Words are stronger than imagined. Whatever we say has a way of hunting us for the rest of our lives. It even becomes more of an issue when we decide to share it publicly. But most people are yet to realise this. Paul and Peter Okoye realised this after the damage.
Despite their labour in the past, the P-Square brothers are now battling to remain relevant on the music scene and it seems they know this as well. People used to pay through their nose to hire them, but as things stand now, I am sure their charging fee must have dropped.
They did nothing wrong than mismanaging their personal issues. When they decided to go solo after doing music together for more than two decades, perhaps, it did not occur to them that it would affect their followership and music as well.
I even learnt that they are making serious efforts to keep their endorsement deals with Glo. Though the management of Globacom rubbished the report sometime in March, it may not be far from the truth. They argued that they were yet to review the contracts of their ambassadors. But we are all aware of diplomacy, an intelligent way of handling things. This could also be one.
They did their best as solo artistes. Paul Okoye, aka Rudeboy, put out songs like ‘Call Heaven’ where he talked about their fight, while Muna and Tiwa Savage featured him in their songs. Peter Okoye did ‘Look into My Eyes’.
Within the period of their separation too, they started different record labels. Peter introduced P-Classic Records, while Paul started Rudeboy Records. Obviously, they wanted to flex their muscles. But it is obvious they are destined to be one and they cannot do without one another. Their efforts as solo artistes did not yield results.
Even though their music has been criticised at different levels for lacking originality and creativity, they have, as P-Square, made a huge success off entertainment. They know their major strength, dancing, and they have used it well to their advantage.
The role of their elder brother in the feud, Jude Okoye, who also acted as their manager for a long time, was as important as the twin brothers’. He was at the centre of the whole mess. Peter once said he did not have problems with Paul but the management, while Paul saw no reasons to disconnect his relationship with Jude. This was the genesis of their public show.
The Okoye brothers really made a mess of their situation. They shared stories of their fight and made songs off it. They broke the hearts of their fans, as people did not understand why they were fighting so dirty. They made social media their battle ground, saying all manner of things. At a time, Peter even threatened to sue his brothers for performing at a concert in Congo without him.
Having an issue or fight in the family is normal in every household, but it does not have to be messy like theirs. Having washed their dirty linen in the public, they have started doing music together again.
They just released a single as P-Square. After all the shameful public display, no one would have thought they would eat their words so quickly. Though Peter had given a hint on Instagram that they were back together and would be releasing new music, I wonder where they left their morality when they took their fight to social media.
Earlier this week, all the radio stations kept playing the new song, ‘Bank Alert.’ Within 10-minute periods, different station played the song. For one who knew nothing about the entertainment industry, he or she could think something bad had happened to the brothers. They were playing the song repeatedly as if an artiste just died.
While still listening to the radio, a presenter attempted to give an honest review of the song. She said this was not the P-Square she used to know. According to her, the song cannot be ranked among their best songs. She insisted that the song had only been generating attention and noise because of the circumstances surrounding it.
They have a video for the song too, which looks pretty good. Featuring Mr. Ibu and Onyeka Onwenu added life and excitement to it.
But for no reasons, they complicated things for themselves. Now, they may have to work really hard again to regain the trust of people and other things they have lost to the fight. This, in my view, could have been averted if they were thinking rightly.
