My Mental Health Story

 

Yesterday evening, I had the privilege of speaking about my mental health experience with Grey Insights in commemoration of World Mental Health Day which comes up on October 10 of every year. 

Kindly watch the video of my live Instagram video via this link: https://www.instagram.com/tv/CU2rzo-Fhu8/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Dear Irawo,

 

The Grey Insights team express our appreciation to you for your support and outstanding contribution to our World Mental Health Day series.

 

Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to speak at this year's World Mental Health Day event.

 

We appreciate your enthusiasm and positive spirit in promoting Mental Health awareness. We hope to partner with you in future endeavours.

 

Best regards,

 

Adekunbi Bello | EAP Manager

Grey Insights Limited

Africa’s Premier EAP Provider

Creative Business Bootcamp 2021

I was one of the participants of the recently concluded Creative Business Bootcamp.

I learnt a lot about how to structure my business in terms of innovation, planning, modelling, taxation, networking, designing, sales and marketing, delegation, bookkeeping and accounting, processes, etc.

Drumline Entertainment is going places.

Musically yours, 

DJ Irawo

WITH LOVE FROM DJ IRAWO

 

Beginning from August 1, 2021, the following are the music, educational and promotional content that I have for you from Drumline Entertainment via my Facebook wall @djiraworocks:

1. COOL VIBE WITH DJ IRAWO

This is a music and talk show about mental health, music therapy and other therapies for mental health issues.

This show will come on Sundays between 6:00 pm and 6:30 pm.

2. INTERVIEW WITH DJ IRAWO

This is strictly a talk show where I will be promoting music artists, music professionals and entrepreneurs who have merchandise, services and content to sell.

Check out my promotion price list at Music Promotion.

3. DIVORCE SAVVY WITH DJ IRAWO

This is a music and talk show where I will be talking about divorce, separation, marriage and dating. 

You should join me when it begins.

4. SAVVY CONNECT WITH DJ IRAWO

This is a music and talk show where I try my best to link up:

• Divorcees
• Baby Mamas
• Baby Daddies
• Widows
• Widowers

........and spinsters and bachelors who do not mind starting a relationship with any of the above classification of people.

It is a call-in show.

5. FLEEK ARTIST WITH DJ IRAWO

On the Fleek Artist Show, I will be promoting music singles and music albums of music artists. 

This show can come up more than once a week if I am promoting a music album.

6. HOUSE PARTY WITH DJ IRAWO

I do my thing on my disc jockey controller and my talking drum.

If you would like to support my content, kindly send me a WhatsApp message on +234-(0)706-925-4843.

I remain musically yours, 

DJ Irawo

MY FOUNDATION STORY

 

Right from primary school through secondary school to the polytechnic and the university, I never planned to own a business.

My plan was to qualify as a chartered accountant, graduate from the university and work as a chartered accountant for organizations with a focus on auditing, taxation and management accounting.

The farthest that I thought that I could go was to be a consultant.

You will notice that I planned to qualify as a chartered accountant before graduating from the university. That is because I started writing the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) examination from my Ordinary National Diploma One (OND1) whilst I was an accounting student of the Yaba College of Technology, Lagos.

After OND, I did my industrial attachment with Equitorial Trust Bank Limited where I worked as a communication assistant, switchboard operator and receptionist.

After my IT, I began to lose interest in a 9 to 5 job. I did not really see myself going to work every day like my parents did; my father is a quantity surveyor while my mother was a nurse. I knew that I would be bored but I was already on the accounting path and did not see a derailment in view. 

There was no use of ruffling feathers since the altercation between me and my parents and my choice of class: science or commercial or art as I was about to get into senior secondary school. 

I knew that I wanted to be in the art class but I did not know exactly what I wanted to do but by the time I was done with secondary school, I knew that I wanted to study theatre arts. Your guess is as good as mine. It was going to be an impossible task to achieve.

I gave my thoughts about a change of course a chance while I was studying accounting at Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye, Ogun state. 

At the time that I was a student at this school, theatre arts was not taught. The nearest course to it was mass communication. 

