Just Charly by Charly Boy
Twitter: @Areafada1
Last week I visited the two warring factions of my once great union, Performing Musicians Employers’ Association of Nigeria (PMAN). It wasn’t a surprise that I still see the same neither here nor there people in circulation hanging around. Both the “find me something” kinda people and the types who can produce any kinda document you want. My heart goes out to Kevin Lucciano and Pretty Okafor, the two people in the eye of the storm.
Life is never fair and human beings seem not to ever learn. To survive and thrive in a now ragtag union as PMAN, no thanks to Dele Abiodun, we need to always be on our toes, alert and agile. No room for slackers and draggers.
My one term presidency of PMAN taught me so much. It was fun that my role as Charlyboy and leadership style was juxtaposed by different adjectives in ways I could not necessarily be defined – Machiavelli style, soft yet so fierce, gentle and rough, kind and mean. There was a little twist in character as my journey then unveiled before me on a daily basis, bending corners, roundabouts, junctions and dead ends. Any which way, I am proud to say that I was on top of my game, but it came at a heavy prize. I see orishirishi.
I learnt many things on that journey – to allow a little softness (I think it’s called diplomacy) and a little hardness (sometimes mistaken for gra gra). Complete madness, defined as Charlyboyisim. I found myself adjusting like a chameleon to different situations that called for different solutions.
My early experience in life and ruggedness as a true nwa Biafra helped me weather the storm in 2003 as PMANs president. It was a position I actually didn’t take interest in at first until a lot of people who believed I was what PMAN needed at that time coerced me into wanting to serve the association as its president. PMAN was at its lowest when I became the president; her image and finance were in the gutter. But I was ready to pull my best moves as this was an association I was a member of and the one thing I ever wanted for the association and its members was a tremendous improvement from the way things were. Like a multi lingual Nigeria, PMAN was a mixed grill of jagbajantis, people from different backgrounds (usually dregs), illiterates, semi or night school students, myopic, clique of people whose career was to mess up anything good whether they are part of it or not. Hmmmmm, the people! You either had big balls to deal with them or allow yourself to be messed up by most of the nonentities because of the high level of illiteracy in the union.
King Sunny Ade, late Sony Okosuns, Femi Lasode, late Mustafa Amego, Bolaji Rosiji, Tee Mac and even the very illegal Dele Abiodun all passed through PMAN as presidents. They may have had a game plan but their parachutes never opened, hence their tenure was uneventful and flat; not to be remembered.
Tony Okoroji was one good president PMAN had. His tenure brought “glamour” and reminded Nigerians that artistes are not just drop out. He had what it took to put PMAN on the consciousness of the nation. People who mattered took notice. He surrounded himself with very creative people, and the first and second editions of the Nigerian Music Awards were held. It was our own Oscars back then. He had a plan, BUT…
Late Christy Essien-Igbokwe was another leader who made sure that artistes had a lot of playing engagements. Many had jobs during her reign. Forget for a moment that she led Nigerian artistes to drum up support for ABACHA.
Bottom line is this, to be a successful PMAN leader one needs to have (a) creative intellectual swag and be surrounded by positive and progressive souls, (b) a mission and a conviction that’s hard to bend, (c) you must already have a thriving business of your own, (d) must command respect in government and corporate circles, (e) members must love you for the extra value you bring to their lives or FEAR you because they can’t decode your unpredictability. I had all the above and a bag of potato chips. Yes o! It is much safer to be feared than loved because love is preserved by the link of obligation which, owing to the baseness of men, is broken at every opportunity for their advantage; but fear preserves you by a dread of punishment which never fails.
My tenure saw the vigorous and dynamic rebranding of the union. After that came the advocacy for better pay for the Nigerian artiste from the corporate world. We were tired of the high number of foreign artistes on our soil and the great disrespect some corporate bodies had for local stars. It was a tenure of FIRSTS.
We fought piracy and insured most members to the tune of one million naira each. We made corporate Nigeria pay the union millions of naira for bringing in foreign artistes when our national stars were the greatest consumers of their product. We initiated the first Corporate Night where we had to break down the multi-billion naira industry for Corporate Nigeria. We had unending conferences to get musicians to understand and fight for their damn rights. We were in bed with the Nigerian Stock Exchange, and banks chased us around for our accounts.
No day passed without the mention of PMAN in national dailies. From the National Assembly to the Villa, our presence was felt. All of this happened under my watch for only one term of two years. In no time, members became proud of their union and walked a few inches taller.
However, it wasn’t a bed of roses. There was a sect who believed that PMAN was their “thing” Majority came from the West, as Lagos was the headquarter and the melting pot of entertainment. They were quick to form useless and uncoordinated opposition that always fell like a pack of cards. I had a terrible habit of ass kicking, after all I send dem? I was ever ready to deal with this opposition by fire, force and of cause the anointing. I was filled with different spirits and no one could guess which one would jump out. I never ever suffer fools gladly.
Today, PMAN is a ghost of itself – no permanent address, no fixed leadership; it is like a ship without a captain. Being PMAN president is a sacrifice, a thankless job, if you have the time and passion to fix things. You must have to fight for the benefit of the people first, even when they don’t appreciate it in the beginning.
The fight for more money and respect for Naija artistes became more heated when I insisted that PMAN will not tolerate any more foreign acts on our soil if corporate bodies didn’t cooperate. I was locked up for three weeks in Abuja when Ja Rule came to perform in Nigeria because Festus Odimegwu, the then MD of Nigeria Breweries, and his crew were scared of what the union or Charlyboy would do. But hey, sometimes, that is what a leader has to endure for the good of his people.
With all my effort, there were some people likes Daddy Showkey, Mama G, even my Vice President Dele Abiodun who were tutored by Nigerian Breweries to campaign against me when I was in the police cell after collecting peanuts. They alleged that I wasn’t their president and that I had no right to stop foreign artistes from coming to play in Naija. The people I was fighting for were fighting me for protecting their rights and dignity. Chai! Dia is God ooooo. This kind of people are everywhere, but they should never be able to stop a leader who has the interest of the people at heart to do what he ought to do.
So between Kevin and Pretty, who should we support? Who says they can’t come together. But first, all the witches, riff raffs, expired products still hanging around on both sides of the divide must be finally put in the trash can where they belong.
Oginidi. Shame to bad people.
