In the last 48 hrs, Tonto Dikeh’s latest
singles, Hi and Itz Ova, have become two of the
most listened and downloaded tracks, with over
500,000 views.
Dikeh, who joined the bandwagon of other actors
who succumbed to the moonlighting itch to
delve into singing, has been lampooned and
criticised for the lack lustre quality and
uninspiring singles which went viral shortly after
its release on Wednesday.
After announcing the planned release of singles
last week, the actress was advised by fans and
critics to forget music and concentrate on
acting.
Ironically, Hi and Itz Ova have caused a Twitter
disaster and left in its trail criticisms and knocks,
mostly from disappointed fans over the ‘auto-
tune’ assisted tracks.
As if coming from an ill-advised artiste, the song
which lacks cohesion from start, ends up losing
the listener at some point, as the singer also
sounds unsure of her lyrics. The over-use of lewd
lines is also a cause for concern, especially for
younger listeners.
Not surprising, the first set of jabs emanated
from Twitter and in an instant the sultry star
became a trending topic. Chocolate City artiste,
M.I sparked off a stream of tweets, when he
wrote, “That new Tonto song tho…”
Other comments came from followers like
@ifyliciouss who wrote, “Are u tired of living? Do
you want to die? Put on your earpiece and listen
to Tonto Dike’s new single.
@iAmBigMitch said, “Tonto Dikeh sang that song
for psychiatric patients” while @kayc sugarboy
wrote, “Tonto Dikeh’s new single is good but I
think she better as an actress.So, please pass the
Mic!!!”
For @walesleek, it was humour unlimited with
the tweet, “Tonto Dikeh just dropped her new
single, be very afraid! “
For a smart few, complimenting Dikeh was all it
took to get a follow back, mention or re-tweet by
the budding singer. This ploy did not however go
unnoticed by a smart follower who mentioned
that God was watching all those who
were hyping her to get noticed.
But just when one was about to conclude that
none of her colleagues was yet to speak in favour
of the tracks or otherwise, controversial
filmmaker, Charles Novia, who was lashed by e
Dikeh on Twitter ,after he criticised the soft porn
film she starred in two years ago, penned a
worded article on his Facebook page
titled, Tonto’s Tremolo.
It partly read, “I’m a music label owner
(November Records) and have produced and
acts like Majek Fashek, Terry tha Rapman, Zubby
Enebeli etc. I know much about music and the
slant of commercial music. But after listening to
Miss Dike’s songs, I’m inclined to align with the
majorly negative comments about them on
cyberspace. Ah-ah! Whoever produced her knew
she has a bad voice for singing and masked our
listening torture with the autotune effect. But
even the autotune rejected any attempt to make
a bad voice worse and Miss Dike came out
sounding like she was in mid-stream orgasm
instead of singing! Her anguished tremolos would
have been better reserved for a horror movie
sound effect than an attempt at joining the
revered profession of music. If Omotola got away
with her last two terrible attempts at singing, it
was because Omotola is a fantastic actress and
her fans could forgive her musical failings after
back-tracking her body of work in Nollywood.
With Tonto, I can’t say much either for her
acting depth. She’s a one-dimensional actress in
my opinion, who mistakes notoriety for fame.”
Although Dikeh is not the first Nollywood actor to
have delved into music, the many controversies
she has courted, coupled with how much she
boasted about the tracks before its release, made
her plight worse.
Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde, for instance made
several attempts in music despite two albums;
the actress who claims that her music is not for
everyone is yet to make an impact.
After she was suspended by the Actors’ Guild in
2005, Genevieve Nnaji also took a shot at music
with the release of the song No More, after
clinching a mouth-watering recording deal in
Ghana.Yet this was not even enough to make her
a force to reckon with in the music industry.
Also, Anita Joseph, who recently announced that
she is born again, is yet to make any spectacular
statement as a singer despite several singles and
colourful videos.
Other Nollywood stars who have gone into music
include Nkem Owoh, Shan George, Zack Orji, Pat
Attah, Desmond Elliot and Kate Henshaw.
