Popular music producer, Wole Oni, is credited with producing evergreen songs such as Ko s’Oba Bire by Folake Umosen, Olo Mi by Tosin Martins, Ijoba Orun by Lara George and probably the greatest gospel song in recent times, Igwe, by Midnight Crew. He’s also a jazz pianist and is sought after for concert performances. In this interview with OSEYIZA OOGBODO, the music producer speaks about his career. Excerpts:
You’re one of Nigeria’s hottest and most successful music producers …
(Cuts in with laughter) By His grace.
What can you tell us about the music industry right now? Some people believe it’s developing, while some say it’s not. What’s your own honest view?
Well, I think before now, we can see the success of the development. But about a year or thereabout now, because of the economic state, it’s been slacking. It has not really been as fluent as it should be. No thanks to our government, anyway. However, artistes and entertainers on their own part are trying to push us on the international perspective, which I think are cutting edges and they’re breaking through. Why do I say that? It’s because, of course, I’m also one of those who can say that music from Africa has gained more recognition in terms of what it used to be. People used to have an industry craze about what we have here in Africa. But entertainment in itself is reshaping the minds of the international world about who we are as Nigerians and to see our creativity. So, I think that in that direction, we’ve done very well for ourselves. Yes, we’re hoping to do more when the funds are there. Any industry will be great when the funding is there. I’ve seen the film, Black Panther, shot with two hundred million dollars. Come on. If we have such money in Nigeria to shoot a movie, I’m sure everybody will die. They’ll say, die put. So, but by and large, we’re trying to prepare ourselves gradually for what the real industry is supposed to be, whereby people have their own intellectual property protected and you have your hard labour being paid for and being appreciated. Not just that, you have to be in every movie or every music to survive, which is almost like working from hand to mouth. People should be able to do one project that is big and be able to, at least, go on one year vacation to refresh. But I think, in a nutshell, the Nigerian entertainment industry is gaining weight every day, but I just pray that the country will be balanced such that everything will be as they should be.
Music is my calling, but I never had the intention of doing music full time. But of course, as God would have it, this is my calling, and it’s not a hobby; it’s not a roadside decision that I made. It’s how God wanted me to be. So, music production is my thing, it’s my calling; so I embrace it with everything one hundred per cent
Upcoming artistes complain that they find it difficult to work with top producers like you, because you’re so expensive. Do you agree?
Well, I don’t think anything is expensive, for excellence and for what is good. Anything that is not good, they say, comes cheap, but not every time. But I feel that if you know the worth of what you’re looking for, it’s not about…because in this part of the world, nobody pays royalties. It’s a pay-off. If I do a work for you and you get to earn millions afterwards, I’ve just been paid off with some sort of small change of thousands. So, I have in a way, shortchanged myself. So, I think people should say we should build relationships, rather than to say they’re expensive. If you build a relationship with your producer, everybody has their own way of running things. In Nigeria, there’s no light. You want to come to studio and feel relaxed and enjoy the air conditioner. You want to hear good sound. It costs money to do all that. And then you’ll pay people who work with you as well; so people should also try to understand that it’s nobody’s fault. If the power system in Nigeria is stable, definitely, you can even do people good. And I’ve been saying this all along, if you’re good, you can sing; producers will be interested in working with you. But if you cannot even sing, what’s the essence? You don’t have money, you don’t have voice. So, what does the producer stand to gain? It’s just a waste of time.
Now, what’s the secret of your own success as a producer? Let me come from this perspective now. You’ve broken the bounds, because normally the industry is about dance music. But you’ve produced songs such as Ijoba Orun and Olo Mi that are not dance music and yet they became very successful. Do you have a particular secret?
Well, the secret is God. The secret is the spirit of the song. Some people don’t understand that music is like a spirit. You don’t see sound, but you can feel it, you can express music; so if you have the right spirit in the song, the right lyrics, think of posterity, of a long term thing, not just a micro-wave short term music, that will help. But for me, I think it’s God. God in my music makes the difference. There’s nothing else. I’m connected to the highest first.
So, what actually made you go into music and not some other profession?
Well, music is my calling, but I never had the intention of doing music full time. But of course, as God would have it, this is my calling, and it’s not a hobby; it’s not a roadside decision that I made. It’s how God wanted me to be. So, music production is my thing, it’s my calling; so I embrace it with everything one hundred per cent.
Most people prefer to sing. It makes them more popular. But you’re a producer. Why are you not singing too? Can’t you sing?
I can sing, but you see, sometimes my call role as who God made me is to make nothing to something. That’s my call role. So, it’s not to compete. I mean, I’m an artiste, but I’m a jazz artiste. I do not sing. I sing in my own different way.
