'Highlife' music maestro, Prince Kunke Poniie a.k.a., Opio, says he is out to shake the industry with sounds that will stir music lovers. With his recent sign-up with Wake Entertainment, he seems ready to live to his mission. He speaks with our REPORTER Ovwe Medeme on his career and plans in the industry. Excerpts:

When did you venture into music?

I started as a professional musician like 20 years ago but I will say that I started music when I was a month old because I was born and brought up in music. I listened to many genres of music but when it was time for me to start professionally, I chose King Sunny Ade as my mentor. There were other musicians like Adeolu Akinsanya, IK Dairo, Ebenezer Obey, Victor Olaiya, Victor Uwaifo and others.

Listening to the kind of music you play, is it right to say that you are not inclined to Western music?

That is the thing. To me I am a Nigerian, I am an African and I so much believe in tradition. Anybody that has that in nature would want to relate with all those things that are African and Nigerian.

Back then, the music industry was lucrative and well organised, but at a point, it went down. In your opinion, what would you say went wrong?

All these things happened because of the promoters. The promoters of those days were more committed than those we have now. They concentrated in pushing out the image of the artistes and once the name was made, the promoter would then get money but promoters of nowadays want to get their money immediately. In those days when the promoter signed up a musician, he would be responsible for the studio work, studio and artiste management. They would also work out tours and shows for the artiste and those were where you would see artistes going on tour of the whole states then. Labels like TYC, EMI, Decca and so on packaged their artistes and their promotions together. That was what made it work then unlike what we see now that an artiste in Lagos State is only known in Lagos and not the next state.

Are your family members inclined to music as well?

Of course, in my family we played these traditional musical instruments called Bata and Dundun. We were from a royal lineage, the Olubire Ruling House, I am a Prince to the core. Whenever there is any vacancy in the throne, I might mount the throne.

How did your parents react when they noticed your inclination to music?

Actually it is normal for every parent to feel that way but what they don't know is the involvement and the perception most people had of musicians then was that they were hooligans, senseless and homeless persons. But if an artiste discovers himself as a musician, that is what makes you. Even when frustrations comes, the mere fact that you discovered where your passion lies goes a long way to defining how successful you will be in the profession. My parents didn't give me the go ahead to start music but I discovered myself and later they realised the path I chose was my calling. I studied Electrical and Electronics Engineering in school and I was the supervisor of Micom Electronics from where I diverted to music.

How were you able to manage the two careers?

I did not go into music directly. When I was the technical supervisor, I envisaged how I would manage the two professions and then I was using the company's Vespa scooter and the van so I found it difficult to concentrate in the sense that I might be driving and get inspirations for a song, which I would need to write down immediately. I had never been to the real thing and it got me worried. I knew that if I didn't realise this dream of being a musician, I would be a worried man for the rest of my life. I had to inform the management of the company that I had to quit. I told them the reason. I enrolled at the German School of Music at Surulere because I was afraid of joining a band. Back then, musicians were so envious of themselves that they were charming themselves. If you were a guitarist and the bandleader liked you more, you may be charmed by those envious of you. So I went to the school of music and was taught the fundamental principles of music, the rudiments of music, the beats and chord concepts. I discovered the secret of good music. I simply chose Sunny Ade as my mentor and started my journey in the music industry.

Why Sunny Ade?

He is not just a musician, but also a born entertainer. He plays that kind of music that you can watch and laugh and relax and feel free. There is never a dull moment with KSA. If you watch Sunny Ade for 200 hours, you will never get bored. You see his super costume. I believe if you pay N200, 000 to watch KSA, you will never see it as a bad investment.

What musical instrument do you play?

The guitar, I play the lead guitar. I cherish it so much.

How did you buy your first guitar?

The first guitar I had was the acoustic guitar. I had this friend called Remi Adegande, a guitarist. I went to him and sought his help because I could not afford a new one. We went and bought a box acoustic guitar and it cost N35 that was in 1978. I bought the guitar and it did not have a tuner machine. I went to the welder that soldered one there. I had a radiogram in my room and I was not really listening to the news so I opened my radiogram's circuit box and converted the radio frequency to output stage and detector stage to intermediate frequency stage and that boosted the sound output. I then went to the market and bought cords and installed it to my acoustic guitar and led it out through the radiogram and it gave me a good sound. I worked out through the guitar a socket from the radiogram that gave me one socket for a microphone and that was how I started inside my room. That was how Opio got his first guitar.

How did your first show go?

It was in Oshodi and I was still practising as an engineer. I remember that I went to the market and bought some equipment, speakers, and transformer, which I used to construct an amplifier. I was moving around then and was playing for people. That was how I started picking members of my band. I had all the percussion instruments then: the Kongos, the Kekere, the Bongas, and others. I took the people I picked and taught them how to play the instruments. I had eight members. I started playing at Fenibegilojo Hotel and people were looking at me because they knew I was an engineer. One day one man came to the hotel and asked me to play at his wedding, and to be sincere I was scared, and refused to go but he insisted that I came to play for him. I went there and played and realised N4,500, which was huge money then. I used the money to buy better equipment and that was how I started. I got another engagement and went. When I went there the first man I played for came to complain that the music I was playing was better than what I performed on his wedding. I made him realise that I used the money I got from his wedding to get better equipment.

Having just signed on to Wake Entertainment, what should your fans expect from you?

Wake Entertainment has come to revive the industry. I believe very soon you will start seeing what they are out to achieve. My album that will soon be out is entitled Opio's Shaklate. It has 12 tracks that will bring Nigeria together. In the video, King Sunny Ade participated and was there for close to five hours. That action really humbled me and since he is the King of Highlife, I am the Prince.