My friends thought that I was making a mistake as I could run into complications with a change of course. So, I stuck with my accounting and graduated with a second class upper.

After school, I tried to get a job at about six advertising companies as a copywriter but they all kept referring me to their accounting department. I fled! 

I could not get any other job except at the banks based on my initial work experience. So, I got stuck with working from one bank and financial institution to the other.

During my national youth service, I served in Lagos state and I was a member of the cultural troupe. I won an award for my outstanding performance as a talking drummer. 

Afterwards, I got a scholarship to study music at the Pencils Film and Television Institute. I majored in the drums set and I graduated with a distinction and as the best music performing student. 

This is where my dream of becoming a  professional musician was birthed.

I worked a 9 to 5 and went for gigs on weekends.

I wrote my first song in 1992 when I was in SSS one. It was titled, Get the Job. It was a rap song.

I began to write songs professionally after I graduated from music school in 2008. My first professional song is titled, Masterpiece. It is going to be one of the eighteen songs that will make up my debut album this 2021.

In 2009, I recorded an EP that consisted of two songs titled, Excuse Me Dance and Now O'Clock. The latter song will be one of the songs on my debut album. 

I shopped for a record label, sharing my demo up and down the streets of Lagos but I could not get any record label that wanted to sign up a musician who played a local musical instrument, was a jazz musician, was married and already in her thirties with two children.

I did not fit into the hip-hop trend and I was not ready to change my genre of music for anyone or get sexually involved with anyone for the sake of my music career.

My self-worth must be intact at all times.

So, I decided to register my own entertainment business as an enterprise on the twelfth day of January 2010 to cater for my music content and services and that is how Drumline Entertainment was born.

Now, I can sing whatever genre of music that I like and provide whatever entertainment service that I want.

However, I have restricted myself to the following services and they are:

1. Authorship
2. Music Blogging
3. Music Promotion
4. Music Publishing
5. Music Performance as a jazz musician and a disc jockey.

I enjoy all that I do and intend to do so for many more years to come.

I am musically yours, 

DJ Irawo

BOOK WRITING HOLIDAY

 

I have been away from my blog for too long! I can feel weeds growing on my last blog. 

Well, here I am!

I was working behind the scene on my first book and as of today, I have written 96,932 words with more editing to go.

I decided to set everything aside to bring it to completion and possibly write four more books before the end of 2021.

This is the longest of my books. I am optimistic that I will be able to complete it as well as the rest of my books before the end of the year. 

I shall publish and sell as soon as I am done writing and editing. 

No time to check time!

I am still working on my debut album too.

This year is a year of debuts; debut book and debut music album. So help me God!

I shall endeavour to post one content per day. Join me tomorrow for another blog post.

Musically yours,

DJ Irawo

SECULAR OR GOSPEL MUSIC?

 

Chidinma Ekile: Source - bbc.com

It is no longer news that Chidinma Ekile has rebranded as a gospel musician.

She has gone as far as deleting all of her 'worldly' pictures from Instagram.

Good for her!

Nigerian 'Christians' have been welcoming her back into their fold with phrases like:

"Welcome back!"

"You belong in the gospel music industry."

"She has left worldly music," and so on.

Firstly, gospel music is not an industry.

It is a ministry for which you must be called by God.

If you are not called by God, you will turn your gospel music into a business and it will no longer become a ministry.

The honorarium paid to you will no longer be enough.

You will begin to demand for high-performance fees and special treatment.

God, who has called gospel musicians, makes provisions for them spiritually.

If you are not called but you decide to force gospel music on yourself just because you are a Christian, owu go blow you and it will turn into a struggle and black slide for you.

In order words, it takes a lot of spirituality, discipline and self control to be a true gospel musician.

Secondly, good music is good music regardless of whether it is secular or gospel or Islamic or a Bhuddist song.

I listen to all kinds of songs from all over the world.

Many Nigerian gospel songs do not come close to these ones.

Some songs are gospel music but are still wack!

