Nobody taught me how to play guitar-ADEWESCO

 
Irawo wa mi ntan loke, A dupe o Baba wa, Ogo ni fun Baba L'oke to s'owa titi d'amodun o, k'egbe wa ma ma t'uka o A dupe o Baba wa

 ......Ibos started Highlife 
......I want sponsors
.....Kilomode Mo?

MEETING WITH THE GREAT MUSICIAN
It was one afternoon, when I called this Musician and the man  humbly asked me to come for the interview as he described his new  place for me. All the way from Lagos ,I landed where he was in Akure, Ondo  State.

SECRET BEHIND MY BAND'S NAME

''My names are  Adekolu  Modupe aka Destiny .I called my Band Destiny because I did not train under anybody .Nobody taught me how to play guitar or how to sing, I just knew it.

''The first time I played Guitar was in 1970 when I attached myself with a Band .The and leader who was a Guitarist was not around and there was nobody to play the guitar , I then took it upon myself and started playing, the Band's name then was Folorunsho and Omimah Band , it has Ifon’s  logo'' .

Asked why Omimah?, he explained that  ''Anybody from Ifon uses the term , ''Omimah'' and that is Ifon's logo''.
On why he plays like Orlando Owoh, the man laughed and with total conviction and satisfaction , he  said ''Yes I played like Orlando, he was my mentor. We both played  Juju High life, and we added ''High life'' because   High life belonged to the Ibos so with our kind of music we added High life to it .It is different from other Juju music of  King Sunny Ade and Ebenezer Obey''

MY FIRST OUTING, I MADE THREE POUNDS

''The first time I played was in 1969 when I played for  one Alhaji Aminu  who happened to be one of my brothers,  during his grandmother’s  funeral ceremony in Ifon . That was when I first made a big money , three pounds. Then we we were using coins with holes. It was a  big money then''
WHY I AM NOT PLAYING AS USUAL 

The High life musician lamented that  there is no patronage again due to many reasons ,''No business   again, we have no outings  again, to be called or hired  for an  outing which should be 300,000naira per day but cannot be paid by our fans or those who hired  us for entertainment as  they would be begging you to take 40,000 naira. So from there they wanted to include us with the  amateur  musicians and it  shouldn’t be . They should respect us.How much is 40k? .You will call your Band members , pay them and other things , then transportation , haba!, they always wanted us to pay us ridiculous money .No, this is unfair'', he lamented 

RELATIONSHIP WITH ORLANDO
''We were both from Ifon. His mother and my paternal grandmother were from the  same family. His father and my mother were also from same family. We were related from both sides.''
WHY MUSICIANS ARE SUFFERING

According to ADEWESCO ,musicians and artistes are suffering in the hands of piracy , ''they pirate our work and sell to the public who will buy cheap so how do we have gains?''. He however pleaded to the government to  help put a    stop to piracy , he said   '' piracy is still on , the PMAN has warned and warned but nothing is working ''.

    MY FIRST HIT

He cannot easily forget the first record that brought him to the limelight .Asked to tell, the man was happy to sing the song ''It was  Irawo wa mi ntan loke, which was recorded and sold  a lot.It was a big hit. Irawo wa mi ntan loke, A dupe o Baba wa, Ogo ni fun Baba L'oke to s'owa titi d'amodun o, k'egbe wa ma ma tuka o A dupe o Baba wa. I have waxed many but this one was in Ibukun Orisun Iye label and it sold like hot cake’’

Another one is the story of 'Aiye Gbege’ , he said and burst into the song  Ise ki ipa ni , ayo lo npa ni . Atomode Atagba e teti ke gbo o, e teti ke gbotan lenu wa, …..

  MY JOURNEY

I  started playing my music in Agbor before I  came to Lagos , in Edo state  then Benin, then Ibadan where I stayed for some years.I later went to Lagos before retiring home, Ondo State because East, West , South , Home is the best.I left Lagos about 11years ago''.

MY KIDS

''One of my children, a female  is a Chorister  in church but said she might pick it up in the future and be singing''.

PROBLEMS ENCOUNTERED WHILE SINGING
Adewesco said  there were many challenges he and other musicians face , he said ''A lot of problems, I had no sponsors,before you can have sales, promoters etc .At times it would be raining when you went out to play . Different things could happen''.

Did Musicians fight one another with juju in those days? , he was asked, and he answered ''Yes, they did   but nowadays it is no longer common''

WHY GOSPEL MUSIC IS REIGNING 
'' There are many churches now, there is no church that does not have her own Choir and if they have any function it is their church member that would go and play for them so that is the cause.

I don’t play again like before ; Yes I told you there is no money flowing in the country'' .
DEE JAYS HIJACK OUR BUSINESS
 Another point this musician made is that of the Dee Jays who have hijacked their business , he said  ''Clubs where we would have gone to play are no longer patronizing us  as DEE JAYS have hijacked the whole thing from us.If you go to any Club you will meet Dee Jay instead of Live shows who will be playing meaningful songs but no more of that again, it is painful''

MY PARENTS SUPPORTED ME 

While some parents would oppose their children and discourage them from playing music, but Adewesco said his own  was different as his father supported him while alive ''when he was alive when I started singing he did not criticize me for he too was a musician''
 IJOKO AGBA   
''I used to play at a Club called  Ijoko Agba in Akure ,where I  used as a Club and for my contact''

What is the meaning ?, he said ''the place is called Ijoko Agba [Elders' Forum] and this place is not for  the  roughnecks , we want decent people not just anybody. The people  coming  there must be of high caliber and respected people , that is why  we called the place  IJOKO AGBA.We did not restrict    it to old people only  but  the fact is that we want decent people there.But I have left there as I have relocated .to another place called Kilomode Mo? [What does a Child know?]. When asked for the meaning, he laughed and said it is a popular place,  I gave this place Kilomode Mo, and everybody in Akure knows this place as Kilomode Mo'' 

FAVOURITE FOOD

''I am from Ondo State, there is no food I don’t like  but my  best food is pounded yam. I love pounded yam''
WIVES

He admitted that most musicians have  many wives but said his own lifestyle  is different , he said   ''I don’t have many''.
DRUGS .

Asked whether he uses drugs or take alcohol to enhance his performance on stage  but the man replied ''No, those things are strange to me , if I want to drink beer I could mix it with soft dink and that is all''.
ABOUT MYSELF

''My names are Modupe  Adekolu .By now if I say I am 67 am still on the right path. I will soon celebrate it if I'm still alive.I am from Ifon, Owo , Ondo State.

''I went to St. Augustine Primary School , Ifon, Owo and proceeded  to LA Modern  School, Ifon, Ondo State. I left Modern School in 1965. I  used to go to  the farm with my father before I joined musician''

ADVISE TO YOUNG MUSICIANS

''Do your best, don’t behave like hooligans.If hired , do your job, don’t allow people to come and fight there . Have patience and endurance''.

HOW THEY CAN LOCATE ME

''Tell them you are looking for Kilomode Mo?. I sell beer and sell bush meat till  I have sponsors to  finance me'', as he said this  the  reporter shouted ''Kilomode Mo? Kilomode Mo?''He burst into laughter .
Till now this writer is still shouting ''Kilomode mo?"'