Studentship on the Entertainment Run in Nigeria

The entertainment industry in Nigeria over the last 10 years show an upsurge of interest in the sector. The interest is basically of the influx of students into the sector in the areas as music, television production, cinematography and the likes. The tertiary institutions now double as an entrepreneurship base of entertainment, alongside recruiting labour into the labour market. Tony Tetuila, the famous hip-hop star had his Kwara Poly experience to bear in his musical career. In 2004, the R & B Olufunmi crooner, Style-Plus, who were students of the Federal University Of Technology, Akure, debuted and gripped stardom. Even a secondary school leaver, Danny Young, is making fortunes in music despite his age. What accounts for this growing interest?

In the 20s, there was an awesome importance attached to stage plays and musical instrument. Before one could qualify as a musician or actor, he must have mastered an instrument or learned as a pupil under a master. Then music and acting were more of band stuff. Each member specialized in one aspect or the other. When hip-hop shot out its tentacles of influence to Nigeria with the likes of Tupac, Notorious B.I.G, people came to terms with the wonder of such music. You do not necessarily need to learn a musical instrument before being qualified as a musician, since raps produces its own beat with rhyme and rhythm. As well there was also the development of musical software and better video production as a result of technology. These factors created an enabling environment and people began pitching their talents in entertainment. The earliest of these campus musicians were the Remedies, the Plantashun Boiz, who formed a hybrid hip-hop by mixing English with indigenous Nigerian languages in production of music.

In today’s higher institutions, the trend has developed. The amazing wonder in being adored, the relative ease in production of music, the financial benefit attached to stardom has come to be identified as the impetus. What we have today is a long train of musicians, film directors, comedians, etc, who are students.

Folorunso Busayo popularly known as Fliptyce, a 200 level Geology student of the University of Ado-Ekiti is a musical producer. Asked to speak on his experience in such a trying job, he says, ” the passion for entertainment has always been in me right from my secondary school days. In 2003, I started writing my songs and did a couple of musical productions. Today I have many student-artistes who are products of my work”.