One of my music teachers, Mr

Akapo Emmanuel

, once said:

"To be a successful musician, do great music, enjoy the process and don't forget to work on the business side of your music."

So, what ever kind of music that you do, do it well.

Thirdly, because a musician now identifies as a gospel musician does not mean that she is a saint and that those who continue with secular music are devils.

If you believe this, you are simply an ignorant being.

The kind of music that one creates and performs (ministers) is not a true reflection of one's character.

However, it is expected that gospel musicians be of good behaviour.

Fourthly, gospel and secular music have their place in our society.

You cannot play gospel music all of the time.

For example, do you play gospel music while copulating with your partner?

Certainly, you will need to play romantic and sensual songs to get in the mood and keep the atmosphere conducive for the occasion.

Secular music is needed for music therapy too.

Secular music is needed for self expression that cannot be found in gospel music.

Secular music promotes and preserves our culture.

Are your traditional/cultural songs gospel music?

You will need to listen to feel-good music just for the sake of it.

Some jazz pieces do not have vocals and you will delight in them.

You must have listened to Simi's songs.

She crossed over from gospel music to secular music.

Are her lyrics sinful?

So, when a musician decides to be a secular or gospel musician, pick your choice, take a chill pill, take a back seat and quit judging!

Read similar posts on this blog:

• Are you Called or Uncalled for Gospel Music?

• Gospel Music Versus Secular Music

© DJ Irawo

May 3, 2021

STOP SEXUAL VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN IN THE NIGERIAN ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY!

 

Sexual violence is an umbrella term that includes a wide range of unlawful sexual acts. 

The term can include: 

• sexual assault

• sexual harassment

• sex trafficking

• female genital cutting

• child marriage

• enforced sterilization

• sexual slavery

• enforced prostitution

• forced pregnancy

• forced abortion

Sexual violence in the form of sexual harassment can also be via online or via digital technologies. 

Technology-facilitated sexual violence includes: 

• online stalking

• gender-based hate speech

• image-based sexual abuse

• online rape threats

• online sexual harassment.

Sexual assault refers to an indecent sexual attack on a body. 

Rape is a form of sexual assault. It is the penetration of the vagina, anus and mouth without consent.

Attempted rape, fondling and unwanted sexual touching are forms of rape.

Rape also falls under sexual harassment because the harassment is done before the eventual assault.

Section 357 of the Criminal Code Act applicable in the Southern Nigeria defines rape as follows;

“Any person who has unlawful carnal knowledge of a woman or girl without her consent, or with her consent, if the consent is obtained by force or by means of threats or intimidation of any kind, or by fear of harm, or by means of false and fraudulent representation as to the nature of the act, or in the case of a married woman, by personating her husband, is guilty of an offence which is called rape.”

Section 358 of the same Act states that the punishment for the offence of rape is imprisonment for life.

Sexual Harassment has the following examples:

+ Actual or attempted rape

+ Unwanted pressure for sexual favors

+ Unwanted deliberate touching, leaning over, cornering or pinching

+ Unwanted sexual looks or gestures

+ Unwanted letters, telephone calls or materials of a sexual nature

+ Unwanted pressure for dates

+ Unwanted sexual teasing, jokes, remarks or questions 

+ Referring to an adult as a girl, hunk, doll, babe or honey

+ Whistling at someone

+ Cat calls. 

+ Sexual comments

+ Turning work discussions to sexual topics

+ Sexual innuendos or stories

+ Asking about sexual fantasies, preferences or history

+ Asking personal questions about social or sexual life

+ Sexual comments about a person's clothing, anatomy or looks

+ Kissing sounds, howling and smacking lips

+ Telling lies or spreading rumours about a person's personal sex life

+ Requesting for nude pictures or videos

+ Sharing of unwanted nudes of oneself or those gotten from online sources to a person

+ Sharing nudes of a person to other people online or offline

+ Touching an employee's clothing, hair or body

+ Giving personal gifts like under wears, sex toys, etc.

+ Hanging around a person

+ Hugging, kissing, groping, patting or stroking without permission.

+ Touching or rubbing oneself sexually around another person.

