Legendary musician, Majekodunmi Fasheke, aka Majek Fashek, in a recent interview addressed a number of issues ranging from drugs, women and his legal
Legendary musician, Majekodunmi Fasheke, aka Majek Fashek, in a recent interview addressed a number of issues ranging from drugs, women and his legal issue with Timi Dakolo. The reggae musician who claims to be a born again Christian, said he is only interested in making good music for his fans.
On his sojourn to America
“I am the number one musician in the whole Africa of all time to have broken into the American market. If you go to San Francisco, you will see my name written boldly in their hall of fame. I was on the David Letterman Show and that is one of the biggest platforms in America that has played host to great people like Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, among others. In America, they have a structure of classifying stars from superstar to megastar and legend. I am classified as a legend with people like Bob Marley, Whitney Houston, among others. I am not a social media musician. In 1987, there was only one TV station in Nigeria but my music was able to blow over to the US.
“It is not like these days when you can just record a video on social media, and people will see it all over the world immediately. In those days, Lucky Dube would open shows for me. I also went on an American tour with great musicians like Jimmy Cliff, among others. I was featured in New York Times and other A-list media; and all these information are on the Internet for you to confirm. Till date, no other African musician has been able to do that. One of my songs, I am not Afraid, has been sampled by over 200 American musicians including Bono. I used to be very good friends with Michael Jackson and that is why I named my last child, Michael.”
On not wanting his music to be put in a box
“My music is timeless. To make good music, it has to be timeless. I do not fit into any particular genre of music and it is God that gave me that gift. I make conscious music but this time, I will be paying special attention to young children. My forthcoming album is titled ‘Weep not Children’. Our leaders have destroyed the younger generation and it seems like we don’t even know where we are going. But in my meditation and spiritualism, God gave me a message to sing for the children. There are a lot of children on the road who have nothing to do because they are not educated and equipped.
“Their parents did not take care of them and the government does not fulfill its responsibilities towards them. In England and other developed countries, the people have access to free healthcare. They also have free education, and the government provides buses that would take them right from their homes and bring them back. The sad thing is that many of our leaders were beneficiaries of free education. These Boko Haram terrorists were once children. It was what was instilled in them that made them turn out this way. Ten per cent of the proceeds of the album will go to the children of Africa.
“Our shows would also be held at lots of different venues that would be accessible to people, not just in Victoria Island or the high-end areas. For our shows, we would be going to places like Ladipo Market, Oshodi, and National Stadium, Surulere. A lot of the people in those places spend most of their time working and they do not have the luxury of attending events to let off steam. We have plans to organise free shows for such people. We would also visit prisons, motherless babies’ homes, among others.”
On his legal issues with Timi Dakolo
“That issue is pending for now. I spoke with Timi personally and I don’t want to go into that anymore. I don’t want to stop young people from growing. He is a nice boy who is still growing and I have decided to leave him alone. Personally, I like him. I think he is a God-fearing person but he was played and duped by some people. Timi even told us that he paid those guys extra and I was not aware of all the transactions. However, it’s important for Timi and other artistes to learn the lesson that they have to go through proper channels when they want to do things like this.”
On relationship with family members and why he was abandoned during his trying period
“Every family has its ups and downs but the important thing is that I’m doing great now. I don’t feel comfortable talking about my family though. I speak with my children every day and that should tell you I have a good relationship with them. I still spoke with my first son, Randy, this morning and he is doing very well in America. My second son, Destiny, is also doing well. My last born is still a teenager and he is doing very well in school. My first son is married to a Japanese lady while the second is married to a Spaniard and they’re all doing great with children. I’m a proud grandfather.”
On measures put in place to prevent a relapse
“There is nothing like relapse. I keep saying it that my problem was never about drugs though I smoked marijuana back in the days. Anybody can also drink and be tipsy; it is not a crime anywhere in the world. My problem was more spiritual. My problem started when I first returned to Nigeria from America. I came into the country with lots of money and equipment then and I started having issues.”
Punch
