Protest music can still be pop singer's new march

2face Idibia over the weekend pulled out of the planned February 6, 2017 nationwide protest which he had championed.

The move which was announced via a short video circulated on the internet via social media, shows a resigned 2face addressing the nation on his decision to cancel the protest.

“Dear Nigerians, after due consultations, it has become clear that the One Voice Nigeria protest scheduled to hold in Lagos and Abuja on Monday the 6th of February is under serious threat of hijack by interests not aligned with our ideals.” The pop star said.

He effectively cancelled the protest, and threw the entire country in a polarised state. Many people believe that 2face chickened out of the protest, because he developed cold feet, while others award him ‘hero’ status. The third group says by calling for a protest, he has done enough by lending his voice, and that the protest march was just symbolic.

But this shouldn’t be the end.

2face Idibia might have cancelled the protest march, but if he is passionate about the sorry state of affairs in his country, then he should lead from the studio. He is essentially a musician, with political cache and a burning fire in his heart for good governance and the common man. All though in his albums, he has had songs with political leanings and themes, calling on the system to favour the people.

That’s what got him here in the first place and provided him with the political cache and influence to galvanise people and create a consciousness about social justice. That should not stop. 2face Idibia can put his most powerful platform and tool to use and work on penetrating the people’s consciousness.

He can march with his protest music, release records to capture the times, inspire and motivate the people.

The most iconic Nigerian musician, the late Fela Kuti, was an activist who fought bad governance with his music and actions. But no matter what he did off the mic, his most potent medium was the music. Fela sang against oppression, against colonial mentality, against inequality, classism and many more ills.

Sadly, even today, all of his words are still relevant. He continues to speak to us from the grave.

2face has the option of taking this route, and intensifying his efforts at inspiring change from influencing the minds of all his fans via his music. We need new conscious projects created and released with the sole purpose of activism. From singles, through to full-length albums, 2face has a real chance here to pivot his art towards a greater end.

He can be today’s Fela.