How The Nigerian Entertainment Industry Is Promoting Rape. A Kemen and Tboss Analysis

 

 The reason someone who was disqualified from the show for being a sexual predator can become a Payporte ambassador.

The reason why the abuser and his victim can attend the same parties and post-BBN events is the Nigerian audience, you and I?  dance to the lyrics of songs that promote such behaviour, laugh at jokes that celebrate it and enjoy movies that do same?

While we are proud of our talented and amazing artistes who are doing us proud by dominating the airwaves all over the world, we should remember that they need to stop normalizing sexual harassment and abuse.

They need to stop putting out music that makes catcalling and street harassment seem cool. Some of the lyrics are nothing but creepy.

Let’s start with Eldee in ‘Bosi Gbangba’
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‘Today na today, you no go escape, I go put you for corner, I’m ready for you.’

This simply implies very strongly that cornering a girl at a party, not letting her go regardless of whether she wants you or not is normal party behaviour.

It is part of the fun and just the next step after dancing. This just means that if I dance with a guy at a party, I should expect him to put me in a corner and not let me escape.

In ‘Shuperu’, Alhaji Orezi goes: ‘On mu champagne o. On mu rozay o. Ko wa fe ba mi lole’.

This just means that it is incredulous for you to buy a lady a drink and then she refuses to follow you home after.

In short, if you buy her a drink and she accepts, she just said yes to going home with you. I wonder what happens when more than one guy buys her a drink though.

Even Adekunle Gold who has blessed us with some of the best love songs in the past few years might have fallen into this trap.

We all know that music is one of the tools that can influence social change and that is why activists cum entertainers have always sent across strong messages via their lyrics.

What messages are our musicians passing to whoever is listening? It’s okay if you talk about how a sumptuous body is giving you a woody but please do not make it seem like it’s okay to forcefully introduce the woody to the owner of said body.

It is very okay to sing about sex even, some of the best R&B songs are about coitus. But please let it be consensual.

Do not sing about cornering women, or insinuate that acceptance of a drink is acceptance of an invitation to your abode, and do not in fact mistake presence for consent in the event that she actually follows you home.

 If someone can publicly assault a woman and get away with it this lightly, then there’s very little hope of those who are assaulted away from the public eye getting any justice.

We should do better. BBN should do better. The Nigerian entertainment industry should do better.