FOR months now, Lagbaja has not performed in Motherlan Allen, venue of his once popular monthly gig, fuelling rumours that the masked one has left Nigeria for good.
Recent story on the jazzist, however, is so disturbing that RMT visited Motherlan’ on Monday and found the place under lock. It has even been taken over by weeds.
What prompted the visit was the recent information RMT got from another US-based Nigerian musician that all is not that well with Lagbaja as he’s been stranded in New York and had just been employed as a cab driver.
RMT source, also a musician, informed that the Afro beat musician had been struggling to live life the American way, so one of his friends in New York "called and begged" him to help out somehow as the musician was in dire strait.
“My friend told me the musician has been living on family friends and others, but was tired of such a life and wanted to do something fast. “The fastest I could do was to set him a job as a cabbi. I don’t know what next for him though”, the instrumentalist said.
Lagbaja, a big star in Nigeria, suddenly disappeared from the music scene about 5 months ago.
Some of his Nigerian fans were shocked that he could leave the country just like that as "he was making loads of money”, said one, while one of his dancers said “its been long since he invited me to his regular gigs, neither do I get him on his phone again”.
A visit to the artisit’s base at least confirmed that the place had not been used for a long time. Overgrown with weeds and both gates locked, a mechanic admitted that “it’s been long since I saw him”.
Unconfirmed reports have it that the musician’s wife is yet to get a job in US after leaving her lucrative one for US ahead of her husband. Infact, the source was shocked the wife was yet to get a job, “despite her credentials”.
“A lot is expected of the masked one as the bread winner, I guess that’s why he didn’t turn down his cabbie job,” he said. He, however, warned Nigerians that “US is not as rosy as being painted in the magazines and movies. Here, you live for the bills.
Another source very close to Lagbaja, however, informed RMT that it was not true that he had turned a cab driver, but that he was out of sight because he was putting "final touches to his next album".
Lagbaja hit limelight with his jazz version of K1’s “Baby Show Color” in the 90s and went on to release series of hits such as “Nothing For You”, “The Way” and several others.
His once-a-month gig at Motherlan’ drew diplomats and young fans in droves and charged fees ranging from N3.5m to N5m as appearance fees before he left Nigeria. It was once reported that his CD was the highest selling among Africans in California.
Lagbaja is not the only Nigerian that had sought greener pasteurs in God’s Own Country as the list includes recently returned Felix Lebarty who admitted it wasn’t that easy in US. He is now a preacher.
Same for Mike Okri who initially performed in pubs in US, but suddenly quit the scene as he was not drawing the crowd as expected. He was said to have worked in a used-car shop until he finally went underground.
Alex Zitto too reportedly flipped burgers in US until no reports of him were heard again

http://www.tribune.com.ng/19102008/razz.html

Dont think relocating from Nigeria is a good move for any Nigerian artiste, not to talk of a superstar of the Masked one's calibre. Yes, Lagbaja has conquered Nigeria, he has conquered Africa, but that isnt enough reason to leave Motherland(pun intended), afterrall Fela ruled the world from his Lagos shrine. Anyway, it's not too late for him to learn from what happened to the likes of Majek Fashek, Ras Kimono, Felix Lebarty, Mike Okri, etc.

na lie jor!