‘I’m trying to walk my own path,’ she enthuses as she has her Ipod concurrently playing the hits ‘Collide’ by Howie Day, ‘Run’ by Leona Lewis, ‘Knock You Down’ by Keri Hilson, and ‘Strong Thing’ by Banky W.

She takes me back to her moment of self-recognition, when she was only a teenager in school singing to nobody in particular, but getting the attention of a superstar, as Dorm mates would gather to hear her hit one note after the other. ‘It was a good feeling.  I realized not only could I sing, but people enjoyed it!’ You could say that was her eureka moment; and as the saying goes, nothing could stop the little happy bird from singing henceforth!

Her entrance into the local scene was one emotional experience; but Ibiyemi remains grateful for a lot of things.  ‘It’s been rewarding so far. I feel a sense of peace knowing I am doing what I was born to do.’

Not giving into the trend of rap and mainstream hip hop, she believes as long as music is good, the audience will respond to it. ‘My greatest challenge has been proving to doubters that Nigerians just want good music! It’s that simple. There’s a place for Hip- hop, Soul, High-life etc. Some genres may be more popular, but in the end if the music is good, people want to hear it.’ It is easy for Ibiyemi to find her niche in the industry in no time. She’s not just a pretty face, but one with great skills and an interesting voice.

‘It’s been very challenging but fascinating. I had been writing songs for many years prior but I cut my teeth vocally, singing in the choir, doing back- up vocals for established acts. I learnt from a lot of mistakes I experienced and saw. I also joined a band and served as lead singer for over a year so I understood the power of connecting with an audience on stage and the power of live music even as I was recording music of my own. By the time I started performing my own songs, I felt comfortable on stage.’

Ibiyemi’s tracks may warm you up nicely, but having a hit song is a totally different feeling. Surprisingly, she feels no fuss to measure up to that expectation as she is certain she’s on the right track.  ‘A hit song gets you through the door - true, but consistency keeps you in the room. A hit sets a standard for you as an artiste. The fans have expectations and you have to work hard to keep meeting those expectations. I intend to meet that challenge and having the right team behind you also helps you reach your goal as an artiste.’

It seems the Urban Soul artiste is yet to be beaten by the diva bug. She still wears a casual mien and a comfortable smile. But she has experienced a truck load of ego issues displayed by fellow music people.

‘Ha! I could write a book! I’ve seen squabbles backstage for different reasons... artistes trying to perform ahead of each other...Comperes going on stage announcing the wrong artistes and thereby infuriating and offending others tonthe extent that shows are cancelled. DJ’s cutting the sound mid performance because an artiste has used up his/her time slot but refuses to get off stage...’

Admiring her simple demeanour, I wonder what she thinks of the trend on sexuality and music as it is today especially in Nigeria where every female artiste wants to take off her clothes or every male artiste features a skimpily dressed model for videos.

‘I just believe that isn’t for me, that’s not my modus operandi. If it works for you, fine but it isn’t for me. I don’t believe in the use of sexuality to promote music or anything else for that matter. Statistics have shown that all over the world sex does sell. But guess what, quality does as well. I think music/artistes should be marketed based on their merits alone and not on how raunchy the video or artistes are.’

Ibiyemi’s music feels therapeutic in a way. She is hopefully looking forward to working alongside international acts like Lauryn Hill and Wyclef Jean. ‘They are on my top list!’ she states.

The beauty of where she is today is in the possibility of hope. ‘Nothing inspires like hope – the brilliance of tomorrow.’

We are expectantly looking forward to her boom day! When she explodes like an atomic bomb, shaking the foundations of music-dom. And while we wait, Ibiyemi is certainly taking her music globally – one city at a time.

