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KWAM 1 – The Arikuyeri 1 of Abuja

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2 months ago

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Now that the hard news–breaking news aspect of the airline saga of August has lapsed, we can now leisurely treat its soft news entertaining aspect, the one involving the music entertainer, Wasiu Ayinde. I will not dabble into that other airline act that gave us boobs show!

Rewind to August 5, 2025, at Abuja airport as the king of music, Wasiu Ayinde, swaggers in majesty to board his flight to Lagos, a gold-coloured flask in one hand, like a royal ‘irukere’.

He had cleared the boarding protocols and stepped onto the tarmac with the self-important carriage of royalty. After all, is he not the ‘Olori Omooba’ (head of the princes/princesses) of Ijebu-land?  He apparently believes that a royal ‘Irukere’ cannot be interrogated. So, he must have regarded it as impudent for the airline staff to ask the almighty KI the Ultimate disclosure of his flask’s content. The Big Man’s arrogance.  The media had created a public impression of Wasiu’s touted friendly relationship with President Bola Tinubu, and he must have felt that the knowledge of that relationship entitled him to preferential and reverential treatment.

When it dawned on him that the airline wouldn’t budge on its demand to know the content of his flask, and that he may not board the plane, Wasiu resorted to self-help by standing in front of the plane, apparently intending to use his body as a barrier to prevent take-off. It was an insane gambit. He did not reckon with the fury of a scorned lady pilot who revved her plane and engaged the gear.  Sensing clear and present danger, survival instinct prevailed over suicidal mission when the musician dodged the plane’s wing, which could have decapitated him. So, I give King Wasiu Ayinde a new title: The Arikuyeri 1 of Abuja.  (The Death Dodger 1 of Abuja).  Life is sweet, after all, particularly for a musician who has so much going for him, moneywise, and wasn’t ready to meet his creator in a gory exit.

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Times are a-changing (apology to Bob Dylan). And times are really, dramatically, changing for the better for musicians, many of whom now belong to the multimillionaire class, upgrading their social connections. Wasiu Ayinde belongs to that nouveau riche class of musicians and has climbed the social and political ladder to the stratosphere. He is even reported to be condescending to Obas!

Before now, musicians were not that well-regarded in society.

They were known as ‘Alagbe’ (beggars), those who perform at social parties and serenade people for money by praise singing. We still have a category of itinerant musicians – individuals, and sometimes in twos or trios – who go to social parties to praise-sing individuals for money. In the early 1960s, musicians were generally not appreciated with currency notes, but with coins, which were often slapped on the musician’s forehead. I often wondered then how those old musicians did not suffer from migraine.

The Wasiu Ayindes of this world, as a luckier generation of musicians, have acquired a sense of entitlement, an arrogance, that they should be deferred to because they have been able to wangle upscale relationships with those generally regarded as their betters. Such socially and politically connected musicians also develop an attitude of impunity, based on ‘man knows man’.  Luckily for Wasiu Ayinde, his purported connection not only got him a clemency from sanctions for a security breach at the Abuja airport, but he was also awarded an ambassadorship in the airline industry.  Nigeria, we hail thee!

I read that Ayinde grew up in the Onola area of central Lagos Island. That was an area of the Young Turks in those days.  So, KWAM 1 possibly must have learnt street smartness and imbibed street confidence during his growing-up days. I lived in that general area, by Campos Square, at the intersection of Bamgbose and Igbosere Streets, in the late 1960s, and knew the terrain from Tinubu Square, to Odunfa, Princess, Inabere, Okepopo, Tokunbo, Oshodi and Freeman streets.  Central Lagos Island was like one huge family in that period, with ‘area fathers’.

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Perhaps, maybe Wasiu knew President Bola Tinubu as an Islander neighbourhood ‘egbon’  in those days or cultivated him when music and money gave him stardom, and he desired a power connection as an icing on his popularity cake.  Whichever way, that connection, presumably, saved him from the hot embrace of the law, as the power man was believed to have facilitated a soft landing for him, apparently out of a self-induced, sentimental obligation to friendship. A case of a power benefactor becoming hostage to his power beneficiary?

Well, Wasiu had an escape from death and from the law. Hopefully, he has learnt a lesson in decorum and humility, that is, if he understands the meaning of decorum and what being humble is.

The one redeeming point about this musician is that he did not forget his roots – Ijebu-Ode, in Ogun State, where he has built a glittering music landmark structure in the GRA section of the town, thereby contributing to turning the area, with its many hotels, into a famed hospitality and entertainment hub.

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Declare Your Lineage – Royal Family Tells Musician KWAM 1 Over His Interest In Becoming Next Awujale Of Ijebuland

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14 hours ago

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December 7, 2025

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KWAM 1, in a letter dated December 3, 2025, addressed to the chairman of the Fusengbuwa Ruling House in Agunsebi Quarters, Ijebu-Ode, announced his interest in the stool, describing himself as a “bonafide son” of the ruling house.

The Fusengbuwa ruling house of Ijebu-Ode, next in line to produce the new Awujale of Ijebuland, Ogun State, has instructed Fuji musician Wasiu Ayinde, popularly known as KWAM 1, to confirm his family’s royal lineage to validate his membership in the ruling house.

