Meeting Bem Sar at Salamander Cafe on a rainy Thursday evening turned out to be more than what I expected. First of all I wasn’t quite expecting anything. I’d just being soaked from running to the Cafe, halfway realising, either way I was still going to get wet. When I finally arrived, things began to warm up. As I sat with Bem Sar, I ran through some questions and discovered some amazing revelations. The man sitting before me, who is primarily known as a soul/alternative singer started out wanting to be a rapper... for real. I asked why the change from the world of Hip Hop to Alternative R&B, he told me because he hated the examples of rappers out there at the time (and presumably now). Fair enough, with T.I back in jail after just being released five months ago, it probably won’t change his mind today.
Bem Sar has been writing and producing primarily for himself for fourteen years, according to him he decided to go professional in 2003. I asked him about his biggest hit, ‘Something Good’, which came out six years ago and if he notices its absence from radio nowadays, what with today’s radio persistence of drowning us in D’banjs and Tufaces. He shocked me again saying he hardly listens to radio to even know if his hit still gets played. A hit which came by accident one Christmas show in 2004, when he performed it at the end of a stage performance and got a great response from the crowd. He never intended to record it till that show. With a few minutes left on his time on stage, he performed, ‘Something Good’ and he had his first (and yet only) hit. I asked him if that bothered him, he admitted he was tired of it being his only recognizable song, but not less any appreciative. I experienced first-hand the recognition he got from that song, the first time I saw him perform at the first TGIF (Thank God It’s Friday) in Abuja. After singing a couple of songs or so, two girls behind me started shouting, ‘Something Good’. I thought they were crazy... then he performed it and I was like, ‘Oh... I get it’.
I asked if he was recording anything new. Like most musicians he replied in the affirmative, but he struck me as someone who recorded more for the pleasure of it, rather than someone trying to meet a deadline for an album or trying to get that next hit out there. I asked him if he felt music should have a message. He replied in the affirmative, which led to us discussing the state of the Nigerian music industry, which could be another article on to itself. He felt the Nigerian music scene was ‘in a state of flux’. Despite all this, he believes the industry is still driven by passion and not money. He promoted, ‘Something Good’ with absolutely no budget. He credits that to the passion of the fans. Although I doubt today’s fans and execs would agree the industry is still driven by just passion alone. Asked what his crowning achievement was, he said it was yet to happen like, ‘performing in a crowd of at least 10,000’ people. This, coming for the guy who got to perform for the president on two occasions (in Abuja and Lagos); not to mention for former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and former first lady, late Stella Obasanjo.
As we further discussed the music industry, he made it clear his future aspiration was to be a musical institution in the same vein as the Bob Marleys and Felas of this world. He talked about how although he didn’t always agree with some of the late Tupac Shakur’s message in most of his hits, he admired the late rapper’s passion. Something he found in the likes of Fela and Bob Marley. I asked what he listens to and the answers give you a view into what his musical mindset is like; Prince, Lenny Kravitz (who he would like to work with) and Terence Trent D’Arby to name a few. Bringing it home, he likes Fela, especially his boldness, Lagbaja, who he finds creative and Asa. When discussing who he thinks will be the next thing, he mentions ladies like Miss Lindsey Abudei and Ibiyemi and a little fellow called Bez.
Asked to impart some wisdom to up and comers, Bez replied, ‘educate yourself’ and ‘practice; the more you do something, the better you get at it!’, which is why you can find him every Thursday evening at Salamander Cafe horning his skills to the delights of frequenters. Now that’s passion!
For more on Bem Sar, check out his website www.bemsar.com.