+ Standing close or brushing up against a person. 

+ Looking a person up and down

+ Staring at a woman lustfully

+ Sexually suggestive signals

+ Facial expressions, winking, throwing kisses or licking lips

+ Making sexual gestures with hands or through body movements.

Lagos is the capital of Nigerian entertainment. This is what the law of Lagos state says about sexual harassment: 

The Criminal Law of Lagos State prohibits harassment and describes harassment as unwelcome sexual advances, request for sexual favours and other visual,verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature which when submitted to or rejected –

 

(a) implicitly or explicitly affects a person’s employment or educational opportunity or unreasonably interferes with the person’s work or educational performance; 

(b) implicitly or explicitly suggests that submission to or rejection of the conduct will be a factor in academic or employment decisions; or 

(c) creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive learning or working environment. 

Any person who sexually harasses another is guilty of a felony and is liable to imprisonment for three years.

Emotional effects of sexual violence

• Anger

• Fear

• Humiliation

• Shame

• Guilt

• Betrayal

• Violation

• Powerlessness and loss of control

Mental health effects of sexual violence

• Anxiety

• Depression

• Panic attacks

• PTSD

• Difficulty concentrating

• Loss of motivation

• Substance abuse

• Suicidal ideation

Physical effects of sexual violence

• Increased stress levels

• Headaches

• Fatigue

• Sleep disturbances

• Eating disturbances

It is no news that sexual harassment and assault exist in the work place with particular reference to the Nigerian entertainment industry and with particular reference to sexual molestation by Nigerian men against Nigerian women.

Female musicians, instrumentalists, producers, disc jockeys, actresses, writers, models and women under the entertainment bracket employment face one form of harassment or the other. 

Unfortunately, many incidents of sexual harassment assault are never reported. 

In the entertainment industry, victims of assault are often worried that reporting such activity will have an adverse effect on their employment prospects.  

Victims may be forced into sexual acts in return for promises of recognition and opportunity.  This results into a QUID PRO QUO HARASSMENT.

A Quid Pro Harassment is when employment and/or employment decisions for an employee are based on that employee’s acceptance or rejection of the unwelcome sexual behavior. 

Victims may also be reluctant to report abuse due to the fear that others will not believe their version of what happened.

Child talents also experience sexual molestation. They lack the judgment to refuse sexual overtures that are tied to promises of career advancement. This is why children must be accompanied by at least one parent or a guardian for auditions or performances or shooting.

Allegations of sexual abuse in the entertainment industry are often kept secret as a result of duress and intimidation by individuals and corporations with extensive resources.  

It can be extraordinarily difficult to publicly disclose wrongdoing by powerful and well-known entities.

Asides from this reason, social media judges will be quick to crucify the victim by asking her what she was wearing when she was sexually abused. They delight in turning the victim into the culprit and blame her for her dilemma.

These social media bullies fail to realize that a woman must not be assaulted no matter what she is wearing. It is not in your place to crucify her. 

Nevertheless, sexual harassment and assault in the entertainment industry are unlawful and should be redressed through criminal and civil penalties. 

Famous and wealthy celebrities should not be protected from the consequences of their illegal behavior.  

The current dilemma being faced by victims of sexual assault in Nigeria is that it is difficult for them to get justice for sexual assault committed on them many years ago. 

Our sexual violence laws are not strong enough to incorporate other means of bringing a culprit to justice apart from written or audio or video evidence and witnesses.

The sperm DNA too is tested in Nigerian courts only if the rape case is a recent one.

Rape cases that happened years ago are swept under the carpet because of the passage of time and lack of substantial evidence. 

Nigerian laws do not accommodate the ‘look back’ widow and the use of lie detector tests.

A bill should be passed to include a lie detector test and other methods that are used in advanced countries. Otherwise, how was it possible for Bill Cosby and Robert Kelly to be jailed in the United States of America as a result of the sexual violence that they committed on women many years ago? 

Some testimonies for Bill Cosby were as far back as thirty years ago as at the time the case was being heard in court.