- Joy Isi Bewaji for Tansali.com

WATCH IBIYEMI LATEST VIDEO  http://www.tansali.com/videos/view/ibiyemi---don39t-leave-me_5147.html

WATCH IBIYEMI'S DEBUT SINGLE HERE  http://www.tansali.com/members/profile/894/video/5191

We loved every performances of hers during Idols West Africa in 2007, we were marvelled by her diversity, talent and uniqueness. We clamoured for more and watched in excitement and when she didnt win, we were disappointed but Omawumi Megbele has gone further from just being the 1st runner up of the Idols West Africa competetion to being a force to reckon with in the nigerian music industry. After Idols, she did her first single "In the Music" which blew people off and with the video, the fan base sky rocketed. She also went on to win two headies at the Hip Hop World Awards (for Next rated and Best female Vocal), she got nominated at the Sound City Music Video Awards and presently Nigerian Music Video Awards for Best Choreography, VOTE HERE FOR OMAWUMI


We all awaited the album but she just wasnt in a hurry, this sweet voiced diva made it clear that her album whenever it dropped was going to be worth the wait and we planned to savour each moment, and its time to wait no more. Omawumi Megbele shortly after releasing a banging video of her single, "Today na today" which is also making waves at the moment is set to release her album "Wonder Woman" which is one of the most anticipated albums in naija and i see it hitting insane numbers in the market.


The release is slated for 2nd week in November and the album cover is just breathtaking, surely a glimpse from what to expect from the album. Lagos, Nigeria, Africa, brace up for the biggest thing to hit you. The diva has emerged.

Hello peeps....


Not doing any major blogging now so am appealing....lol
I just need your votes for one of naija female talents, Miss Omawumi Megbele....okay pardon my formality...OMAWUMI,am sure you guys loved that hit song of hers, In the music, you did? Well i did too, who didnt? She has been nominated in the forthcoming nigerian music video awards, would love you guys to show support and vore for her...simply log on to, www.livebeats.net. and then go to the BEST USE OF CHOREOGRAPHY list, vote for Omawumi as many times as u can, i know we can and i know we would...thanks!

Written by Tosyn Bucknor


I would like to start this article by blaming all those who had a problem with my car being full. It was because of them i emptied and cleaned it out. It was because of them i had nothing to wear as a i left Ikeja on Thursday the 24th. And it was therefore because of them that i missed the Arthur Guiness show!

Of course, funny news spreads faster than good news, and it also grabs the headlines. This article is therefore not about how fantastic M.I’s performance was, nor is it about Wande Coal putting on a good show. It is not even about the excellent work done with the stage and lighting. This article is more about the he said they said aftermath! The gist we gathered is that... The show did not start as scheduled as so, things got backed up. But some things had to go on as scheduled because the show was major and was being beamed live.

It was determined at some point that Sean Paul’s performance had to come up at a specific time since it was meant to be shown in other countries like Malaysia at that time. Some things then had to be axed, and unfortunately, the axe fell on Tu Face’s set! P Square did not appreciate this, and while they were performing one of the twins stopped the music and called the show, “...f**k*d” because they did not want Tu Face to perform.

Then they threw their mics down (or into the crowd) and walked off. The host tried to introduce Sean Paul, but the crowd began throwing things on the stage demanding for Tu Face who had, together with the Okoye twins, left the building... literally! A few calls and conversations later, he came back, performed to wild applause, and the show went on.. sort of!

The aftermath however is that facebook, twitter, and Nigeria began buzzing about this, and the buzz was about the twins! Apart from wondering why they were taking paracetamol for another man’s headache, a la Kanye West, people have pointed out that once again, P Square has shown why artistes need a PR team. Others have defended them and said they did the right thing, saying it is time for home based artistes to be treated with the same level of respect international artistes are treated. And then there are those who maybe see both sides, but feel PSquare should not have disrespected their fans. For me, this is one of those situations where you have so much to say but you wonder if you should. I would say though that things are not always black and white, and rescheduling does not always mean disrespect!

In any case, i would rather not let funny news win TOO MUCh! Reports say it was a well attended show, with a beautiful stage, and that the performances were top notch!

Hi guys, would love to have you on this new group i just created. Its for our darling new kid on the block, Nyore, the queen of dance hall and raggea in nigeria. Nyore is a female Nigerian raggae artist,fresh and has a lot to put on the table, she is currently also part of the GIRL POWER CONCERT alongside Mo’cheddah, BB, Nikki Laoye, Ashionye. She has done various collaborations with different artistes like Wande Coal, Kel, 2face, Faze One soul, Khighthouse and MI (on the song, Purple), C-mion, Righteousman and many more.







