Oyo State Governor of Performing Musicians Association of Nigeria (PMAN), Evangelist Taiwo Omotunde, has urged the Nigerian government to take drastic action to curb the menace of piracy that is negatively affecting the entertainment industry in the country.
Making this assertion while featuring on a weekly radio program ‘Parrot Xtra Hour on Radio anchored by Olayinka Agboola in Ibadan recently, Evangelist Omotunde said “The advent of social media has helped the music industry but on the other hand, piracy has done a lot of damages to the sector and the federal government must intensify efforts to curb this menace that is killing the entertainment industry”.
Speaking further, the two term PMAN Governor reiterated that the place of Juju music in the entertainment industry remains sacrosanct as other genres of music depend largely on Juju music to be relevant.
He added that the issue of dynamism and styles attached to the different forms of music has made people to cherish other genres of music that gives them satisfaction.
“The future of Juju music in Nigeria is bright, it is evolving everyday because of its dynamism and it is fast transforming into other forms of music. Juju music cannot die rather it has come to take its rightful space among the genres of music such as Afro, Apala, Reggae, Hip pop, Fuji”.
On his the style and approach to music, Evangelist Omotunde said “I play all kinds of music especially juju music, the border of music has been wiped off, in those days, people identify you by the type of music you play but now the versatility of musicians has improved.
“I play a lot of Jazz, Juju and Gospel music, because it is a matter of the heart. Music has its basic rudiments and because of my Christian background, I also play gospel music but I am proud to be known as a Juju musician”.
Speaking on his recently released album, “My three latest albums are collections of powerful and inspirational substance that promote good ethics and to educate our leaders on what is expected of them. The three albums comprise of my hits songs, full gospel and the composition of current affairs to educate our leaders.”
The musician, who has been around for over four decades, however, lamented that the daunting challenges facing the industry can force talented musicians out of the industry.
“The entertainment industry is not very strong in Nigeria again because there are no more recording companies. Nowadays, the musician is the producer, promoter and this is making music to become very difficult in Nigeria.
It is only the partying culture that is helping musicians to survive in the Southwestern part of Nigeria. All thanks be God, though it has not been easy to survive in this economy but when you have the skills, coupled with the moral, financial and physical support of people, it becomes easier”.
Packaged by Lanre Olabisi