Never blame a rape victim for not speaking up on time. Although, it is advisable to do so, there are many mental health factors that do not make this to be possible. 

The Nigerian law must give room for a victim to take her time to build up the confidence to tell her own story and seek justice only if she wants to.

It is so unfortunate that the judiciary and legislative arm of government do not carry out researches on these matters in order to use the outcome to improve our own laws.

Why would they even bother about it when sexual harassment is still considered a little matter that can be settled amicably with a bribe?

Sexual violence is a major reason why many girls and women are skeptical about taking up a career in the entertainment industry.

There must be gender equality in all careers. Thus, males must stop intimidating females in this industry. 

I am aware that some females have no shame. They are the ones who seduce men in order to get roles. It must be noted that women who do this are not as many as those who are specifically targeted. 

My focus is not on these ones but on women who are truly hardworking and passionate about taking up a career in the entertainment industry.

I implore female entertainers and professionals to prevent sexual assault by not getting familiar with their male colleagues. 

Prepare for your auditions and do your job professionally.

Make sure that you read your contracts properly or hire a lawyer to read them for you so that you will not get tied up in unprofessional contracts and with crazy people.

Aspire to have other sources of income to run your own business and earn money from other sources of income so that you will not become dependent and desperate.

Call out your molester on social media and hire a lawyer to take up the matter. If you cannot afford a lawyer, meet a human rights organization to help fight your case.

This immorality must stop!

DJ Irawo

May 3, 2021

THE SPIRIT AND SOUL SHOW HAS COME TO AN END

 

Sadly, the gospel Spirit and Soul Show has come to an end 😒😧😧.

I was optimistic that the show would last till the agreed cut-off month of May, 2021 but my sponsor, Shuzia Limited, thinks otherwise.

Shuzia Limited owns the copyright to the name of this show. Therefore, I will no longer be able to use this name for my gospel shows.

It was a good partnership while it lasted. I gave it my best shot💪!

It is worthy of note that I was formerly a music journalist at shuzia.com between 2018 and 2019.

We still have a good relationship to work on other projects in the future.

I move on to my next projects.

DJ Irawo

MY FREEDOM STREET JAM - Episode 1

 

There is always a first time for everything and this is the first time for My Freedom Street Jam organized by Drumline Entertainment.

My initial plan was to launch this show in collaboration with clubs, hotels, lounges and places where music performances take place but the plan changed because of the covid-19 pandemic which caused performances at all event centres to come to a complete halt.

DJ 07 and DJ Irawo

Even now, entertainment activities in these event venues are not as buoyant as they ought to be and there are rumours that the government will begin to monitor the order of gatherings at parties, clubs, lounges, churches, etc in order to reduce the spread of the virus.

What is the common man to do to get entertained and relieve stress?

Can I still organize this event and comply with the covid-19 rules and regulations?

So, the idea came up in me to organize this event and to collaborate with DJ 07 who has been playing his music on the street to promote himself and I suggested that viewers sit in front of their shops and homes and watch from there without gathering around the performers.

The goals of the My Freedom Street Jam are to: 

• To raise money via viewers' donations to support our miscellaneous expenses.

• To raise awareness for mental health in my community and proffer solutions.

• To partner with mental health professionals to provide free medical checkups for members of my community.

• To partner with brands who intend to promote their products and services in my community.

• To provide free entertainment for members of my community.

The Orisunmibare community in the Alimoso local government area is the one currently enjoying this service.

At the end of the first edition, My Freedom Street Jam was entertaining.

Women danced in front of their homes and shops.

Children danced on the streets in an impromptu choreography.

Boys and men moved closer to get a better view of me to ensure that I was the one actually playing the talking drum😁.

Vehicles almost jammed themselves in order to get a better view of our performance.

Some vehicles, motorcyclists and rickshaws parked their automobiles to get enjoy the beats.

The abokis were not left out.

They 'parked' their shoemaking boxes and sewing machines around a kiosk to get a good view of our event.

This is a test of the waters.

Hopefully, my official videographer will be available for the next editions.

Musically yours, 

DJ Irawo