And we would be having a ball, you dont want to be left out, click on the link below and join....see you there..





http://www.facebook.com/photo_search.php?oid=138767031916&view=user#/group.php?gid=138767031916






You can also watch her video, RODEO on youtube, click on this link, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lO_uw9wGdKE

Dbanj's after concert party on Monday the 31st of August at a posh night club called RSLOUNGE in South Woodford in Essex, United Kingdom (probably one of the few American styled night clubs in London) was very widely attended. People started queuing up at around 12:00 midnight and within an hour there were over 600 people waiting to get into the night club and party with the KOKO MASTER.  The management of the night club were overwhelmed by the number of young people waiting to get into the club and were asking the question WHO IS D'BANJ?

The crowd was a mixture of pretty, classy young Africans, Afro Caribbean’s, a few English and Italians etc all dressed to kill and from the music blasting from the numerous cars parked outside,  ready to party.

Unfortunately both the club management to include security personnel and the promoters were unprepared for the number of people who wanted to party with Dbanj. The promoters out of greed decided to introduce a two tier gate fee system, 30 and 50 pounds. For a VIP table which on normal nights were charged out at 500.00 pounds was now costing 600 and 1000 pounds respectively. To ensure that they clearly milked the tier system, people were left queuing outside for over two hours whilst the first class citizens who were paying up 1000 pounds for the privilege of partying with Dbanj were let in first.

Clearly Dbanj is one of the most talented entertainers in Africa in our time and it is not surprising that the African la crème de la crème in the UK were out in on mass to party with him.

At one point the crowd had enough of waiting and started trying to push their way into the club with only a handful of bouncers or security staff on hand (as the Club management clearly underestimated Dbanj's popularity after all he is African) and the whole thing started turning into a riot, the Police had to be called out.

Dbanj and his entourage drove past the night club took one look at the situation and decided that it was not worth attending as they would have clearly been at risk and rightly so.

So by 3 O’clock in the morning the situation was as follows; over 600 to 700 people trying to force their way into the Club, confirmation that Dbanj was no longer attending, latest Dbanj’s  and  Wande songs blaring from the different cars parked in the car park and the club management wondering what they had taken on.

Overall I think from the pictures below you can clearly see that people tried to enjoy themselves without Dbanj in attendance, the promoters and club management were the big winners on the night as they clearly made a lot of money.

The two lessons I believe should have been learnt are as follows;

1)      As African entertainment gets even more sophisticated and attracting even more talented individuals both in the west and in Africa; musicians, actors, models, comedians etc are now beginning to compete with their black American counterparts and should be afforded the same type of treatment or close.

African entertainers have come a long way and are probably more admired by Africans in Diaspora who don’t get to see enough of them.  Any time there is such an event the organisers should be prepared for the kind of crowd that may show up.

2) There is clearly a huge appetite possibly out of nostalgia for African type entertainment or entertainers, which will explain the numbers that turned out for this after concert party, but one, will hope that promoters and organisers of such events will not take advantage of the situation and be fair.

We live in a different society from Nigeria or other African countries and it would have been best to let people into the club on a first come first serve basis, instead of instituting a class system that ended up almost ruining what could have been one of the greatest after concert parties held in honour of an African Musician in the UK in more recent times and we could have all got the chance to party with Dbanj.

                                                Sylvia Tansali - August 31st 2009

 

 

 

 

Brand new singles from the talented Niger-Delta babe! As some of you may already know, she was the 1st Runner-Up at the 2008 Idols West Africa. She also laid a verse on the “Inspire Africa All Stars” track we all fell in love with.

Here’s the Diva’s follow-up effort to “In the Music.”


Go to this link to listen to the songs..... I think she did a good job and would definitely go far.....


http://www.facebook.com/ext/share.php?sid=88573699134&h=rJfvz&u=6EkOR&ref=mf

 – Dayo (D1) Adeneye
By Taiwo Oluwadare
Saturday, May 30, 2009

Dayo Adeneye, a radio/T.V presenter, has carved a niche for himself in broadcasting as well as entertainment. Prime Time Africa, a programme that he anchors with his bosom friend and colleague, Kenny Ogungbe, is a rave both on radio and television.

But Adeneye aka D1 and Kenny are more visible in the entertainment sector with their record label, Kennis Music, which they floated during their days in Ray Power FM.
When the recording industry seemed dead with the collapse of major labels, the duo of D1 and Kenny went into the business headlong.

