By Saheed Ojubanire.
By July 2021, it would be exactly one year since Fuji music star, Alhaji Wasiu Alabi Odetola popularly known as Pasuma’s hit album, Money Making Machine (MMM), has been released. The super hit album was released in July 2020. So, for almost 12 solid months now, MMM has been a hit album, and it is still not showing any sign of fading out considering how much it is still being played on radio and at parties, as well as how much its video released not too long ago, is also still being played on television.
Without any shred of doubt, the album is “Pasuma Unusual”. Because, anyone who has been following Pasuma’s style of music for years would attest to the fact that MMM, especially side 1 of the album, is a total deviation from Pasuma’s hitherto established, and well known style of music. And Pasuma himself attested to that fact, in some of the interviews he granted after MMM redefined his music, and won him many more fans in the music industry, that the music delivered in the album is different from the Pasuma of before. And not being one to deny people the glory they deserve for a good job they have done, Pasuma has, therefore, consistently mentioned the name of an Islamic artiste, Alhaji Basit Katibi Bello, better known as Aponle Anobi, as the composer of the hit making songs in the album.
More so, Oga Nla of Fuji as Pasuma is also called, equally mentioned the name of the marketer of the album, Alhaji Babatunde Saheed, the Chief Executive Officer of Role Model Entertainment Limited which is the marketing outfit that facilitated the production of MMM, as the one who identified Aponle Anobi as the right man for the job of composing the priceless lyrics of MMM. So, considering the huge success the album has recorded in the music market, and the “new dimension” like the title of an album by Fuji music creator, late Sikiru Ayinde Barrister, that the release of the album has brought into Pasuma’s music, this writer recently went in search of the marketer, all the way from Lagos to Ibadan, Oyo State, where he is based.
The essence of searching for Mr. Sport, as the marketer is also known was to conduct an exclusive interview with him, and get to hear from the horse’s mouth how the idea of the album MMM was conceived, nurtured and executed. Mr. Sport who is first of all a Yoruba sport presenter on Gospel/Tungba artiste, Yinka Ayefele owned radio station, Fresh F.M., Ibadan, before becoming a music marketer, gave this writer an appointment for Music House, Challenge, Ibadan, where the radio station he works with is situated. And the interview took place at a cosy corner they call “Abe-Igi”, beside the towering structure of the radio house along the Challenge express way.
To start with, the lanky marketer who dressed in a white Jalamia with a base ball cap to go with it being a Friday, was asked to introduce himself officially for the purpose of the interview as the interaction began, and he said: ” My name is Alhaji Muhammadu Saheed Babatunde Muhammadu Yusuf. Everybody knows me as Mr. Sport. I am the CEO of Role Model Entertainment Limited and the CEO of Al-Aliyah Hajj and Umrah Limited.” To know his background better before going deeper into the interview, he was then asked how casting sport news in Yoruba started for him.
” I started off in the year 2005. Then, I was under my boss who thought me the rudiments of broadcasting, Alhaji Abdulrazak Abdulganiy, also known as Mr. G.R.A. Those who know him very well would confirm that Mr. G.R.A. is not a sport presenter, but a regular entertainment programme presenter. Meanwhile, I, on the other hand, have been a footballer from childhood. I so much love football to the extent that my dad would not punish me for any other offence other than my sneaking out to play, or watch football back then. Because, even if the football match was to be shown in the midnight, I would always find a way of going to watch it.” He recalled.
So, how did his love for football later impact on his career choice? This is how he put it. ” When I started learning about the profession of broadcasting, I began to have inspiration to be reading sport news. Meanwhile, there was a day I was going to my boss’ house, and when I got under Molete Bridge in Ibadan here, there were vendors selling newspapers there. And I saw two men arguing in front of a vendor over a headline that, ‘Kanu (Nwakwo) might leave Pompey’ because at that time Kanu was still playing for Sportmouth Football Club in England. But the argument of the two men was based on understanding or misunderstanding of the headline, as one was saying the paper said Kanu had left the club already and the other said no, Kanu was still there, but might be leaving soon.
“And that was the point in time I met the two of them arguing. So, the inspiration just struck me that, if these men could see a radio presenter who could breakdown the headlines for them in Yoruba, there would not have been any basis for their kind of argument so early in the morning. And that was how I became fully inspired to start reading sport news in Yoruba. So, I went to my boss, and fortunately around that time, some people had suggested to my boss too to add Yoruba sport news to the varieties on his programme. But my boss was, however, not a sportish person. So, he told me to be writing sport news, and he would be reading it on his programme, because he never thought I could read the news on air.
“But after seeing how clearly I was writing the stories, he then asked me after a couple of days if I could read it on air, and I said yes. So, he gave me a segment to be reading sport news on his programme. And that was how my journey into sport casting in Yoruba started. And from Mr. G.R.A., I also got some training in broadcasting under Otunba Kola Olotu, and Alhaja Kaola. As a matter of fact, it was Alhaja Kaola who discovered me at the area where I was living back then, and handed me over to Mr. G.R.A.” He recalled.
