May 6, 2025

Wole Soyinka's "Taxi Driver "fame.part one

"Do you know Bobby benson?"
"Who is that?"
"Anyway i dony blame you guys the hiphop and afrobeats rensisance generation,i blame our educational system that refused to teach history in school."
"Then tell me who is that dude?"
"You re rude  .You re disrepecting the founding fathers of music industry in Nigeria"
"Am very sorry sir."
"You re disrepecting disciples of Ransome kuti generation especially soyinka disciples?"
"Soyinka disciples?"
"Is Prof our kongi also into music?Wait who are his disciples?"
"So let me tell you.The first musician in Nigeria was Bobby Benson.But Soyinka ended up producing them.He made him popular"
"Soyinka made Bobby Benson popular first Nigerian musician?Is he so wea<script defer src="https://shown.io/metrics/Lj3brlNr3l" type="text/javascript"></script>k that He cannot sing?"
"You know the song "Taxi Driver"fame composed for Bobby Benson in a jam studio session by Wole Soyinka in late 1950s turning into the first hit song in Nigerian history.The song brought Bobby Benson to limelight "turning to middleaged man sitting in the pack.
"He's a young chap wouldnt chap wouldnt know and if you go deeper He kla have an axe to grind with you.They re so rude and pour traduce in our history as if we have no past "
"Am sorry sir"
"Okay.Just listen to him"
"Jesus christ so the guy is an all round ?"
"Munde your tongue please!Dont talk anyhow to the greatest black man on earth like that? I wouldnt spare you a rod You know "
"Which rod?"
"A beautiful slap of course?"
"Am sorry sir.Jesus greatest black man ever?Can you defend it?"
"That is why you have to listen.Continue",turning to the raconteaur curiously gesticulating and pointificating with facts on the internet and library books.
"Because his DNA touches every black person in the world.Only black man to achieve that."
"Uhmmm........and we didnt know all these until you indisputable submission."
"He composed that song in a jam session at Can Bamboo night club of Bobby Benson in ikorodu in fifties.
Dont forget various musicians that hit stardom were later like prentices infer Bobby Benson "
"Iike What or who ?Tell him let the hiphop and afrobeats rensisance era know."
"The likes of Roy Chicago,Victor Olaiya,sir Victor Uwaifo etcetera "
"See if you tell This boy or hiphop or afrobeats rensisance generation about balla miller He doesnt know."
"O ma yé yin Egbon you would kill him.The best show of the 70s and 80s."
How would He know the doyen of music industry in Nigeria when He doesnt even know or never heard of balla miller show."
"Uhmmm"
"It is called Bala miller and the great pirameeds an NTA show 8pm on the dot.You know other shiwa too?"
"Art Alade NTA channel 10 show on Sunday mornings;Princess Afi Usuah show NTA network 8pm begins show."
"Yom yen show NTA network show channel 10 sunday mornings 
 Stephen Osita osadebe in NTA network channel 10"
"You ve not mentioned famous Bobby Benson show first on NTA channel 10 later NTA 2 channel 5,often Saturday afternoons."Iskin I
Yeah i still recall vividly .Bala miller show featured the best artists of the 80s ran from 1982 to 1987 reshow till 1990s.
Bala miler not the main singer in the band but a member of his band Abdullahi and Bala who often sat at the back and conducting the band from the back.
"Ikon Allah the hit song was performed on the show in 1984.
Art Alade was on the show in 1983 with the hit song Sisi Jowo
Yhone maha-Diocha 1983 from her album  
A student from federal girls college akure.
Bala Miller interviewed Kris Okotie in the 80s too."
"See Bala miler show from kaduna (Welcome ev-ery -body).
Featuring steve Rhodes, Bala Miller and Gloria Rhodes using Bala miller's band performing hit songs:
Taxi Driver-Bobby Benson 
Omo Laso Layo-Ambrose Campbell,
Baby Jowo--Dr Victor Olaiya 
Omo Pupa--Dr Victor Olaiya 
Joromi--Victor Uwaifo."
"This is wonderful "
"You can see Taxi Driver still being played till 80s and 90s.That was Soyinka's influence evergreen Everything He touches turn to gold nurtured unprecedented crop of leaders."
Bongos ikwue performed Daytime friends on Bala Miller show 1984."
"Let me chip in before you continue.What was it that every song composed by Bobby Benson never hit stardom more than Taxi Driver by Wole soyinka?After Taxi Driver hit stardom across west africa,other songs with Bobby Benson like Gentleman Bobby,Iyawo de wo lose mi,Mafe,Nylon Dress and Niger Mambo never went far like Taxi Driver dame?"
"He's real oracle more than a midas touch?"
"Without that Taxi Driver famed song we wouldnt have great musicians like Victor Olaiya sir Victor Uwaifo,Roy Chicago and infact the potential of Bobby Benson would have nden dead.So soyinka brought glamor to that industry at the most important time He was badly needed.Still the Bobby Benson had the gut to chase Wole Soyinka and his theatre groups when performing "
"Dont be ignorant man.That was the venue of his TV show.Dont you get it!"
"Get What !A disrespect to the genius that have you the first big hit song and without with He wouldhave become nothing."
",You re right in some waya people are ingrate by nature."
"But the hotel Caban Bamboo was buldozed by Fashola for being security risk on the ikorodu road."
",You know What the problem is ?He had ten children from three women."
"See NTA have always been a boring channel especially when military men and later  politicians hijacked the channel.
See the old shiwa like Sessame streets,Stepjoe and sons,Dangote and Sons,Sweeny,Joe90,family matters,Tommorrow people,famous five,Get Smart,Good times,knight Rider,Different strokes,Bill Cosby shiwa in the 90s,MacgyVer,Big foot,Incredible hulk, Contact on NTA 2 channel 5.
The Bar Beach show in late 1960s and 1970 down to early 80s on NTA channel 10 by art Alade.Sunny side of life.
When Soyinka wrote his first full play My Father's Burden directed by ambassador Segun Olushola .He initiated a new generation of content creators using drama to make entertainment on televizion interesting.
Take Kongi harvest by Wole soyinka for instance first featured film in Nigeria in 1970 became prototype for successive films.He is a pioneer in every industry influencing platforms that later creators millions of leaders and jobs in the continent.






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