Minister tasks musicians to produce better music

The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has urged musicians to make better music as music can be an effective tool to correct societal ills when done properly.
Mohammed made this assertion at AFRIMA 3.0 music business roundtable held in Ikeja, Lagos State on Friday.
Mohammed decried the poor quality of music presently produced by musicians and urged them to retrace their footsteps to the past and emulate musical icons such as Fela Anikulapo Kuti, Sunny Okosuns, Marian Makeba and other great African artistes who gave meaning to their music.
Mohammed said: “I am sure many will remember when Nigeria changed from right hand driving to driving on the left.
“The likes of Ebenezer Obey and Ayinla Omowura used their music to sensitize Nigerians.
“That was more effective than thousands of advertisement pages in the Newspaper.
“Also, when Nigeria transited from pound sterling to Naira and Kobo, musicians played a prominent role on sensitizing the public.”
Mohammed also stated that the President Muhammadu Buhari-led government is willing to use music as a tool in the “Change Begins With Me” campaign.
He said: “The Federal Government will leverage on the power of music to promote the national re-orientation tagged: ‘Change Begins With Me’, which was launched by President Buhari on September 8, 2016.
“Because this campaign is about returning to those moral values that stood our country out in good stead, a lot of that can be done through music.
“In other words, music is a powerful tool of advocacy.”
In his remark, the Chairman of the Copyright Society of Nigeria, Tony Okoroji, emphasized that the government has a lot of work to do to assist the music industry beyond paying lip service to the affairs of musicians in the country.
Okoroji urged the government to create enabling laws to protect the interest that will make musicians regain their respect, stating that this will go a long way in restoring sanity and dignity to the industry.
He also regretted the high rate of piracy both in the country and outside the shores of the country, reiterating that unless government puts its feet to the ground, the problem will not be nipped in the bud.
Also, Sandra Oyewole, who is a lawyer, wants the government to have a unit in every police station in the country that will serve as a task force to combat the evil of piracy, stressing that the creative industry provides 27 per cent of employment and as such the government cannot afford to joke with the potential of its members.
Oyewole also pointed out that the Silicon Valley in America provides a robust GDP for the country due to the enabling laws the government put in place to assist it.
In his address, Mike Strano, who is the Chief Executive Officer of Phat Music in Kenya, urged the government and parents to help inculcate sufficient moral values and training in their wards so that if they decide to become musicians tomorrow, they will become great musicians and produce “more proteins” and not the usual “boring stuff” been produced as music.
The Country Head, Ecobank Securities Wealth and Asset Management, Ibukun Oyedeji, also enjoined musicians to always have a backup plan or put a structure in place in case they can no longer use their voice to get their meal tickets.
Oyedeji stressed on the need to plan for rainy days by making wise and profitable investment.
Sound Sultan also wants upcoming musicians to be humble and stay focused as that is the only way they will achieve their goals and get to the summit of their carriers.
The Eagle Online reports that the theme of the music business roundtable was: “Empowering Africa through music.”
It featured musical heavyweights and stakeholders as well as media personnel from all around Africa.