These days, it has become so rare to hear that sweet soothing voice accompanied with so much virtuoso singing “Its Ms Kedike on your Speaker”. The real question is where is Chidinma Ekile, the star who won the third season of project fame West Africa.
Reaching the brink of stardom can be vindicating, but the fame that comes with it can also be fleeting. One minute you’re on top of the world and the next you can be yesterday’s news and used as a punchline in random jokes.
R&B genre of music making in Nigeria has seen its fair share of singers come into the industry and make a striking impression only to have their career implode before parlaying their moment in the spotlight into a lengthy career.
From one-hit wonders to those that had a promising next up reign, many singers have popped up and moved the crowd, only to have their buzz silenced due to label politics, dismal sales or the harsh realities of life
Last year, in an interview session, singer Waje released her bottled up depression as she announced that she was quitting music because of poor album sales, lack of support from her colleagues and other things she couldn’t say.
Many Nigerians criticized her, some even questioned if she has ever released an album worth spending a kobo for, but the singer just like counterpart Chidinma once sold out stadiums.
What happened to Chidinma? Could it be that the new kids on the block like Simi and Tems displaced her or that music has so much evolved and left her behind? When Chidinma released “Emi Ni Baller” single, she became the first female musician to peak at number 1 on the MTV Base Official Naija Top 10 chart.
When she joined Flavour to release the track “Ololufe” she healed so many relationships and made people find love with her lyric. But this is just only a smidgen of her accomplishments.
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Chidinma Ekile won Best Female West African Act at the 2012 Kora Awards. Her award plaque was presented to her by Chelsea legend Didier Drogba. She toppled Omawumi and five others for the honour.
After winning the award, Chidinma said, “It was a huge honour to me. I’m grateful to God, my fans and people, who have been part of my success story. Winning KORA is a big achievement for me and I know it is the beginning of better things to come.”
Not that she disappointed her fans, however, most of her fans expected so much from her seeing how she started as owned the music industry after her sophomore album. She has collaborated with Banky W, illBliss, Da Suspect and many top Nigerian singers.
What happened to Chidinma Ekile?
The singer lost her father in December 2014 and that was when she started losing touch with her sound gradually.
Her father’s demise devasted her and made it impossible for her to go near studio corridors for close to a year. Then she returned but not like the Chidinma we once knew.
Chidinma was once compare to the likes of Yemi Alade, Tiwa Savage but at the moment it is difficult to put her in the same bracket with her female colleagues.
Aside from singing, she has managed to hone her acting talent by appearing in the film “The Bridge” directed by Kunle Afolyan.
One of her latest entries this year “Nobody’s Fool” has not garnered so much attention, even most of the songs she released in 2018 failed to make a mark.
Is it finally time for the singer to say goodbye to music and pursue other endeavors like acting?. Its of a truth that the singer said she never wanted to do music professionally, but seeing what she has achieved in the industry so far, she was born to be a music star and we anticipate a greater comeback, perhaps one with an endless joyride.
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