They discovered artistes like The Remedy, Paul Play, Tony Tetuila and invested huge amount of money on them. Indeed, their efforts have helped propel the growth of the music industry. In this encounter with Blockbuster, Adeneye recalls how it all started and talks on other issues like piracy, family life, his friend, Kenny Ogungbe and challenges facing the industry.

Beginning
We went into the music business when nobody was there. We invested our money, blood and sweat when everybody said music business was dead. Who discovered artistes like the Remedy, Tony Tetula and Paul Play Dairo? Who invested in them? We invested our money and sweat on them. So, why wouldn’t we always be visible? We can’t take the credit; it is God. But we are glad to be part of the process and for being the instruments to fortify the Nigerian music industry. So, why should we take a back seat having propelled this growth of the industry? We should be at the forefront.

What motivated me into entertainment
I like imparting knowledge in people. I like putting smiles on people’s faces, to make them relax either through music or entertainment programmes. It gives me joy and a sense of fulfillment. Whenever people stop me on the street, saying “we like what you do”, it makes me feel I’m doing what people appreciate and this makes me want to do more.

Economic meltdown and entertainment
Yes, it is a worldwide phenomenon. So, Nigeria cannot be isolated. The financial crunch is affecting everybody especially the multi-nationals. Of course, it is affecting the entertainment industry as people who would normally book like 20 to 30 artistes for shows are now reducing it to 5 or 10. And those who used to pay three or four million naira for artistes are now paying like N5,000. In the area of sponsorship of events, most organizations are pruning down because of financial constraints. Let’s pray and hope that things would pick up soon.

However, our movies and music are beginning to take a centre stage not just in Africa but across the world. The likes of Tuface, 9ice, Ruggedman and D’banj continue to represent Nigeria internationally. They consistently have won international awards. Our Nollywood movies have been quite well. I hope we can capitalize on that and turn it into a vibrant moneymaking machine that government and people of Nigeria can also benefit from.

Challenges facing the industry
There are a lot of things that need to be done. You can have the best idea in the world but if you don’t have a way to execute it, it would remain just an idea. We need to have bigger and better awards. We need to have better technology, music production, video productions, and better film making equipment. All these things cost money. That is why we keep asking government to invest in entertainment. If government invests in the entertainment industry and eradicate piracy, artistes will be able to earn their proper incomes and pay their taxes.

My friend, Kenny Ogungbe
Both of us met in school. We were basically in the same class for almost five years, studying accounting. We became very good friends. We left Ray Power because we just decided to move on. It was just another pace of life. We just felt we’ve done most we could do in that environment. It’s just like a bird, if it’s time for it to leave its nest it flaps its wing and takes off. It was just time to move on and thank God we don’t have any regret.

On Kennis Music and Prime Time Africa
We just get the job done. Here we have a Managing Director; we call ourselves partners and get the jobs done. And that is the secret of our success. The brand, Primetime Africa is what we sell here. We believe if we are successful, everybody gets to share the glory.

Why artistes are leaving Kennis Music
You need to ask them why they left. I’m the wrong person to ask. But I’ll tell you the only thing constant in life is change. Some of them, their contracts expired and both parties agree not to renew. It is not peculiar to Kennis Music alone. Go to Westside Music or Little Fish Record some of them don’t even exist anymore. So, that is the trend in the business. I don’t want to respond to the allegation that we don’t pay royalty to our artistes. You need to bring me those people instigating the allegation. You are a journalist; you should bring me the person that said this artiste is not paid. What you are telling me is a rumour and I don’t respond to rumours.

What fame has done for me
I don’t want to say that fame is a double-edged sword. It opens door for you but at the same time, you lose your privacy. You don’t have time for yourself anymore. But the advantages have outweighed its disadvantages. I love what I do.

Most embarrassing moment
It was some years back in AIT when a female presenter and I were presenting the morning show. She dropped a pen during a commercial break. I tried to pick up the pen and she also tried to pick up the pen not knowing we were live on TV. The situation was really awkward. It was like we were doing something we were not supposed to be doing. That was quite embarrassing but we laughed over it.

How I met my wife
I met my wife through my father. He introduced her to me. That’s all. Today, I’m happily married with children. My wife supports me; she and the children enjoy what I do. I love my family life.