After a seven-year hiatus,
ace music producer and artiste, Paul Play Dairo, is working towards staging a
big come back. Having dropped a total of five singles since March, he says the
response has been massive. In spite of the seeming lull in album sales, the RnB
star who says he is up-to- beat with current trends in the music scene, still
intends to drop a ‘luxury’ album.
“The idea is basically to fill in the gap since my last album and also
sample people’s opinion. Thankfully, the online comments have been encouraging.
So far, I have recorded 20 songs and some of them have already been released as
singles. I am currently tidying my gospel and each track has an element of
Nigerian flavor and pop.
“The
bulk of the money is no longer coming from album sales because these songs are
already online and people are downloading them. Music business is now
streamlined to performance and endorsement. I am still going ahead with the
limited edition album which will be expensive because that way I will be able
to control and monitor the sales and distribution,”
he discloses.
When Paul Play launched his
way into the Nigerian music scene in 1999, riding on the goodwill and success
of his late father, IK Dairo, he enjoyed solid patronage. Within a short
period, he also earned an independent voice of his own, springing hit singles
that include Mosorire, Happy Day and Yes O!
In 2009, however, his career
was threatened when he fell ill in South Africa, while shooting some music
videos for his last album and had to be rushed to a hospital. In his absence,
the media was awash with speculations over the nature of the illness. It was
rumoured that he had cancer, kidney failure to a spiritual attack. Four years
after, he has clearly moved on, choosing not to dwell on the nature of the
ailment.
According to him, the
near-death-experience has taught him some lessons. He talks about a few of them
in a low tone saying, “It was taught to
be scared of God, and not to depend on man because God is ultimate. You don’t
have to trust man, but psyche yourself that people are close to you for one
reason or quality or the other. I lost many trusted friends during my ailment
and gained a few in the process.
“There
were some who said and did things that made me say ‘Oh, even you too’, but you
know it is part of life that when things are down you lose your friends. Right
now, I am not afraid of anything. I am stronger and can take whatever life
throws at me.”
The year 2014 is ‘Paul Play
Dairo’s year’, if indications emerging from the soft spoken artiste are
anything to go by. For one, he intends to release a Box Set- two albums of
highlife and gospel music. The third will be RnB.
He says, “It will be a limited edition because it is
going to be expensive.I wanted an album that people will like. That’s the
reason for the long silence. My management is considering working with a number
of new school acts like Inyanya and Wizkid. I am open to work with any artiste,
so I don’t end up being an island in the industry. I don’t want to streamline
myself only to a group or set of people. I was taking my time to do things
right and face other things. I have been able to keep up with the industry
online and the commendation I have been receiving ever since is an indication
that people have missed me and want me back on the scene.”
The one-time Globacom
Ambassador adds that so much has changed since his temporary exit from the
scene. He says, “The music industry has
become saturated. Today, everyone wants to sing so there is limited space to
get the desired publicity. But artistes who have pedigree will always fit in,
no matter what friends,” he explains.
While many artistes of his
time, have found it rather difficult to fit into the scene after being away for
a long time, Paul Play is optimistic that his fans will embrace his return and
warm up to him. He hinges his belief on the fact that Nigerians now embrace
indigenous music when compared to the past.
“If you say it is difficult to come back and then give up things will
pass you buy. If the likes of Lionel Richie and Stevie Wonder have stood the
test of time, why label yourself as old school? With a good pedigree, people
will respect you and with God you can still make a comeback. I don’t intend to stay
in music for a long time,’’ he notes.
Punch
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