Omotola was success and success was Omotola.
Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde was living what you’d describe as the dream. Married to a pilot at age 18, landed a major role in 1995 which also served as her second film; made over 300 appearances in Nollywood films and was a major act in the 2010 film Ije, Nollywood highest grossing film.
With all of these achievements and the fulfilment she got from these, Jalade-Ekeinde decided to try music. You see, music was becoming a fast-rising industry. With Kennis Music proudly airing Nigerian music to Africa through their channel, Nigerians soon discovered the gold that Kennis had to offer. Much of Kennis success story revolved around their star boy Tuface who had become Nigeria’s biggest export with his song, African Queen.
While Nigerians were full of appreciation, there was also an emerging lyrical problem that soon took over the music industry. Nigerians were gradually easing into the no-content lyric and dancehall sound.
This lyrical factor saw actors tap into it and soon, Nigerians such as Nkem Owoh and Genevive Nnaji joined the bandwagon.
Unlike the others, Omotola jumped on collaborations with Sound Sultan and Ruggedman and raves of the moment and released her 2005 album Gba.
Gba enjoyed massive airplay. With Gba, Omotola could easily have nods but that was shortlived because Jalade-Ekeinde was the name that sold the song and Nigerians had not yet embraced this form of sale method. It also had strong competition such as Psquare’s Bizzy Body, Styl-Plus – Olufunmi and Dbanj’s Tongolo.
Fast forward to 10 years later, the Nigerian music industry has noticeably changed. On one side of the coin, the lyrical content is on a continuous downward spiral. However, one thing stands out: an artiste who has become a familiar face will sell more than an upcoming artiste whose rich and thought-provoking content.
And we cannot forget the beatmakers and mixers who are the heroes’ wearing the cape.
On the other side, there is the peculiar and mainstream market which allows artistes in new genres such as the Alte thrive.
This is what Jalade-Ekeinde might have going for her. She opined in her interview with Vanguard that she is certain that she will make a comeback. However, even her son thinks that she might not be as good as she thinks. Despite offering to have a collaboration with him, she says, “but he says, ‘It is not me you would use to blow’”
Over to you to prove you can blow Omosexy!
