Idol Record Label’s CEO, Lawal Olaide, spoke on issues ranging from record labels and artists rifts, his new undertakings and his plans for his Record Label. Excerpts

THE NEW MUSIC INDUSTRY

We can’t appreciate our artists, producers, video directors, A & R’s, Deejays, OAP’s, Music Ex and more. The industry has grown in leaps and bounds and it’s a goldmine that we have just started reaping from. Nigeria has Grammy, MOBO, MAMA, MTV EMA and all other kind of awards you can even think. Our artistes numbers can favorable stand side by side with foreign artistes that we used to be crazy about and that’s a great development. I came in to add value to the industry by discovering, mentoring, nurturing and managing new talents and that’s why we launched IDOL RECORDS in 2018. It’s been a good and tough ride but we thankful for all we have achieved, lost, learnt and won. There is no plans to back out and we are cooking great stuff already.

RECORD LABELS & ARTISTE RIFT

This is an issue that can’t be addressed in just few minutes of an interview. It’s a virus that is as deadly as Corona honestly. Someone works hard to raise millions then raises the millions and invests in you, out of the love of the business or the love of your person. Sponsors your music videos, fashion needs, mobility and accommodation demands, tours within and even beyond the country and you wake up to offer dramas and make them feel stupid; maligning them and thinking you’ve arrived and can be alone. It is sheer wickedness. I see Showbiz and Entertainment investment as a blind business venture where success can only be achieved with the stubbornness of a goat! There are good and bankable artists for sure. See how Legendary 2face Idibia left Kennis Music. There was no dragging, nor hassles. But all these new boys just want to leave your label with a fight and rush to social media to scream blue murder. I have been there and I have learnt greatly. That’s why I said we’d be back in 2022, reworked, recharged and refreshed to take the industry by storm as we have always hoped. And I’m confident that we will have a great outing. I signed 3 artists and I know how it ended with them on individual notes. We went as far as shooting videos for each and every one of them! They had access to cars and free house and yet they will always still make moves behind the label like the label are some charity vehicle and that’s why we took a break off.

THE NEW VISION

I grew up in a tough environment. My mum raised me as a single parent and she went through lots of hardships to make sure I was fine. She got pregnant as an apprentice with no home of hers yet operating on zero income. She used to squat in the shop where she was training. She worked as a personal washwoman to a particular woman those years just to earn a bowl of soup. When she gets the soup, she now goes about again to hustle for maybe cassava flakes (gaari) or similar products just to keep life moving. I have always hoped and prayed that someday in my life, I want to be able to support people in similar situations. I witnessed these hardships on a first-hand basis so I know to a large extent how tough it is. I’ve seen people lose their kids, parents and family to death, drugs, crime and many other vices solely because of our start and it makes me emotional always. I would have even done this for a while before now but I had to wait on it a bit for me to fix my record label and transportation business, to a sustainable level. And I’m glad we have kicked off. I tagged the project “Raising The New Deborahs” and it’s just an avenue for us to raise our sisters, mothers, daughters to be new queens.

THE ESSENCE OF THE PROJECT

For me, it’s more of charity than anything else. We complain all the time about the government, the society, the this and that. And interestingly we all are parts of the government, society and even the problems. I opine that if I as a business person should pick some 10, 20 people to support and establish and another person that’s blessed and rich does similar before you know it, 2 people have raised 20 to 40 business owners. With joint efforts, we will reduce unemployment and that will, in turn, revitalize our economy. I am not doing this for political or business gains. Although I have friends and family around the world, supporting my movement and we know we’d push it to be bigger, heavier and richer than what it is now. I’ve had this ministry for over 7 years. I do always organize periodic events in March and December but this year, I broke the roles to strike a balance beyond the typical revival, crusade settings. Go to any church, it’s almost 80% of them being women. Always praying and hardly in work or job. So now we’d start empowering our women in Lagos and next stop us Ogun and Oyo and we move like that across till we are everywhere. We’d be giving out cash grants to 30 women and we have a partnership with a global brand to have them train another 20 and we’d finance their start-up. So basically we have a great intention and we are hopeful it goes as planned.

MOVING FORWARD

I didn’t abandon any of my businesses for ministry/charity work. I’m just taking up the work of the ministry to make life better for more people. This is what I was born to do and that’s what has always been my goal since I was a kid. It’s just some form of fulfillment of destiny so that God’s will manifests. I’m a spiritual man and I don’t let my Showbiz interest take over that. D’Banj a few days ago, openly confessed to being born Again”. This is to let us all remember that no matter how hard, crazy or fun-filled it is, heaven should be the goal. For now, there is no activity going on for IDOL RECORDS, but God’s willing in 2022, we’d open our new studio and headquarters and sign one or two artists and a producer too. Nigerian music industry felt our arrival in 2018 and our comeback after a hiatus will definitely be mind-blowing.

FINAL NOTE

One, make sure you have money. It’s a policy of after money, it’s still money, here. These people don’t love you and don’t have loyalty because you are you. Where there is a carcass, vultures will gather. So once you are rich, everyone wants to associate with you. Whether your sound is good or bad, you must have money to push and promote your content. That’s the pushing factor. You must be ready to sacrifice some millions and you must be patient, for the process to get completed. Secondly, have the right team that understands your yearnings not those who want to just milk you off and act unbothered when the chips are down. And lastly, don’t think because it’s blinking, it’s all pure gold and diamonds. It’s not always smooth on the inside so get in and understudy people and situations before taking a side. It’s not an easy ride but so many people have had successful outings so it’s sure that success is possible.