By Segun Ajiboye Segunsmart002@yahoo.com
Early in his life, Chief Sunday Adeniyi Adegeye, known worldwide as King Sunny Ade (KSA), had a picture of what he wanted to be in mind. As a prince of the Ondo Kingdom, his parents wanted their first son to be educated and become either a doctor or a lawyer. But young Adeniyi had a different dream. His role models were not the few lawyers or doctors scattered around the town but a local musician.
Born in 1946 in Oshogbo, young Adeniyi dropped out of school after only one term in the secondary school in 1963 in order to learn the trade that has so much enthralled his young mind.
More than five decades after dumping education for the microphone, followed by several years of regrets for his action, despite all the fame, KSA says his regrets have finally been washed away.
Five decades after running away from home and ditching education for music, KSA has through lots of hard work emerged a living legend. All over the world, he has become a household name while his educational shortcoming has been erased by his strings of successes on stage. Today
His new-found joy is the result of a recent award of a Distinguished Fellow and Artiste in Residence of the distinguished Obafemi Awolowo University Ile-Ife. The award, aside from honouring the first Nigerian Grammy Award nominee, also bestowed on him the honour of being a lecturer in the university and the establishment of a KSA Academy of Music.
“If it was about 10 years ago, I still nursed my regrets about not having a university education. But all that have been erased by my recent award. I never expected to be honoured by a famous university as the OAU. It is indeed a great honour for me and the entire Nigerian musicians.”
In a part of the world where honours are often bestowed posthumously, KSA says he is particularly happy that he is being honoured while alive. “It is a glorious thing that I am being honoured while alive. I feel great and happy about the whole thing.”
To those who know him well enough, it can never be surprising that the university has found KSA worthy of such honour. Indeed, the award, which he confessed he cherish most, is only one of the many that have come to define KSA as a music legend.
In 1982, he was signed on by international record label, Island Records, to produce works for North American and European markets. While the relationship lasted, KSA came out with three hit albums, Juju Music, Syncro System and Aura.
With the success, he emerged as the first Nigerian musician to be nominated for the prestigious Grammy Award. While you may believe that it should be his best, he soon came up with more award-winning hits that earned him titles, such as Golden Mercury of Africa and Master Guitarist among others.
“You cannot be faulted if you believe those awards were the height of my career. But the OAU award stands closest to my heart. It is one award that I’ll forever cherish.”
Ask him which of his numerous hit tracks he loves most, and he would not blink an eyelid before shooting back. “All of them. Each song has its own meaning and time. I did each for a particular reason and season.”
With each award, he had always thought his best had come. But even before the ink dries on the plaque, another award would have come his way. “When I got the award of the Golden Mercury of Africa, I thought that was the best. But I soon go a Grammy nomination, and I shouted this is the best. But more and wore have come over the years.”
While it is an open secret that women and music are inseparable Siamese twins, the fact remains that KSA has had a fair share of them, and he has never hidden his love for the daughters of Eve.
The reason, KSA disclosed, is that women are an essential part of a man’s life. “You don’t say no to a woman. They are essential to the life of any man. But you have to be careful how you accede to her request. I can confess to you that women have supported me a lot in my career.
How then, does he handle them? He confessed that he has his special way of handling them. According to him, the female folks are to be honoured and admired by men. “You don’t handle women when children are present because they are to be honoured and admired.”
However, in spite of the huge numbers of women in his life, KSA says he holds one closest to his heart. “My mother is the closest woman to me. These days, as she grows older, I wished she would get younger again.”
With a stature that belies his 63 years sojourn on earth, KSA says he still does most of the things he did when he was much younger. Perhaps as testimony of this, KSA, in his latest album last December dedicated a track to “Ololufe Mi” (my lover). This, he explained is because “love makes the world a beautiful place. Don’t you know that love knows no age barrier? It does not matter whether you are old or young when you are in love.”