But how did he finally make a profession out of the unsual terrain of presenting Yoruba sport programme? “To be honest with you, at the time I started, no one believed someone could be casting sport news in Yoruba and succeed at it, because it had never happened before. Nobody even wanted to sponsor such a programme on radio. So, it was quite challenging for me at the beginning. Because, each radio station I went to, that I wanted to be reading Yoruba sport would tell me to go and bring a sponsor. Because, they could not be wasting their air time on a frivolity!
“So, it was in the process of my looking for a sponsor that I met one Alhaji who is today a father figure to me, Alhaji (Dr.) Muritala Odesola. They call him ‘Allah’s Will’. He had once sponsored a football competition I participated in long before then. So, when I went to him and told him my problem, what he said was that, ‘if I help you, you would make it if you have been destined to succeed at Yoruba sport casting. And even, if I don’t help you, you would still succeed at it, if you have been destined to make a success out of it as your career’. And he promised that, what he would do would be to start saving money with me bit by bit, every month. And when the money is enough to pay for sponsorship, I should take it to the radio station to start my Yoruba sport programme. So, when the money he was saving with me grew to #600,00.00 (Six Hundred Thousand Naira), I took it to BCOS, Ibadan to start my programme.” He stated.
But still going down the memory lane, Mr. Sport revealed further that, ” After I exhausted the money on airtime, Allah’s Will said the publicity the programme was giving his business was too much for what he was dealing in, so he stopped giving money for the sponsorship, but kept paying me money every month as salary from his business. So, the programme stopped and I was at a home for a while before one of my senior colleagues in the broadcasting industry, Oyetayo Oladimeji who is popularly known as MC Handsome, later took me to Amuludun F.M., Ibadan, where I also presented the Yoruba sport programme for a while. But in 2008, Governor Adebayo Alao-Akala finally gave me free airtime to be presenting Yoruba sport programme on BCOS. And that was where I grew the programme to what it became today.” He relayed the experience.
But before leaving the subject of his Yoruba sport programme, there is still another important question to ask him. And that is, what made his own Yoruba sport programme unique, or different from others? That question was posed to him. “To start with, God alone is the One that is unique. But then, according to what people usually say about me, they say I’m very fluent with my delivery while presenting sport in Yoruba. And that is because I have the ability to talk on for about 5 minutes without pausing or stuttering (he gave a practical example as if he was presenting on radio). And again, I can log on to a website where a sport story is posted in English, and be reading it immediately in Yoruba without first writing it out for translation. And my reading is always in a very fast paced without stuttering. And finally, my stories are always fresh.”
Enough of him and his sport casting adventure. Now, how did he come up with the name Role Model Entertainment that his uses for his music marketing business? “Interestingly, it is my adventure in Yoruba sport casting that also gave birth to the name Role Model; especially, considering the fact that I’m one of the first set of people to start presenting sport programmes in Yoruba. And with all sense of humility, 98% of Yoruba sport presenters today use my style. And again, I have a handful of Yoruba sport presenters that I trained myself, who are taking after me, some of whom are Shittu Akeem a.k.a. AK Sport at Fresh F.M., Abeokuta, Abass Ishola a.k.a. Abassla, at Ibadan here, Ismail Agboola a.k.a. Jay Boy at King’s F.M., Ibadan here, Ademola Atanda a.k.a. Demo Sport at Oshogbo, Osun State, Azeez Muhammed a.k.a. Cantona at Jamz F.M., Ibadan here, there is one is in Cotonou, and I have some in other places like that. So, when people listen to them and realise they sound like me, they started calling me the Role Model for them.” He said rationally.
Going forward, how did music marketing business start for Mr. Sport? “Well, it is not only music marketing business that I have, I also have a travelling agency, Al-Aliyah Hajj and Umrah Limited, and what inspired me into setting up other businesses apart from sport presentation is because I realised most of those who made name from being broadcasters before people like us never really made money from it. And I want to be different, and also be a role model to those coming behind that you can be a broadcaster and still be in money. For instance, today, when I go to function as the engaged Master of Ceremonies (MC), I don’t beg for money there. Because I would have charged the person doing the event properly before going for it. And mind you, I’m only being able to do that because I’m comfortable on my own already.
“So, in preparing for my journey through my professional life, I thought of the things I can combine together, to be able to stand on my own as a man. Because being a broadcaster alone can never be enough. Broadcasting would only give you name and popularity such that, even people who listen to you and are far richer than you, would still be asking you for money when they meet you in person. And that was the reason I thought of doing some other things with my media job. Believe you me, as big as the name one of our late bosses, Gbenga Adeboye, made from broadcasting, he could not finish building his house till he died. It is sad, but that is the reality of working in the media industry in our country.
