I am Saheed Ojubanire, a journalist, blogger, publicist, author, award organiser (IMAN Awards), media consultant and media manager to Fuji music star, Alhaji (Dr.) Sefiu Alao Adekunle, Baba Oko, Agbara Orin. Interestingly, today, Friday, 25th February, 2022, makes it two years exactly that I was officially unveiled as the media manager to the Fuji music star.
And in commemoration of the two year anniversary of mingling and relating closely with one of the thoroughly talented Fuji artistes Nigeria has seen, I have decided to tell you about “The Sefiu Alao You Don’t Know” which is the theme of this narrative. Now, that you are fully informed of the reason for the reading expedition you are about to embark upon, can you please fasten your seat belt, and let’s go!
But before I begin to tell you about “The Sefiu Alao You Don’t Know”, it would be proper to say a little about the Sefiu Alao you probably know. So, the Sefiu Alao you know is a Fuji music star in Nigeria who is based in Abeokuta, Ogun State, which, interestingly, is his home state. The Sefiu Alao you know is the very busy musician who gets engagements for shows every day of the week, regardless of whether it is weekend or week days. Very few Fuji music stars are that busy, you know.
Now to the crux of the matter: “The Sefiu Alao You Don’t Know”. My close relationship with Sefiu Alao started towards the end of the year 2009 when the Publisher of City People Magazine, Dr. Seye Kehinde, asked me as one of his reporters to facilitate a show where by Sefiu Alao would be hosted and celebrated for his contributions towards the growth of Fuji music in Nigeria, on the platform of City People Entertainment in Abeokuta. So, he gave me Sefiu Alao’s phone number and asked me to report back to him on the mission.
When I put a call through to the Fuji music star, he came across to me a man who has always been very organised. After telling him about what City People wanted to do for him, he linked me up with his then Public Relations Officer, Mr. Gbenga Allinson better known as Shoshogirisho. And being one of the City People Magazine reporters deployed to cover Ogun State at that time, it was not difficult for me to go in search of Shoshogirisho who later took me to meet with Sefiu Alao and discuss the modalities for the planned show in details.
After my meeting with Sefiu Alao, I later scheduled a meeting between Sefiu Alao and Seye Kehinde so that the arrangement for the show could be finalised. So, sometime in December 2009, the show to celebrate Sefiu Alao by City People Entertainment held at Cultural Centre, Kuto, Abeokuta. I remember the video recording of the show which was later marketed by Sarolaj Films and Records was titled: “Celebration of A Legend”. Of course, the show paraded most of the Fuji music stars in the industry at that time who came to Abeokuta to identify with one of their own.
So, after facilitating that successful show, I became the closest print journalist to Sefiu Alao. And the reason for that was because in the course of doing publicity for the show in City People Magazine, I was the first journalist to showcase the nuclear family of Sefiu Alao to the world. I interviewed every member of his immediate family from his wife of blessed memory, Alhaja Nimotallahi Adekunle, and all his children who were available as one or two of them were away to school as undergraduates in different universities, at that point in time.
I remember his daughter who has decided to follow the footstep of her dad in music today, Saffiya, was just about 10 or 11 year old, and a secondary school student then. Yet, I interviewed her and her younger brother who is the last born, Rafiu, too back then. So, I “invaded” Sefiu Alao’s home with my journalistic “weaponry” of words and writings. And for the first time, people got to know how much the Sefiu Alao they knew as “Omo Oko” (Village Boy) valued educating his children. In fact, during the show proper, the children were also paraded on stage for people to see the smartly educated children being raised a Fuji musician.
So, since that event, I became a friend of the house to Sefiu Alao’s house-hold forging close rapport with his siblings, cousins, nephews and the rest of them. And anywhere I met Sefiu Alao himself afterwards, whether at a show or any other event, he was always relating with me like a younger brother since we are both from the same Abeokuta. That was the nature of our relationship up till towards the end of the year 2019, when he approached me to come and be managing his media. And the reason he wanted me on board, as I understood, was because Shoshogirisho had taken up some other new activities of his own which were not making him to be available to tend to Sefiu Alao’s media needs like before.