Though a prince of Ondo Kingdom, KSA is contented being king of music. For him, the dreams of becoming the monarch someday does not arise, the throne, he said will deny him his freedom. “Me, become king someday? The answer is no. If I become a king, how would I come out and sit with you here. How will I handle my fans and my job?”
Though, he would acknowledge his personal effort to maintain a trim-fit stature, KSA attributed it mostly to “God’s grace and blessing. I try not to be bothered by any thing. You don’t allow problems to weigh you down by carrying the problems of the entire world on your head.”
However, much more than his ‘simple attitude’ to problems, KSA enjoys his daily game of tennis, squash and a long walk in his home. “I play lots of games in my home. Most times I play lawn tennis or squash. Other times, I walk round the compound.”
Aside from his beautiful lyrics, KSA has undoubtedly endeared himself to his ever-growing fans with his deft dance steps and stage craft. Though he might have been slowed down a little bit by age, he still very much displays those beautiful dance steps which only he knows how to do well.”
With several platinum awards-winning albums to his credit, KSA says he is still “struggling to attain my best. My best is yet to come.”
If his past is anything to go by, KSA is expected to live up to his words of attaining his best in the future. He has had to fight series of battles to establish himself as the unrivalled king of world beats.
At different times, he was rumoured to have lost his mind while on a tour. His most dramatic turn around was sometime in the 90s when he was rumoured to have died. But he ‘resurrected’ with yet another award-winning hit.
Another kind of battle that he has fought, unfortunately unsuccessfully, is the fight against pirates who have made life miserable for Nigerian musicians. The war, he said he has fought on two fronts-as an artiste and a label owner. “These pirates are wicked. They have killed many artistes with their devilish acts. I have been fighting them as an artiste and a record label owner.”
With close to five decades on the stage, KSA is not ready to quit any time soon. As a matter of fact, KSA and his entire band is billed to embark on a world musical tour in a couple of days.
The tour, which would see him perform in 22 cities in the USA and Canada, he disclosed may be expanded to include Asia and Europe. While KSA is not new to touring the world with his band, this trip, he confessed is particularly important to him, because he would be performing at the famous Hollywood Bow almost two decades after his last performance there in the early 90s.
Born in 1946 in Oshogbo, young Adeniyi dropped out of school after only one term in the secondary school in 1963 in order to learn the trade that has so much enthralled his young mind.
More than five decades after dumping education for the microphone, followed by several years of regrets for his action, despite all the fame, KSA says his regrets have finally been washed away.
Five decades after running away from home and ditching education for music, KSA has through lots of hard work emerged a living legend. All over the world, he has become a household name while his educational shortcoming has been erased by his strings of successes on stage. Today
His new-found joy is the result of a recent award of a Distinguished Fellow and Artiste in Residence of the distinguished Obafemi Awolowo University Ile-Ife. The award, aside from honouring the first Nigerian Grammy Award nominee, also bestowed on him the honour of being a lecturer in the university and the establishment of a KSA Academy of Music.
“If it was about 10 years ago, I still nursed my regrets about not having a university education. But all that have been erased by my recent award. I never expected to be honoured by a famous university as the OAU. It is indeed a great honour for me and the entire Nigerian musicians.”
In a part of the world where honours are often bestowed posthumously, KSA says he is particularly happy that he is being honoured while alive. “It is a glorious thing that I am being honoured while alive. I feel great and happy about the whole thing.”
To those who know him well enough, it can never be surprising that the university has found KSA worthy of such honour. Indeed, the award, which he confessed he cherish most, is only one of the many that have come to define KSA as a music legend.
In 1982, he was signed on by international record label, Island Records, to produce works for North American and European markets. While the relationship lasted, KSA came out with three hit albums, Juju Music, Syncro System and Aura.
With the success, he emerged as the first Nigerian musician to be nominated for the prestigious Grammy Award. While you may believe that it should be his best, he soon came up with more award-winning hits that earned him titles, such as Golden Mercury of Africa and Master Guitarist among others.
