>
After the duets she did with King Sunny Ade ‘Wait for Me’ and ‘Choices’ in the late 80, Onyeka Onwenu has never had the opportunity to perform alongside KSA for a long time now. But last weekend, the two music icons thrilled the audience as they reunited on stage, performing the evergreen song that set tongues wagging in the 90s that they were dating.
The event tagged “ #Space Legend Series” was organized by event promoters, Uber Space and Motbensonz Solutions.
Held at the prestigious Oriental hotel, Lekki, Lagos, the event was an evening of old school music, featuring music legends; King Sunny Ade, Ebenezer Obey, Onyeka Onwenu and a surprise performance by Orlando Julius.
Nigerian Idol winner, Timi Dakolo, who represented the young generation of singers set the tone for the night. He started off his performance with Bob Marley’s “ I wanna Love You”, which generated an immediate reaction from the crowd. The “ Iyawo Mi” crooner continued to entertain with well-known hits such as Michael Bolton’s “ Everything I Do” , ‘Wish Me Well’ after which he performed ‘Iyawo Mi’ among other songs. Thereafter, Terry Apala was introduced to the stage by Patrick Doyle who compered the event, and he prostrated to the elders present before performing two of his songs.
Also, Gloria Ibru equally gave an arousing performance, thrilling the audience with a song from her forthcoming album titled, “Shake your Body.” Engrossed in her performance, Gloria invited Fela’s protege, Dede Mabiaku, to the stage as she performed Mandy Brown-Ojugbana’s remake of Bobby Benson’s “Taxi Driver”, with him. The performance got everyone singing and dancing along with them.
But the highpoint of the evening was when Onyeka Onwenu, a.k.a Elegant Stallion, mounted the stage and began to reel out some of her old tunes. Delivering some of her most popular songs including “Peace in Our Home”, “Nso Nso”, “ Ekwe” and “ One Love”, the audience erupted in excitement. However, mid-way into her performance, Onyeka told the audience that she had a surprise for them. Soon, she began to perform the evergreen song, “ Wait for Me” which she did with King Sunny Ade in the late 80s, and started calling on KSA to join her on stage.
“I know he’s here and he’s hearing my voice. If he likes let him join me, but when I start performing the song, he will have no choice than to join me on stage,” Onyeka echoed as she beckoned on KSA.
Expectedly, KSA jumped onto the stage like a knight running after his queen, and they both rekindled the old passion that they were known for back in time. It was a moment everyone was waiting for, and KSA and Onyeka did not disappoint. Convivial atmosphere filled the air as the performance drew a lot of applause.
Onyeka used the opportunity to speak on pre-marital sex. She urged young people to exercise patience and restraint until they were of age or married before they start having sex.
“The message of our song has remained same over the years. Young couples should not mess themselves up or jeopardize their future with sex. They should wait for each other, they should wait for the right time. The right time is during marriage, then they can start having children honourably. They should say ‘no’ to pre-marital sex and unwanted pregnancies,” she said.
‘Wait for Me’ is a song preaching abstinence, which showed KSA and a much younger Onyeka Onwenu acting as lovers.
Like Onyeka, KSA found favour with the audience and delivered an extended encore performance. Not to be outdone, he wowed the audience as he performed alongside his daughter who held the audience spell bound with her captivating dance steps and vocal dexterity.
Orlando Julius, who was not initially on the bill of the show, also performed with his band and his wife, Latoya Aduke, who set the stage agog with her dance steps and stage craft. Julius used the opportunity to announce that they were celebrating their 23rd year as a couple. It was a memorable evening of old school music and happy reunion of the music legends on stage.
But despite kicking off behind schedule, the audience had a swell time, transforming the venue into a sea of pulsating energy, partying from dusk till dawn.
Source: Vanguard