IT still beats my ken how new highlife artiste, Flavour, could have defeated Hip hop giant, 2face, in a stage show, going by the result of the MTV Africa Music Awards (MAMA), which took place in Durban, South Africa, last Saturday. Not that I am less a fan of Flavour N’abania, a contemporary act who continues to assuage my thirst for highlife music, I am more concerned about why the ‘younger’ act could have defeated 2face in the Best Live Act category.
Last year, while doing a compilation of the most popular Nigerian artistes, 2face, I remember, gave me a hell of a problem, plotting him across a graph that had so many aspects of popularity contest. He is one of the oldest among the trending acts, given the number of years he has been in the music business. Most of his peers have fallen along the way; yet, he is not as loud, noisy, publicity-seeking and, perhaps, excessively ambitious as most artistes around.
2face has been an exemplary live performer, especially in the Nigerian entertainment space, where most young artistes do nothing on stage but playbacks. The musician, I dare say, need no erotic dancers to complement his stage act. The guy is as amiable, humorous and entertaining on stage as he is in real life situations. Given a movie situation, Flavour could be regarded as stereotypical character and 2face a flexible, nay round character.
But is it a case of comfort zone that he is not so popular in Africa, to say the least, like the other boys who just sprang up yesterday? Or better still, is it a matter of vogue? Whatever the definition of vogue, 2face has remained constant as the proverbial Northern sun. But on my finger tips, I can count new artistes such as Davido, Iyanya, Wizkid, Kcee and Flavour who have sure votes from fans in South Africa, Kenya, Congo, Ghana etcetera.
Winning awards, most of the time, is a systemic adventure, which does not only rely on the brilliance and unique artistry of a singer is, but also how he is able to capture people of other different cultures through visibility, collaborations and other forms of popular engagements.
Now, I tend to think that the international collaborations which 2face had done merely fell on his laps. Indeed, for example, he had one with T-pain in Rainbow and he is going to perform it before a world-class audience in Texas. No doubt, he will also perform with T-Pain on his (T-Pain) new single, If I Got It, which also has Senegalese-American artiste, Akon. But I think the guy is exploring less of his potentials. He and his management need to knock themselves harder.
On the other hand, it is heartwarming that, among the young artistes in Nigeria, Flavour’s win at the MAMAs points to the fact that there is a gradual paradigm shift; and in no time, the mentorship level for live shows may be on the rise. With the dearth of live artistes in Nigeria, it is worrisome that a grooming platform like the Star Quest reality show had to stop, no thanks to Nigerian Breweries, the organisers of the show, who decided to stop it. But like they say, ‘The show must go on’.
Listening to live music is one of the most pleasurable things you can do during leisure. This is because it is somehow engaging and interactive. It tickles the listener uniquely with familiar songs and brings to the fore the creative prowess of the artiste. It also offers a memorable experience when compared to a videotaped clip.
Live performance is music itself; it is what differentiates a musician from a singer.
Tubaba, as 2face is sometimes called, is one of the most decorated and successful Hip pop artistes in Africa, who have been accepted by the old crops, owing to his ingenuity as a live performer. Perhaps too, he is the artiste with the highest number of collaborations in Nigeria. But 2face’s alliance with a veteran such as Victor Olaiya in a duet is a testimony to his unparallelled gift.
I remember Victor Olaiya saying: “I had, for some time, refused to collaborate with any individual. I wasn’t able to measure the degree of what they could contribute to my music. Most of my numbers, over the years, have been hit numbers. I couldn’t imagine anybody could come and make it ‘hiter’ or better… The chap (Tuface) is very talented. He is respectful and respectable and highly gifted… Tuface is gifted. I adore him, I admire him and I love him. He has most of the qualities I would expect of a young lad like him.”
In recognition of his musical ingenuity , 2face has received one MTV Europe Music Award, one World Music Award, five Headies Awards (Hip-hop award), four Channel O Music Video Awards, one BET award, four MTV Africa Music Awards, one MOBO award and one KORA award, apart from numerous nominations. But he could have won more, if he put his mind to it.
Nevertheless, anyone who has listened to Flavour’s repertoires will agree that, given his enchanting lyrics and powerful vocals, he will continue to remain a delight to music buffs all over the world.