“You cannot be faulted if you believe those awards were the height of my career. But the OAU award stands closest to my heart. It is one award that I’ll forever cherish.”
Ask him which of his numerous hit tracks he loves most, and he would not blink an eyelid before shooting back. “All of them. Each song has its own meaning and time. I did each for a particular reason and season.”
With each award, he had always thought his best had come. But even before the ink dries on the plaque, another award would have come his way. “When I got the award of the Golden Mercury of Africa, I thought that was the best. But I soon go a Grammy nomination, and I shouted this is the best. But more and wore have come over the years.”
While it is an open secret that women and music are inseparable Siamese twins, the fact remains that KSA has had a fair share of them, and he has never hidden his love for the daughters of Eve.
The reason, KSA disclosed, is that women are an essential part of a man’s life. “You don’t say no to a woman. They are essential to the life of any man. But you have to be careful how you accede to her request. I can confess to you that women have supported me a lot in my career.
How then, does he handle them? He confessed that he has his special way of handling them. According to him, the female folks are to be honoured and admired by men. “You don’t handle women when children are present because they are to be honoured and admired.”
However, in spite of the huge numbers of women in his life, KSA says he holds one closest to his heart. “My mother is the closest woman to me. These days, as she grows older, I wished she would get younger again.”
With a stature that belies his 63 years sojourn on earth, KSA says he still does most of the things he did when he was much younger. Perhaps as testimony of this, KSA, in his latest album last December dedicated a track to “Ololufe Mi” (my lover). This, he explained is because “love makes the world a beautiful place. Don’t you know that love knows no age barrier? It does not matter whether you are old or young when you are in love.”
Though a prince of Ondo Kingdom, KSA is contented being king of music. For him, the dreams of becoming the monarch someday does not arise, the throne, he said will deny him his freedom. “Me, become king someday? The answer is no. If I become a king, how would I come out and sit with you here. How will I handle my fans and my job?”
Though, he would acknowledge his personal effort to maintain a trim-fit stature, KSA attributed it mostly to “God’s grace and blessing. I try not to be bothered by any thing. You don’t allow problems to weigh you down by carrying the problems of the entire world on your head.”
However, much more than his ‘simple attitude’ to problems, KSA enjoys his daily game of tennis, squash and a long walk in his home. “I play lots of games in my home. Most times I play lawn tennis or squash. Other times, I walk round the compound.”
Aside from his beautiful lyrics, KSA has undoubtedly endeared himself to his ever-growing fans with his deft dance steps and stage craft. Though he might have been slowed down a little bit by age, he still very much displays those beautiful dance steps which only he knows how to do well.”
With several platinum awards-winning albums to his credit, KSA says he is still “struggling to attain my best. My best is yet to come.”
If his past is anything to go by, KSA is expected to live up to his words of attaining his best in the future. He has had to fight series of battles to establish himself as the unrivalled king of world beats.
At different times, he was rumoured to have lost his mind while on a tour. His most dramatic turn around was sometime in the 90s when he was rumoured to have died. But he ‘resurrected’ with yet another award-winning hit.
Another kind of battle that he has fought, unfortunately unsuccessfully, is the fight against pirates who have made life miserable for Nigerian musicians. The war, he said he has fought on two fronts-as an artiste and a label owner. “These pirates are wicked. They have killed many artistes with their devilish acts. I have been fighting them as an artiste and a record label owner.”
With close to five decades on the stage, KSA is not ready to quit any time soon. As a matter of fact, KSA and his entire band is billed to embark on a world musical tour in a couple of days.
The tour, which would see him perform in 22 cities in the USA and Canada, he disclosed may be expanded to include Asia and Europe. While KSA is not new to touring the world with his band, this trip, he confessed is particularly important to him, because he would be performing at the famous Hollywood Bow almost two decades after his last performance there in the early 90s.
No comments:
Post a Comment