Yesterday, 27 May, one of Nigeria’s iconic figures in the entertainment sector turned 80: Ken Calebs Olumese, an Esan man from the university town of Ekpoma as he likes to describe his home town of which he is proud, as if every other town these days does not have a university but in those days when a university was established in Ekpoma (1981), it was such a thing of pride and achievement that Olumese took upon himself as a personal badge. But the real story about him and his life is his immense contributions to the cultural space in Nigeria, the impact that he has made in turning music, art, song, food, drinks, space and dance into entrepreneurial tools for the promotion of social cohesion, inclusion, solidarity, creativity and pure fun. He was the Don Cornelius, without the controversy, of the night club scene and entertainment arena in Lagos in the 80s and 90s.
He was colourful, charismatic, decent, debonair, affable, and quite astute in making friends, and building bridges and relationships. In the Opebi, Ikeja area where he ran a nightclub that was famously known as Niteshift Coliseum, he was a lord of the territory, father of the kids on the streets and friend of the gentrified class with an understanding of the register of social and communal survival beyond the pale of regular entrepreneurship. He moved with a swag.
He strutted with poise. He was the Guv’nor: who never went on transfer, or had to seek seasonal elections, or go on break, he was his own constituted.
