Off-stage, I’m shy; on-stage, I get butterflies - Slam
By Ijeoma Ogwuegbu
Saturday, October 30, 2004

His hit gospel track, Ibuchineke brought him to limelight and has continued to bring him fame. He has performed in countless cities and by now, walking unto a stage should be a piece of cake. But not so for Udoka Ogwuamanam, stage name Slam. He still gets the shivers whenever he has to get onstage to perform. Offstage, he is almost painfully shy.

“I’m very shy off-stage. I have to psyche myself offstage before I get on, not with anything but just telling myself that I‘m the best and everyone came here to see me. I always get scared before I go on stage. I still get butterflies in my stomach, I don’t know why it still happens like that and I wish I could change it. I just do. Sometimes I wonder why it still comes up now even though I’ve performed at so many places. Maybe I’m afraid I won’t do well.”

One of such performances that he will not be forgetting in a hurry is his first show at Motherlan’. Maybe that experiences is one of the reasons for those never-dying butterflies.

Embarrassing Show
“There was one show that I did and people did not react at all. The first Motherlan’ show I did, I antagonized my audience and I really had a bad show. I was trying to be funny when I’m not a comedian. They just hated me. I was singing and I turned the microphone to them to sing along and they said, “we don’t know the song, we don’t know it. Come down.” I felt so bad. Then when I went to do another Motherlan’ show, Kenny Ogungbe didn’t want me to do it because he wanted to protect me. But I did it again and it was a great show. Like in Aba, they didn’t know Ibuchineke, even though the show turned out to be a good success. Once a crowd knows your song, they can relate to it. It has to do with choice of songs and promotion. I know I’ve missed my lines a couple of times but usually I find a way around it. It comes from experience. Luckily I’ve never been so frightened that I would not be able to sing.”

Poor marketing
Aside from his first album and the singles in it, which have recorded enormous airplay due to the success of the gospel track, his subsequent works has not really been marketing successes. He says this is due largely to poor marketing the work has received from his recording company, Kennis Music.
“Dreaming about You is my new single and I was surprised that a lot of people have heard the song but they didn’t know I was the one who sang it. It has to do with marketing and promotion. It’s not my fault that people don’t know about it. I’m in a recording company whose job it is to promote me. I’m trying my best to play well and still promote my music at the same time. It’s a shame and I feel so bad about it at times. I play my songs and people will say to me, play your own song and I’ll say that’s my song. They assume someone else, some foreigner, did the song. I’m not too happy about it.”
Some people have said that one reason that his music might not be very popular is that with it’s heavy R&B and dancehall influences, audiences might find it hard to relate to. But this Petroleum engineer-turned-musician does not see that as the case.

“ I wouldn’t want to say it is because people don’t understand the music because part of my music is dancehall which has African roots. If Nigerians should love Sean Paul the way they do, then they should love the kind of music I play. Maybe they just find it hard to believe that someone that good can come out of Nigeria. I have heard people say things about not being able to relate to my music, aside from Ibuchineke. Music is global. Sean Paul and all those other guys go well here. But if it’s a Nigerian that sings those same things, then we Nigerians have a problem with it. I’ve even heard that I’m an R. Kelly wanna-be. Fine. I’m happy that they can compare me to a musical icon like R. Kelly. I believe it shows how talented that I am. Nigerians are born critics. In my album I have four traditional songs. But you’ll never know until you get the album. You just need only one song to sell an album, with one video.”

Ibuchineke
Slam says music and being a solo artist is something he has always wanted to do. So when that dream came through, it led to him singing Ibuchineke.
“I’ve always loved to do this. I did Ibuchineke because I wanted to praise God because I had always wanted to do my own thing. But I was with Paul and I was tied down doing Juju, which wasn’t my style. But eventually I got the opportunity to do it; I wanted to praise God for it. I always tell people, be yourself, do your own style. Everybody cannot be Showkey. You have to be your own person and that’s what people will relate to. That’s what will pave a way for you.”

Competition
He says that even though he is not a very competitive person, he likes to attain some level of perfection in whatever he does.
“There’s so much competition on Kennis Music and I’m not the competition type. I need to be free, to have my head clear to be able to make good songs. This is my third year on my own. I was with Paul I.K Dairo and we did a few gigs together. Only I wasn’t too comfortable with the kind of music he was playing because juju is not my style. I’ve always wanted to show people what I can do. I’ve always believed I can be better. Whenever I release an album I’m never impressed with it because I always feel I could have done better. So now I’m taking my work to another level. I’m showing the real me now, the me in me. You either love me or hate me. Now I do my thing when I want to do it. That way you find out you can work better. You’re not competing with anybody.”

Future plans
For now, he says his future plans are in God’s hands.
“I would have said I have particular plans but God has his plans for us but what I would really love to do is to be an international musical phenomenon, like an icon that everybody would know for their work. I want to get to that stage where I would have international recognition. In fact, this is just the beginning. There’s so much I’m working on right now. I’m moving two steps ahead with my music. First gospel was the thing that pushed me forward but now I’m doing secular music so some people are confused, they don’t know where to place me. My third work I’m going to stick to a particular direction so that people can say ok, this is the kind of music that this guy does. This is just the beginning.”