Falz raises concern about music content in Nigeria; calls for artists to be role models

It is quite unfortunate that Nigeria seems to be on quick sand. We keep grasping straws in the hope to find answers. Maybe it is our politicians, civil servants, or the entertainers, but we cannot really figure out where to start solving this problem we call a country.  There is a Twitter video of Falz the Bahd Guy lending a voice to the endless appeal for decorum within the entertainment industry.

Falz thinks the problem of social misdemeanour among young Nigerians is related to the content of music productions.  He may be right, but I think entertainers are just what they are: glorified circus shows. The circus will go to any length to keep you entertained and spending.

Falz mentions “entertainers” in the video, but a lot of conjectures points to the new song by 9ice – Living Things. Falz says “as an entertainer, sing about something that can help our life. Paint a picture, tell a story, don’t glorify fraudulent behaviour.” He has made an attempt to sound like there may be yet something to emulate from entertainment. Maybe tomorrow, the Nigerian youth would actually take classroom notes while sitting in front of the TV screen. Maybe Yahoo buys will stop spending their ill-gotten wealth on praise singers.

For now,  what we have are the likes of Olamide and his new Album “The Glory“. The grotesque images are just too disgusting; one would wonder what message such a song seeks to deliver. Doing a song at a burial ground like the Late Micheal Jackson would have been awesome if we do not come from a society where the concept of occultism, death,  ghosts and superstition are not closely bound by non-progressive rancour and debates. Now Olamide’s new album would hit,  the youth will fling Falz’s words out of the window. Indeed, the youth are already cooking up memes to counter Falz’s opinions and continue the glorification of “by any means necessary”.

Olamide will sell,  he counts on the social media battles and hash tag warriors; they never fail.

Nobody really cares about moderation anymore; this is the age of crazy and it sells.  Honestly, if an artiste is not tapping at ridiculously robust backside on TV,  then he is smoking hemp, drinking alcohol, hyping crime or eulogising dead spirits.

I don’t think there is a solution to this phenomenon; this bent of our artistes towards ludicrous styles, thought patterns that have no capacity to ignite progressive debate. We can write epistles like this one you are reading, share videos from Falz and all his wailing companions, but Nigeria will simply keep relying on entertainers for their ability to create gossip, encourage money laundering, credit fraud and reckless lifestyle. It’s just entertainment Sah, they cry, let them continue.