Lagos governor pledges support for OELA music project

Lagos state governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu has pledged support to a new music project tagged OELA Project Evergreen.

The project, according to its promoter, World Stage Limited, is designed to deliberately focus the narrative of Nigerian music on positive virtues such as integrity, courage, hard work, patriotism, leadership, service to humanity among others for national reorientation and cultural refinement.

Scheduled to flag off in Lagos in May 2021, the show’s promoter, in a statement signed by the CEO, Segun Adeleye, said the concept was conceived to be the biggest annual talent discovery programme in Africa that would scout and groom the next superstars.

Responding to an invitation for Governor Sanwo-Olu to be a patron of the project, Lagos State Government, in a letter, said the ministry “is ready to collaborate in ventilating the concepts, ideas, and programmes that might be put in place to assist in addressing the matter.”

The promoter said, the first season of the project with the theme: ‘It’s My Life’ will feature 10 new talents from across the country who will fully participate in the production of 20 evergreen songs for the industry that is thirsty for inspiring lyrics.

According to the promoter, the objectives of the project include changing the narrative of Nigerian music from money, semi-nude girls, alcohol, drugs, celebrating fraud, meaningless lyrics, and sex to great virtues.

“Music is one of the most powerful means of communication and for shaping cultures. The challenges facing Nigeria today are products of wrong messages and values. It’s what we hear, say, and do that we will become,” the statement said.  

To demonstrate the world-class quality expected from the project, the statement said the theme song ‘It’s My Life’ and three others songs have been recorded.

“In a collaborative format, songs will be produced through series of entertaining shows that will include dancing, tour, fashion parade, reality show, concert and documentary for a global audience through our Cable TV partners,” it said.

The statement said Season 1 will climax with an elaborate music concert in Lagos by December 2021 and feature the performance of all the iconic songs for a live audience with all the glamour, paparazzi, and media trappings.