KWAM 1, in a letter dated December 3, 2025, addressed to the chairman of the Fusengbuwa Ruling House in Agunsebi Quarters, Ijebu-Ode, announced his interest in the stool, describing himself as a “bonafide son” of the ruling house.

KWAM 1 also stated that his candidacy aligns with Ijebu customary law and the Ogun State Chieftaincy Laws.

In an interview with Punch, the Chairman of the ruling house and former National President of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria, Abdulateef Owoyemi, said only bonafide members of the family would be allowed to participate in the selection process.

Owoyemi explained that KWAM 1, Olori Omooba of Ijebu land and others interested in the stool have been directed to complete the Fusengbuwa ruling house royal lineage data form.

According to him, the form, which requires contenders to trace their genealogy back seven generations, ensures that only genuine princes from the family can participate, thereby blocking “strangers” from claiming the throne.

He said, “The first step for anyone interested in contesting for the Awujale throne is to declare their lineage by filling the standard Fusengbuwa ruling house royal lineage data form. Once confirmed as a legitimate member of the ruling house, they can then apply for the expression of interest form.

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“We have told him, just like everyone else interested in the Awujale throne, that the first step is to declare his lineage. He will do this by completing the royal lineage data form, showing his full name, which parent and grandparent he descends from, and continuing up to seven generations.

“The completed form will be signed and submitted to the head of the ruling house unit of the Fusengbuwa ruling house, who will affirm that he is a genuine member. Only then will the process move forward.”

Owoyemi emphasised that although the application window for the throne officially closed on December 5, KWAM 1 had been given a five-day extension, which would lapse on December 10.

He noted, “We won’t shut anybody out of picking the next Awujale, but we must ensure that you are a legitimate member of Fusengbuwa. Every right comes with responsibilities. For a royal family, everyone must prove their legitimacy by completing the royal lineage data form.

“When we receive the form, we will review it meticulously. If clarification is needed, we will contact the applicant. We welcome men of influence who will use their influence to enhance the throne, not to claim it, ensuring that what truly belongs to our family is preserved.”

Owoyemi explained that the local government has given them 14 days to select candidates, and the ruling house hopes to have a new Awujale by the second or third week of January 2026.

He added, “The local government has given us 14 days to select candidates, which expires on December 18. After that, the kingmakers have seven days to deliberate and choose one candidate, whose name will be forwarded to the governor.

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“Legally, the government then has 21 days to conduct background checks and security clearance, allowing for objections or protests. After this period, the State Executive Council will ratify the nominee, and the governor will announce the next Awujale, after which coronation rites will commence.

“So, combining the candidate selection, kingmakers’ deliberation, and legal objection period, we are looking at around 42 days. Therefore, we expect the next Awujale to emerge between the second and third week of January.”

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VIDEO: I’m Married But Not In My Husband’s House; I Didn’t Have The Experience Of Living Happily Ever After – Singer Shola Allyson Reveals

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18 hours ago

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December 7, 2025

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While speaking about her love life, the 54-year-old who came into limelight with a love album ‘Eji Owuro’, revealed that she is married but not living with her husband.

Sola Allyson, the popular Nigerian gospel singer, has revealed that she is not currently living with her husband.

The musician made this known in her latest interview on Oyinmomo TV.

While speaking about her love life, the 54-year-old who came into limelight with a love album ‘Eji Owuro’, revealed that she is married but not living with her husband.

Sharing her marital experience, the singer said she has never enjoyed the kind of happiness many people describe.

“I’m married, but I’m not in my husband’s house. We live separately. He in his house and I in mine.”

The interviewer asked: “You sang ‘Eji Owuro’, did you experience genuine love from your husband?

She replied, “We lied before. Those older than us didn’t inform us that it’s tough. They made us believe that so long as you both love each other, you will live happily ever after, but it’s a lie.

“That’s not the experience I have. I didn’t have the experience of living happily ever after. I did all I could to make it work.

“Marriage has been a big challenge. I hear people talk about joy in marriage, but I have never experienced it.”

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VIDEO: Shola Allyson Finally Opens Up, Reveals Why She Does Not Reference Jesus In Her Songs

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18 hours ago

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December 7, 2025

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Recall that Allyson, who is regarded as a gospel singer, was dragged on social media in March 2025 for not directly referencing ‘Jesus’ in all her songs.

Shola Allyson, the renowned Nigerian songstress, has opened up on the real reason she avoids mentioning the name of Jesus in all her songs.

Recall that Allyson, who is regarded as a gospel singer, was dragged on social media in March 2025 for not directly referencing ‘Jesus’ in all her songs.

Reacting to her critics in a post on X, the songstress stated that “No one can bully me into joining their darkness that looks like light because indolent souls find comfort in it”.

Finally revealing her reason for not mentioning Jesus in her songs, Shola Allyson on Saturday during her latest interview on Oyinmomo TV, stated that Jesus did not ask her to do PR for him.

She said “I’m not a religious singer. As I am, I have never introduced myself as a gospel singer. My name is Shola Allyson. I’m a singer”.

Interviewer; “Some people said you don’t mention ‘Jesus’ name’ in all your songs”.

She quickly responded “Jesus did not instruct us to mention his name in songs nor did Jesus ask us to do PR for Him”.

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