IS 2FACE AS DAFT AS HE SOUNDS?? by Michael Uwakwe on facebook http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=35478719500&ref=nf Today at 11:04am I don’t intend to turn a bad spotlight on the admirable 2Face but this note is directed at the music industry and all those talented and hardworking people like my humble self who are passionate about excellence and strive to see that music artistes and other celebrities get the respect they work so hard for. Now, talking about 2Face Idibia, one of Africa’s most outstanding music acts from who has sold millions of records worldwide and done heavy weight collaborations with other talented artistes like Dare, R. Kelly, Beenie Man, etc. I bet I’m not the first to have noticed that the international superstar 2Face comes across as very incoherent when he speaks in public be they at interviews, press briefings and believe it or not when delivering acceptance speeches at awards. So is he so inarticulate or what? Otherwise why would he accept an award with such an inglorious speech as ‘Yes...o, I can’t believe this man...this is something else man...no be small thing, Yes o thank you thank you’. In 2007, he attempted to make an acceptance speech at the MOBOs in London where he won the award for Best African Act. He waffled away aimlessly until the award slipped off his fingers and was smashed to pieces on the floor. I think that sort of helped because he then went on to deliver his most coherent acceptance speech ever but left the stage empty handed. A couple of days ago he won yet another award at the World Music Awards. Not only did he stammer and babble through his speech. He also looked awful with tanks of sweat pouring off his face. I’ve heard many come to the conclusion that ‘the boy is not intelligent’, ‘he dropped out of school’, ‘he’s all looks and no brains’, etc. But I definitely know differently. Having attended school with him and dealt with him a couple of times since gaining stardom, I know 2Face to be sharp, quick-witted and super gifted. Those of you who’ve worked closely with him I’m sure can attest to this. What would be the problem then?? I never met any good public speaker who said speaking in public was an easy thing. And that’s probably the reason celebrities and public figures always enlist the help others. Even Obama (considered as the Demosthenes of today for his oratorical skills) employs 27 year old Jon Favreau as speechwriter. If Obama needs help with his speeches how much more for the rest of us (I should probably only speak for 2Face and myself). I know 2Face has got a lot of smart people around him, his agents, publicists, stylists, label and managers. Someone somewhere ought to wake up to their responsibilities please. It doesn’t take 10 minutes to write or an hour to rehearse an excellent 30-second speech. Neither does it take rocket science to ensure a towel or hanky is handy to take care of those embarrassing beads of sweat. This is a wakeup call to managers and agents who don’t know yet that the job of managing an artiste extends beyond managing their diary to managing every aspect of their public life. Join discussion...

By Akeem Lasisi Published: Friday, 21 Nov 2008 Although his was a very popular face among the co-travellers aboard the South African Airways plane, Innocent Idibia could not avoid having a nap in the course of the flight from Johannesburg to Lagos. Luckily for him, the plane was not tightly filled, to the extent that one or two seats next to him were idle. It thus provided him a space to lay his slender frames. And who would blame the artiste popularly called Tu Face for that? Star or no star, no air passenger has the prerogative of cooling his or her head off with a slice of sleep. Besides, ‘body no be wood‘, as it is casually said. Here was a chap that had, two days earlier, flown into Johannesburg from Australia where he had gone to collect his latest prize, the Best African Act 2008. Like his colleagues such as Ikechukwu and Faze, he had gone to Jo‘ burg to attend the Channel O Music Award held in October. But because stardom comes with a price, Tu Face would be flying back to London almost immediately he got to Lagos, meaning that within about four days, he would be in the air for only-mathematicians-know hours. ”I thank God, but it has not been easy,” he told our correspondent who had accosted him in the plane as he rose from the ‘siesta‘. He was generally reflecting on his schedules these days. Of course, traveling may not be the most demanding aspect of his work as a musician. The real deal is having to perform in different places, especially for a star like him. One thus wonders how and when he relaxes, and how he trains his body and voice for endless shows. ”I don‘t do much training,” he said. ”I do little exercise. When I am alone I try to open my throat to collect fresh breath. At times, I sing to myself, hear out my voice and so on and so forth.” If he were not a musician, Tu Face confessed, he would have loved to be a comedian. He actually tried comedy before. But, according to him, he got nervous each time he mounted the stage. The consolation he has now is that he is friendly with many comedians and co-musicians alike. But how does he feel each time the Ali Babas of Nigeria make musicians objects of caustic jokes? For instance, many of the jokes merchants enjoy deriding the artistes when they compare them to foreign musicians. But Tu Face does not lose any sleep over that. For the comedians, he had a clean bill of health, saying, ”That is just humour. I don‘t have any problem with that at all. Anybody that does not see the humour in such comparisons is sick within. That is just humour to create a good laugh.” Tu Face is happy that the music industry is getting rosier. He is still in the process of entrenching his own label, which came on stream not long ago. Like many other stakeholders, pirates scare him. While he, however, welcomes younger talents on board, he is piqued that some of the people jumping onto the scene are merely wasting their time. ”I believe what drive some of theses people is not just talent,” he said. ”Some love music right. But the mistake they make is that without good talent, you can hardly last. That is why at times, they get lured onto the scene. They do one song; play on radio or even Telly. But soon, they fade out as they came.” His advice for upcoming artistes is that they should be themselves. They should stay focused, be disciplined and try to constantly renew themselves. He also emphasises the need for them to move closer to God. On that portion of the advice, our correspondent shrank a bit. Was that Pastor Tu Face in the house? How close is he to the church, by the way? ”Church is in the heart,” he said. Join discussion...