Nigerians Highlife musician and songwriter, Frank Ifeanyi Dons professionally known as Anyidons, says he never knew he will be successful in the industry.
Anyidons, took to his verified Facebook page to share his journey to the music industry, on how he moved from instrumentalist to singing.
Wakadaily gathered that, Anyidons came to the limelight after he featured popular musician, KCee in his music single Isee in 2019. He released several other hit tracks with the Nigerian Afrobeat/highlife singer, Kcee.
He wrote, ‘Take your time and read my story’.
I never knew I will sing professionally, I love playing the piano so much that I do the singing with the piano, I was so comfortable playing and supporting the vocalist from behind.
But something happened I notice that all my expectations as an instrumental were repeatedly dashed because every vocalist that you end up supporting with every of your strength & with the expectation that if the artist is succeeding he will in return consider your contribution and better your life, but over 15 vocalists that I worked for all discarded me whenever they start feeling like they owe me some gratitude.
The last one made me shed uncontrollable tears because I gave almost everything I could spare and still was replaced with someone I was teaching how to play the piano, and the reason was that his success cannot be mentioned without my name coming up too and whenever he pays me 4k it always hurt him cos others collect 3k from him.
Anyidons write this to encourage upcoming artists in the industry, he said, “At that point, I began to look deeper and then my eyes opened and I began to reach out to most players of the artists that we could call legends in the industry I mean the ones you know and even play their CDS back to back, these legends both past and present as of that time and I began to get answers of what was happening to me and fear caught me.
Because I came close to the instrumentalists that have recorded a lot of hit songs in the market that we idolize and pray to be like them, they motivate us so much that we actually trained ourselves with their materials and always pray that GOD will allow us to be like them.
But when I got close to them I noticed that I have been praying the wrong prayers bcos their conditions are full of regrets and frustration majority of them are merely existing.
They don’t have a house while in 60 to 70 years, many are not even married, the majority are junkies and don’t even have a working phone OMG I was so shocked to the point that I asked many of them questions. and then it dawned on me that 98% of artist/vocalist don’t even care about the players they don’t have single plans for their players.
The least they can do for any instrumentalist was to help the person go to squat within his house and be playing for him or her and that is if you are so important and all I was asking them was why? Why? Why?
And all they could tell me was, go and ask them yourself, if you are gifted then the artist you are working with will never want you to be financial because that will make you leave him or her that’s the truth.
Speaking further he said, “An artist will tell his players that he will pay them 4k each and when he gets to the stage & makes 1 million and then his face will frown because he will start thinking that if he keeps smiling with his players then they will expect him to top money for them, it’s not funny, the best he can do is to top 1k to make their money 5k and frustrations will be eating them up cos responsibilities will be pilling up.
Take your time today and check that band boy you know that is doing well as a band boy and you will find 98% not doing well.
At this point, I knew that I have to start singing to build my dream band and try and change the narratives because a wise man will always say that the change you need is you,
That’s how I ended up on the microphone as an artist today and that is the same way some instrumentalists today Ended up as DJs and MCs /hype-men go and verify and you will be shocked that 99% of all the DJs and MCs you know are instrumentalists.
Anyidons said, the lesson of the day always makes people that work with you happily, as the dollar is rising and the prices of goods are rising too are you increasing the salaries of people working with you too or do you think they are not worth it? Kill selfishness and live for others and then you will live again, live for yourself alone and live in vain
God bless all the artist that has given their players a future cos their smiles and prayers will always make you not go out of style ISEE.”
