October 03, (THEWILL) – Comedian and actor, Atunyota Alleluya Akpobome, popularly known as Alibaba, claims that aspiring artistes partake in occultism, prior to getting signed by a record label.
Alibaba claimed that these traditions are just one of many things that cause young artists to have blindspots.
His comments come amid growing public outrage over the allegations of abuse suffered by the late 27-year-old singer, Ilerioluwa Olademeji, also known as Mohbad, until his demise on September 12.
“For me, there are some things that you would not want to do, and you must stick with it. It is the same thing with some of these artistes — some of them do rituals now.
“As an artiste, you must define your purpose, you must hold on to some strong values you’ve been brought up with.
“If you are someone who is in a position with your creative abilities, you don’t need that kind of pressure. You don’t need somebody making you sign or take an oath for you to be creative.”
According to him, there is a strong desire to become well-known and successful that is displacing some artistes’ core principles and “this is where peer pressure sets in”.
“People just want to blow; they want to be seen, they want to be heard, they want to make money, they want to belong. And because of that, they step back from the values they have been brought up with and do what they shouldn’t do”, he said.
Alibaba argued that certain artistes are surviving and thriving despite the pressures of the entertainment industry.
“They don’t smoke, they don’t hold cigars, they don’t hold the glass cup and drink whiskey in their [music videos], and they insist on it. Even if the choreography says it would add colour to the video, they would say no”, he added.
