WOMA 2: Salawa Abeni bags lifetime achievement award

The studio of TopRadio 90.9 Fm, the host station of ‘The Vintage Talkshow’ where the first-of-its-kind Wale Olomu Memorial Award took place, was agog Friday 16 December, as the Waka Queen, Alhaja Ibiwunmi Salawa Abeni bags the WOMA Lifetime Achievement Award (in indigenous music sustenance).

Abeni who was physically present to receive her award thanked the organisers for a job well done and for considering her worthy to be honored while alive.

She however electrified the entire studio with her melodious voice as she went into her archive to sing one of her popular songs, ‘Gentle Lady’.

Other awardees namely DJ Vinny, Diran Olajoyegbe, Femi Ojetunde and Manny Eke who received Special recognition awards in Disc Jockey, Studio Management, Music Production, and Session Backup Vocalisation respectively, were also excited for being recognised.

Diran Olajoyegbe thanked the organizers for searching for somebody as “hidden” as he is: “I am very excited to receive this award.”

Speaking from his base in the United States of America, Femi Ojetunde, whose younger sister, Tolu Agbe-Davies received the award on his behalf, said the award is very dear to him because of what the late Wale Olomu represented when he was alive.

He said: “I promised to keep the flag of Nigeria flying from my base, and in every part of the world.”

Also a very happy Manny Eke said that the late Wale Olomu meant so much to him because he made him what he is today.

His words: “he gave me the title of ‘King of Rap’ back then, and that has been keeping me on my toes most of the time. I’m really excited to be part of this.”

In the roundtable discussion segment, two awardees, and music technocrats, Femi Ojetunde and Kayode Samuel gave very educative and informative views on the theme of ‘Business of Music: Artiste Vs Label relations, and Other Matters’.