” So, that is why I thought of doing other things, one of which is setting up a music marketing company. I set up my traveling agency after returning from Mecca in 2018, and Role Model Entertainment Limited was set up in 2019.” He intoned. Now, he marketed the hit album, MMM, by Pasuma. How did they come about the idea of the hit album in the first place? “Well, MMM, only happened to be very popular, but I have marketed other successful albums before it. In other words, MMM is not my first job as a marketer. The first album ever to be marketed by Role Model Entertainment is “Beyond Limit” by Yinka Ayefele. And after that, I also marketed Yinka Ayefele’s current album titled: “Exhiliration”. And I even marketed some Islamic music albums including “Mololohun” by Kehinde Oriyomi which is a very successful album too. And then, “Ori” by Aponle Anobi. Also, “Afojudi” which featured Taye Currency, Kehinde Oriyomi and Mariam Ewa Anobi. Then, “Iwa Mewa” which featured Taye Currency and Aminat Obi Rere, before I now marketed MMM.” He itemised.
So, how was the idea of MMM generated? “Sometime, when you love someone, and you are able to work with them on a project, the tendency of that project succeeding is usually very high. Especially, when it comes to entertainment and production of albums. If you see a marketer selling an artiste’s album, be rest assured that the marketer loves such an artiste. So, what I’m saying in essence is that, Pasuma had been my benefactor as far back as 2012. He is my very good big brother. But, we actually met for the first time in 2012. Though, I had been seeing him from afar long before then, as a star artiste, but he did not know me as a person until the year 2012 that I’m talking about.”
So, how did they meet? He revealed that too. ” In 2012, I wanted to do the launching of a Yoruba sport newspaper that I decided to be publishing then which was named: “Lori Papa” (On The Pitch). So, I engaged Pasuma as the artiste for the launching, but unfortunately, he could not come because he had travelled to America before the date of the event. And when he returned, he thought I would be very angry with him, but I told him I was not angry at all. He then asked me what I wanted him to do to make up for his inability to be at my event. And I told him there and then, that I wanted him to come and do another show for me. So, we did the new show, and fortunately I made a lot of money from the gate-taking. And to cut a long story short, the house that I live in today, I started building it with the money I made from the show after all expenses on the show had been offset.
“Now coming to MMM; as you know, one good turn deserves another. So, I have always loved Pasuma for the good deed he had done for me in the past. And likewise, I know he loves me too. Hence, I never wanted the album he would be doing for me to be another ordinary album. I wanted a stand-out album from all the ones Pasuma had done before. And what did I do? I decided to go to town to sample people’s opinion on what they want from Pasuma’s music that they were not getting. Some said, Pasuma does not deliver enough message with his music before he would start eulogising people in his albums. Some said, they hardly hear what Pasuma is saying when he is singing in his albums. Some said, Pasuma’s music is not deep enough as he would rather be churning out slangs than going really deep. So, I put all those findings together, and said what can we do to address them in the album we wanted to produce.
“And mind you, regardless of whatever new dimensions we would need to bring into Pasuma’s music, we knew we must not sacrifice his originality. Because, that would amount to a river forgetting its source which usually leads to the river drying up in no time. And we thank God for giving us the wisdom to combine everything together, the new and the original, which gave birth to MMM. Sincerely, it is the grace of God that shone on the album. And the reason why I said that is because, Pasuma has only reaped what he sowed in people like us with the success of the album. And again, I still want to give the major credit to Pasuma’s listening ears. Because, it was possible for him to reject the new ideas we brought. He could have easily told us that, we were not yet born yet when he started singing, and rubbish what we brought. He did not do that, as the humility in him took charge.”
Meanwhile, how did Mr. Sport identify Aponle Anobi as the right man to compose the priceless lyrics for the album? ” Well, Alhaji Abdul-Basit Katibi Aponle Anobi and I have been together for long. We grew up in the same Ibadan here. And before I became a marketer, I happened to be one of the fans of his music. And when I became a marketer, being someone who knows the ability of Aponle Anobi, as an Islamic artiste who does not sing on stage, and also a knowledgeable Islamic Cleric, I told him he should let us do this and that for Pasuma, and he said no problem. So, we locked ourselves up in a room somewhere, remember that was during the period of lockdown of 2020, hence, it was easy for us to lock ourselves up for like 4 days.
“We would be there from morning and would only go home in the night. We were there exchanging ideas. But don’t get me wrong, he was the one who composed all the songs. So, whatever I suggested should be added, he would be the one to turn it to melodious music because I am not an artiste; I don’t know how to sing. And eventually, when we took the compositions to Pasuma, he did not rubbish our effort. He simply said, is this how you want it, we said yes, and he said, let’s go. It would also interest you to know that, for the album MMM, I took charge of everything as the marketer from the choice of studio, to the producer, to the photographer who took the pictures used for the artwork, as well as the title. Pasuma just told us to go and look for a title that captures the messages in the album and give it. And let’s thank God for crowning our effort with success.”
Now, you know the untold story behind Pasuma’s big hit album, MMM.
Credit: Saheed Ojubanire
