And Olamide, fans lost Russia 2018 dream

THE Super Eagle’s anticipated victories at the ongoing World Cup in Russia may not carry the much expected pomp. This is as a result of breach in plan by rave singer, Olamide, to perform after Nigeria’s match.
Following the last Olamide Live in Concert, #OLIC4 show at the Teslim Balogun Stadium on December 16, 2017, the management of Kwese Free Sports TV had planned to sponsor Olamide and five fans to be chosen by him to the World Cup.
I was with the General Manager of Kwese Free Sports, Chichi Nwoko during the show. And she explained how the Mundial show was supposed to play out: “We are hoping that when the Super Eagles win, we would break out into a party with Olamide performing. We are a very musical people. For me I think that on the other side of entertainment is sport. Just to reiterate, we want to plug in to what our fans enjoy…,” she said.
Now that Olamide will not be in Russia under this arrangement, apart from the expected after match concert, the singer has just denied five grassroots fans of a life time experience.
According to Nwoko, “We are also giving him the opportunity to engage with our audience of young men. We want them to enjoy the World Cup with us. So, what we have done is, not only are we going to be taking Olamide to the World Cup, we are allowing him to take five of his fans; and these are regular people on the street who wouldn’t have the opportunity. We are proud to sponsor that experience. This is in line with our brand’s promise to not only show the matches but to also be on ground.”
I’m usually thrilled by a mandate that tends to place priority on the masses, especially as a business decision. But the table turned when the hip hop sensation sealed a deal with Play TV, a competitor of Kwese TV as brand ambassador.
Olamide also launched his much-anticipated music and lifestyle channel, Voice of the Streets (VOTS) on PLAY TV. The event coincided with the birthday of the musical star at which he gave out 100 Play decoders with 12 months free subscription to reward his fans for their loyalty to him and his music over the years.
To underscore the place of Olamide in the brand equity of Kwese Free Sports, Nwoko says “we found there is an amazing love and respect that people have for Olamide, and so for us to be able to connect to that humility- that story that resonates with a lot of our viewers – someone that’s humble, someone who started from the bottom and is now a success story – as a brand that’s something we love to align with.”
This whole dream of going to Russia with five fans ended with Olamide forming an alliance with a rival TV station. Although it is not clear what form of contract the singer had signed with Kwese Free Sports, the singer reportedly apologized saying he didn’t know the two TV channels are competing brands. And so ends the story.
When the wind of endorsement deal, especially by telecom companies, blew across the Nigerian entertainment industry in recent past, filmmaker Kunle Afolayan’s endorsement deal with Glo was terminated because he featured Afeez Oyetoro, aka Saka, a brand ambassador for Etisalat in the movie, ‘Phone Swap’.
Also, Globacom ambassador, Burna Boy was dropped from Ghana Meets Naija concert, sponsored by MTN. This was just as another Glo ambassador; Omawumi who had recorded and released ‘Warm Yourself’ with Wizkid could not feature the latter in her video because of his deal with MTN.
It is indeed a sorry case, especially for the five lucky fans who would have enjoyed this life time opportunity.
Well, the World Cup opened on Thursday in the 80,000 capacity Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, Russia, with award-winning British pop singer, Robbie Williams helming the stage with support from soprano Aida Garifulina, winner of the 2013 Operalia competition.
In other reports, the Super Eagles of Nigeria have been rated as “team with the best travelling uniform.” The rating which was carried out in Russia by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), pegged the Nigerian team at No 1. This came after a world fashion magazine GQ rated Nigerian Super Eagles jersey as the best for the 2018 World Cup.
Well, let the fun continue. And like they say, ‘Fly, Super Eagles Fly’.