So, I told Sefiu Alao that as his new media manager, I could not come on board quietly, that we needed to make some noise about it. And I proposed a Press Conference to that effect to him which he agreed to. But before we would be able to stage the Press Conference being planned, there was an award event for him to attend in Ghana early in February of the year 2020, and he told me that, “Saheed, we have to go together as my media manager. So, where is your International Passport?” I told him my passport had expired, and he ensured we got the passport renewed as fast as possible.
So, together with his Senior Driver, Fasisto, and two other friends who are also strong members of his music organization, Sola Ibidun (Solar) and Semiu Ojukwu, we flew to Ghana on the same airline which also had Fuji music star, Saheed Osupa, and some of his men on board as Saheed Osupa too was invited to the award event in Ghana. And when we came back five days after, I started making arrangements for the Press Conference planned to announce Saheed Ojubanire as the new media manager to Sefiu Alao. So, the Press Conference held eventually on 25th February, 2020, at Sefiu Alao’s custom built office in Ago’ba, Abeokuta, the first of its kind built-from-the-scratch edifice with office spaces for every official of the music organisation, by any Fuji music star in Nigeria.
Officially, the Press Conference marked the beginning of my managing the media of Sefiu Alao. And I must confess that it has been an interesting journey with the Fuji music star. For one, I have been able to discover that Sefiu Alao is a good family man who loves spending time with his folks despite his very tight schedule for music engagements. His door upstairs at his house in Quarry, Abeokuta, otherwise known as “Lemon House” is always widely open to every member of his immediate and extended family members, whenever he is at home.
And you would not believe this: Sefiu Alao is one top celebrity I know who would allow anyone, family or not, to eat directly from the same plate with him and drink from the same cup. He does not discriminate. In fact, if you have your own food served for you separately, Sefiu Alao would rather have both of you eat his own together first, then eat your own together too, than eat alone. And I remember that when I asked his late wife in an interview around the time City People Entertainment hosted Sefiu Alao back then, if there was anything she would like to change about her husband, Alhaja Nimotallahi said she would like to change his indiscriminate eating habit with anyone from the same plate. Which means that has always been with him from time.
And again, Sefiu Alao is one Fuji music star who would always have the interest of everyone at heart any time we go to a show together. He wants to know if you have eaten, what you want to drink and would also put good sum of money in your pocket when leaving. And if the situation warrants lodging in a hotel for the night, we would always stay together in the same hotel with rooms aportioned appropriately for everyone in his crew. In fact, when he is not having any “companion”, someone like me would share the same suite in the hotel with him. That is how accommodating he is.
In fact, there was a day we woke up in the morning at one hotel we passed the night at in Atan-Ota, Ogun State, and after I dressed up the next day, he asked me: “Saheed, tani o ma n ba e ran awon aso e yi na?” (Saheed, who is the tailor sewing all these your clothes for you?) And I told him about the tailor called Paiko along Ijoko Road, Sango-Ota, Ogun State (08038340956), who has been sewing for me for more than 20 years. And Sefiu Alao said the tailor would be sewing for him too soon. So, he is someone who admires a good thing when he sees it in anyone.
This might sound somewhat funny, but Sefiu Alao is one Fuji artiste who would not brag about some of his graduate daughters who are doing wonderfully well in places like United States of America and Canada. This is unlike most of the other Fuji music stars who would always sing about being father of this, or that, in London or America. This is not to say such act of bragging about the locations of their children abroad is not good, but Sefiu Alao would not just do it because it is not his style to brag about anything. And that shows humility, despite the many enviable things God has done for him in his career.
Finally on this note, another aspect of “Sefiu Alao You Don’t Know” is that he likes supporting people around him. Unless you don’t let him know about what you want to do, he would always be willing to add his support to it even if you don’t really need it. He loves to make his mark in the life of everyone around him.
Mind you, none of what is stated above is made up to promote the music star called Sefiu Alao, but the exact situation of things with him. And if in doubt, you are free to confirm from any other person you know who is close to him.
End of story.
Saheed Ojubanire,
Media Manager to Sefiu Alao,
07034570500.