What Are Our Favored Celebs Doing Now?

Writing for Leadership newspaper, Samuel Abulude and Obianuju Asika, writers on the entertainment industry, examine the lives and personalities of artists, comedians and actors who seem to have fallen off the Nigerian entertainment radar.

Majek Fashek

Majek Fashek is presently in the northern part of the country laundering the image of the president, Dr Goodluck Jonathan for the upcoming elections. The rastaman whose latest album, Dancing Rasta is yet to be released, has been battling with ill health since he relocated back to Nigeria, due to personal problems that greatly affected his health. Gone are the days when the rainmaker was bubbly, robust and the cynosure of all eyes because of his talent. Majek’s talent is not in doubt. The reggae musician who has been a professional singer for over 25 years has had his glory days. He was the first Nigerian singer to have his debut album shoot to international acclaim.

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Baba Suwe

November 2011 would always be an unforgettable day for Babatunde Omidina aka Baba Suwe’s. He is yet to recover from the events of that day. The veteran actor cum comedian was the toast of fans of Yoruba movies in the 2000s. The accomplished comedian appeared in a lot of movies during that period, but life has not been the same again for him as a result of his arrest at he Lagos airport by anti-narcotic agents for allegedly concealing drugs in his stomach. Though he sued the NDLEA and won the case, with a compensation of two thousand pounds awarded to him, Baba Suwe hasn’t collected the money and sadly the person at the forefront of the law suit, Barrister Bamidele Aturu, died last year and that somewhat put paid to the case. Since then, ‘Adimeru’ has largely been shunned by corporate bodies and others.

In an interview, the comic actor confessed facing hard times as a result of the protracted drug saga. He lamented, “I have not collected any compensation money from NDLEA yet. The most painful thing is that I was wrongly accused. Had it been I actually committed the crime, I wouldn’t mind, but they just punished me for nothing. I was in NDLEA custody for almost three weeks, and nothing was found on me. No matter the kind of juju one may have, I don’t think there is anybody that can conceal cocaine for even two days. Even a lot of people that could have assisted me financially don’t want to associate with me again. People within and outside the industry have deserted me on account of the allegation. They still doubt me despite my victory in court. I have sung praises of some people in some of my movies, and I always appreciate whatever they give me. This makes a lot of people close to me. For instance, I was close to Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu before and he was very nice to me. But now, it’s very difficult for me to be close to him. He is even not comfortable seeing me around him again because of the allegation. I don’t enjoy people’s love and admiration like before because people still believe that it was true,” he lamented.

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Eddy (Brown) Remedies

Eddy Asiedu Brown was the vocalist among the famed Remedies group which pioneered Hip Hop music in Nigeria in the late 90s and early 2000. Eddy Montana, as he was , was part of the group which churned out hits like Shako Mo, Omode Meta, to name a few. Other members are the rapper, Idris Abdulkareem and Tony Tetuila. They have since parted ways, but the Remedies were the toast of parties and clubs during that period. Signed under Kennis Music, The Remedies enjoyed enormous patronage, but where are the trio now? Eddy Remedy, according to some quarters, has not recovered from his messy divorce from Kennis Music singer and executive, Kenny St Brown, nee Ogungbe.

Eddy has now remixed his Shako Mo hit song and is using the platform to re-launch his embattled musical career. Reports say the singer is not in a good state financially.

Feyikogbon (Yinka Ikudaisi)

Feyikogbon is the popular drama series akin to the famed Tales By Moonlight. It was aired every Sunday on NTA 7, Tejuoso now NTA 10. The producer, Yinka Ikudaisi had started Feyikogbon from the NTV in 1978 and it is reputed to be the longest running Yoruba drama series.

The series came back on DSTV last year, featuring a blended cast of young artistes and veterans like Bimbo, Amuda and the narrator, Ajobiewe. The actor who is aged now was reported to have acquired numerous wives while his soap was the toast of TV. Feyikogbon married a number of talented actresses who featured in his productions. Now the actor whose drama series was gold, is living in the shadow of the times, struggling to eke out a living with his many wives, though some of them have deserted him according to news making the rounds.

Baba Sala

Baba Sala’s story is a sad tale. He obtained a loan from the now closed National Bank to produce his movie, Mose Bolatan. The movie underwent post production in London and the veteran comedian, elated that he had done a major work that would fetch him millions after it is screened, came back to Nigeria, The Ilesha-born actor was greeted with the news that the Mose Bolatan VHS was already being sold on the streets. This sad development took Baba’s bubbling career backward, leaving him in debt running into millions. Some even alleged that Baba was partly responsible for National Bank going bankrupt.

In 2012, Moses Olaiya (his real name) was spotted at LTV 8 Ground, in Ikeja during the festive period. He was still his comical self though age had caught up with him. The septuagenarian had to come from his Ilesha abode to monitor the screening of his movie, Orun Moor. Elder Moses Olaiya was instrumental in birthing the career of King Sunny Ade and , Michael Abulude.

Blackface

Black Face was with the famous trio Plantasun Boyz alongside 2face and Faze. The group made platinum songs that shot them to the top before they decided to call it quits in 2004. Black Face co-wrote the famous African Queen that became Tuface’s hit song. He continued with his solo career and released some songs but never got the recognition that would have made him a bigger brand.

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Baba Fryo

This Nigerian ghetto singer from Ajegunle who was born Friday Igwe is famous for his hit street song Dem Go Dey Pose in the late 90s. He did some songs after the popular anthem, but sadly never made another hit like the first. He seems to have fallen into the category of one-hit wonders. In an interview, he expressed his frustrations as a musician but since then, nothing new has been heard from the once famous artiste.

Recently, Bracket spoke on the allegations making the rounds that they are gay.

Source: Legit.ng